What I Never Told You

Chapter 10

  "Where in the world are we?" I asked as I examined the mansion in front of us.
  "Dylan Walker's house. He's throwing a party tonight. He's in college and is known for hooking up with high school girls at his parties. Come on." Noah opened the door and walked inside.
  I followed behind him, admiring the carefully sculpted pillars that lined the corridors with porcelain floors that were so polished that I could see my reflection.
  The walls were decorated with Renaissance paintings, but it seemed to be missing that personal touch that most owners add.
  It was like the house had been rented just for tonight. There was hardly any furniture and it was too clean to consider it to be lived in, especially if this was a teen party.

  We made our way towards the back of the house into what I think was the sitting room.
  The room was packed with high school and college students. Some were dancing and others were making out while others were throwing back drinks.
  There were alcohol bottles and beer cans scattered across the counters and floor.
  Music was being blasted from the speakers and the lights were dimmed.
  I scanned the sea of strangers. "I don't see her!"
  "It's a miracle that you can see anything in here." He peeled a piece of gum off his shoe and tossed it over his shoulder.
  "Hey!" A girl yelled and reached up to pick the gum out of her hair.
  "Sorry!"

  We moved towards the glass doors in the back corner and stepped out onto the balcony.

  There she was. On the opposite end with a sinewy guy with olive skin and black hair. He had his hands curled around her arms and was squeezing them. She was squirming, trying to escape from his grip and said something to him.

  "That's him," Noah said with clenched teeth.

  Dylan leaned closer and planted a kiss on her lips.

  I began walking towards her, but Noah beat me to her.
  "Get off her!" He pulled Dylan off her and shoved him against the concrete. Blood dripped down the edge of his mouth and his green eyes lit up with fury.

  Noah grabbed her hand and dragged her into the house; I ran behind them.

  "Ouch!" Aurora had stepped on a shard of glass and sucked in a breath.

  "Come on, we have to get out of here." Noah wrapped her arm around his neck and helped her limp down the stairs and out to the car.

  As I climbed into the car, I noticed Dylan running out of the house.

  "Drive! Now!" I yelled to Noah.
  He followed my gaze and stepped on the gas.
  When we were at a safe distance, he slowed down and turned to Aurora.  
"Are you alright?"
  "I'm okay. You got there just in time. I just need to go home and burn my lips."

  I heard a noise that was growing louder by the second. I turned around and saw a red sports car. Dylan was trailing behind us.

  "Noah, drive faster! He's right behind us!"

  He sped up, hitting 90 mph.

  He slammed on the brakes when he pulled up in front of my grandparents' house a few minutes later. "Get her inside. I'll deal with Dylan."

  I grabbed her arm and helped her hobble up the wooden steps. I rummaged through my purse, trying to find my keys.
 
  Dylan pulled up behind Noah's car and slammed the car door behind him as he made his way to Noah. "What do you think you're doing? We were having a good time."
  "Really? Preying on innocent high school girls is your idea of a good time? Wow, you really are messed up," Noah replied.
  Dylan lunged for him, knocking him down to the ground and began punching him.

  "Noah!" Aurora cried.

  Noah rolled out from under him and yelled to me, "Get inside!"
  Dylan got up and grabbed Noah by his shirt collar and threw him against the porch railing.
  He bashed his head against it, and the wood splintered beneath his weight.

  Dylan turned and began climbing the steps towards Aurora and me.

  Noah pulled himself up, as red liquid trickled down the side of his face, and charged towards Dylan. He grabbed a fistful of his shirt, yanked him back, and swung at his jaw.
  He would definitely be sore in the morning.

  I was still fumbling around for my keys when my grandparents came outside to see what all of the commotion was about.
  "What is going on out here?" Grandpa Jack demanded. He examined the yard, trying to connect the dots.
  He looked at the destroyed railing. His eyes sparkled with sadness. He moved his gaze to Dylan. "Leave now, before I call the cops."

  "Fine. I can't afford to get charged with another misdemeanor." He scowled at Noah and said, "I won't forget this" before driving away.

  Aurora rushed over to Noah, who was writhing in pain, and placed his head in her lap. "I can't believe you did that." She gingerly touched his the scar on his forehead. "Does it hurt?"
  He winced.
  She leaned closer and blew over the scratch.
  I ran inside the house and flung cabinets and drawers open, trying to find a cloth. I finally found one under the sink and ran it under cold water. I ran back outside and handed it to Aurora.
  She laid it over his head.

  "Can you get up?" Grandpa Jack asked him.

  He tried but he stumbled back onto the ground.
  Grandpa Jack descended down the stairs and helped him up and into the house. He placed him on the couch and told him that he could stay here tonight.

  "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask," Grandma Rose said before going upstairs with Grandpa Jack right behind her.

  I moved towards the stairs as well and looked over at Aurora. "Are you coming?"
  "I think I'm going to stay down here for a bit," she said, looking at Noah.

  I went into my grandparents room.

  Grandpa Jack was in bed, reading. He looked up at me through his glasses.

  "Grandpa Jack, I'm so sorry about your porch railing. Your years of hardwork were destroyed in two seconds."
  "It's okay", he lied.
  "I promise, I'll help you rebuild it."
  He offered me a tiny smile. "Good night, Bellabug."

  I shut the door and went to my room. I began dialing before I realized what I was doing. The one person that I wanted to talk about and fill her in about the crazy night I just had-- I couldn't anymore.
  I quickly closed the app and realized that my inbox was flooded with texts from Asher.

Is something wrong?
Is it me?
You haven't been answering my calls or texts.
I went over to your house today and your mom told me that you were in Switzerland?!?
Did I do something?
Is it because of what happened when I dropped you off?

  I sighed, knowing that I couldn't avoid him forever.

  I hit the back button and pulled up my old messages with Everly. I scrolled up to the day that she had texted me that she got her first job at a boutique. She was so excited. I was jumping around my room, happy for her.

  I noticed three dots flashing at the bottom of the screen. Clearly, she was thinking about me too. I held my breath waiting for the text to come through. But it never did. The dots vanished as fast as they appeared.

  I decided to call Asher. I needed to tell someone about tonight's series of events. He used to be my best friend and I wanted to fall back into our old comfortable rhythm.

  He picked up on the first ring. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked immediately.
  "I'm fine."
  "So you deciding to jet to Switzerland had nothing to do with our kiss?"
  "No, my decision to come here had nothing to do with you." Okay, maybe it did. But he wasn't the only reason.
  "So then what made you do it?"
  "I'm sure you've heard by now, but Everly and I had a bit of a falling out."
  "Why?"
  "I don't really want to get into that right now. I just wanted to talk to someone about the crazy night I just had. And I obviously can't talk to her."
  "I'm listening."