“Yes. Why don’t we? What big secret are you keeping?” I bitch, crossing my arms and cocking my hip.
“We care about you, Willow. We have cared about you for a long time. That guy that you just pushed out the door? He cares about you more than anyone,” he says, pointing toward the door.
“Sure, and I’m the Queen of England,” I snark.
“You once said actions mean more, right? What about everything we’ve done for you? Do those actions not speak loud enough for you?”
“Don’t you dare say protecting me is proof you care. We both know the only reason I’m here right now is because I wouldn’t be in this mess if you guys didn’t do shady shit.”
“Okay. What about the jacket you got last year?”
“It was left in my locker with a note. Someone’s hand-me-down to make their humanitarian side feel better,” I say, thinking about when the jacket randomly appeared.
“It wasn’t. It was a brand new jacket. The day before, we were riding to school. You must have missed the bus because you were walking in a long-sleeved shirt. Do you remember what Chase asked you that day?” he challenges.
I try to think back, but I don’t remember. Every day is the same. “No.”
“We waited for you to get to school. He said, ‘Hey Trailer Park, couldn’t afford a jacket?’”
The memory comes rushing forward, and I nod.
“I remember now. I told him we weren’t all rich pricks that could afford new clothes whenever the need arose.”
“Yeah. Well, that day, Chase went and bought a brand new jacket from the store, then roughed it up a bit before stealing the keys from the janitor and putting it in your locker. He had some freshman write the note so you would accept it and not know it was him.”
I look away, trying to hide my shock.
“That was Chase?”
He nods. “Remember in freshman year? You started school mid-year.”
“Yeah.”
“Remember how you used to not eat lunch?”
“Yeah. You guys used to make fun of me. Ask if it’s because I was fat or if I was too poor to eat.” I shift uncomfortably, wondering where he’s going.
“You let it go for a while, but do you remember when you finally stood up to us?”
I nod. “Yeah. I told you that you wouldn’t understand being so hungry but not being able to afford to eat. Some teacher must have heard me say something because a couple days later, I was offered free lunch.”
“Free lunch that Chase paid for.” Nate pauses, letting his words sink in. “Chase put money in your school account and asked the principal not to say anything. He told him you would be embarrassed and wouldn’t accept it, so instead the principal told you that you were added to the free lunch program.”
“What? No way. Why would he do that?” I ask, shaking my head, backing away.
“The first day you stepped foot in Central High, Chase changed. He was a sixteen-year-old kid who had to take care of his punk brother and still go to school. It was a condition of his emancipation after our parents died. He was so focused on that, that he didn’t see anything else.” He stares down at his hands. “Then you crashed into his life, literally. You walked right into him while looking for the office. He snapped at you, like he does everyone. Most people would shrink away. Hell, most people fear him.” He shakes his head with a small smile on his face.
“It was an accident. I was going to apologize before he called me an imbecile,” I interrupt.
“Exactly. He froze as you told him off before walking away. He didn’t say it, but I think that’s the day he decided you were his.”
“His?” I ask, pulling at my earlobe.
He shrugs. “His to protect. To take care of. You know why he was so mad the night that guy came here?”
“Because some asshole was spying on you?”
He shakes his head. “No. He was mad because he didn’t check the alarm. We have sensors throughout the woods. You’ve seen us check them. He knew you went out there. He saw you enter not long before the second one went off. He thought you had just gone to grab some food out of the box you kept out there and were headed back out, so he didn’t bother to check it. He was pissed because you got hurt because he neglected to look. He was trying to give you privacy and in the end, you got hurt. That’s why.”
