Cloud Walking (Find You in the Dark #1.5)(15)
Author: A. Meredith Walters

I stormed off the dance floor and headed over to the punch table. Kylie was hot on my heels. I got myself something to drink and took it down in one gulp. I refused to look at my ex-girlfriend. She was screwing everything up, just like she always did.

“Daniel. Please. I need to talk to you.” There was something about her voice that made me look down. And I saw that her mascara was smeared as though she had been crying. Her eyes were puffy and she looked like hell.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, feeling a twinge of worry at her appearance. It wasn’t like Kylie to go into public without being one hundred percent perfect. Something was up.

“Can we step outside?” she pleaded. I looked over at Rachel, who was now sitting with Maggie. Clay was still a no show and I wondered briefly what was up with him. But at least Rachel had company for a few minutes.

“Sure,” I said, hoping I wouldn’t come to regret this. Kylie looked relieved and we went out the side entrance. I followed her around to the front steps of the school and sat down. I looked over at Kylie and noticed that she was crying again. I felt bad for being annoyed that she had interrupted my moment with Rachel. Obviously something was really bothering her.

And despite my less than amorous feelings towards her now, I had still spent a year with this girl. I wasn’t made of ice after all. I put my arm around her shoulders and she buried her face in my jacket. “Hey now. Calm down and tell me what’s wrong,” I said soothingly, rubbing my hand up and down her back.

She pressed into me and cried nosily. I held her lightly, not wanting to give her the wrong idea. I waited for her to stop crying before I asked her again what was wrong. She sat back and wiped at the dripping mascara on her face.

“My mom told me before I came here tonight that she and my dad are splitting up,” she wailed and started to sob again. Well crap. I could empathize with her break-down. I used my thumbs to wipe the tears from her cheeks.

“It’ll be alright. I know it sucks right now, but you always told me how much they fought. So this is probably the best thing for everyone,” I reasoned, watching her sniffle. Kylie’s vulnerability was a rare sight. I felt bad for her, understanding completely what she was going through. And even though she wasn’t my girlfriend anymore, I could be here for her as a friend.

I put my hand in my pocket, looking for my phone so I could send a text to Rachel, letting her know what was going on. Then I realized I had left my phone in the truck. Kylie had started crying again. “I just can’t go back in there! Will you stay with me? Please,” Kylie begged, clutching at my hand.

Well damn. I couldn’t very well leave her. I’d just explain to Rachel when I got back inside. She would understand. At least I hoped so.

So I stayed with Kylie outside, talking to her, trying to get her to calm down. After awhile, when she had finally stopped crying, I asked Kylie what time it was. “Eleven,” she said, pulling her phone out of her purse.

I jumped to my feet. “Shit, I’ve got to get back inside.” Christ! Who knew what Rachel was thinking. I was such a dick!

Before I could leave, Kylie grabbed my arm. “Thank you so much, Danny. You’ve made me feel a lot better,” she told me sincerely. I gave her a genuine smile.

“Good, I’m glad. And if you need anything, just let me know.” Then before I realized what was happening, Kylie had latched herself around me, her lips pressing against mine. I could feel her tongue begging for entrance and I felt a momentary weakening. This was familiar. This was habit.

This was not what I wanted anymore.

I peeled her arms away from my neck and held her away from me. “I’ll be there as a friend if you want, Kylie. But nothing else. That part of our relationship is over,” I told her, trying to be gentle but firm.

Kylie’s eyes started to well up with tears again, but I was unswayed. All I could think about was getting back to Rachel. I needed to be with her again. It was nuts how much I missed her when we weren’t together.

And looking at this girl who I had thought I had loved for so long, I realized that my feelings for Kylie were nowhere close to what I felt for Rachel.

“I’ve got to go,” I said. Kylie didn’t try to stop me.

Not that there was a point to run back inside.

Rachel had left.

Chapter Nine

~Rachel~

God, it sucked to be right all the time. I knew Danny would crush my heart. And darned if I wasn’t right. He had ripped it right out of my chest and smashed it on the floor. Fall Formal had been a complete and utter disaster. What an idiot I had been in thinking it was the chance for Daniel and me to really be together.

I should have known he’d always yo-yo back to Kylie. He did each and every time. Why had I been surprised? We seemed to have been playing this song and dance for so long already and my part was firmly laid out.

My aside would read, The love struck best friend stands on the sidelines, watching the happy couple go off together. Her face crumbles as she realizes she never had a chance.

Daniel had been blowing up my phone since I had left the dance. I had gotten a ride with Ray and Claire. I hadn’t even bothered to tell Danny I was leaving. Especially considering the last time I had seen him, he and Kylie were having quite the reconciliation. I had known instantly where that was heading and I didn’t want to be left there, ditched and humiliated.

Particularly after Maggie had taken off after Clay.

And there was the other side to this big ol’ mess.

Maggie and Clay were a time bomb waiting to go off. I knew the guy had issues. I had seen first-hand how all over the place he was. But when he had gone off at the dance because Maggie was dancing with Luke Tyler, it had seriously freaked me out.

And the way she had taken off after him, without a thought to anything else, scared the crap out of me. I had followed her outside with every intention of using bodily restraint to stop her from making, what I was sure was a horrible mistake.

But then I had seen Kylie and Daniel kissing out by the parking lot and that had been it. Put a fork in me, I was done.

So I had begged Ray to give me a lift. I was done with standing there like an idiot while my friends made crappy life decisions. I had gone home and went straight to bed.

The next morning, my mom had come into my room. “How was the dance?” she had asked me as I sat up in bed. My head was killing me and I knew the headache came from the ridiculous amount of crying from the night before.

I sighed and my mom had grimaced. “That bad, huh?” she said, reaching out to touch my arm. “What happened?” she asked me and I couldn’t help the look of surprise that I gave her. I couldn’t remember the last time she and I had a heart to heart about my life. She was either too busy or too exhausted to worry much about what I was doing.