Page 24 of Fractured Mind
“Yes, I do.” I tilt my head. “What’s wrong?”
He clears his throat. “I’ll jog with you from now on.”
His tone is firm, and I can tell something isn’t right. “Umm... thanks, that would be great. You can show me some new trails.”
“Tell me when you go.”
It sounds like an order, and my gut drops in alarm. “Why?”
His face softens. “Just let me run with you. It can be dangerous by yourself.” His voice becomes strangled, and sadness fills his eyes.
I don’t know why, but unease ripples through my body.
Ruby walks over to us, clearing her throat because Ashton is sitting on her towel. He gazes at me for a while longer before getting up and returning to the guys.
“What was that about?” Ruby asks while wiping her body with the towel.
I momentarily stare at Ashton. “I’m not sure... He got upset when I told him I go running.”
Her eyes search mine with a deep frown on her face. “So you don’t know why that upset him?”
I shake my head, tongue tied, as the uneasy feeling intensifies. She rubs at the base of her throat, her eyes darting from left to right.
“Please tell me. I wanted to start fresh here. Learn about my past... I can’t do secrets... not after everything I’ve been through.”
“There’s something you need to know, but I think I should tell you somewhere more private.”
So, something is going on.I swallow back the rising emotion. I shake the sand off my towel and look over at the guys, who are still playing football.
“We’re going now . . . bye,” Ruby yells.
They stop and turn to us. Roman waves and smiles, and Jackson gives us a chin lift, but Ashton just stares blankly.
Ruby puts our towels into a bag that she places in the trunk of her car. Once in her seat, she stares out the front windscreen, but I’m impatient. “Please, tell me what’s going on.” The knot in my stomach keeps tightening.
Her mouth forms a thin line as she clasps and unclasps her hands. “What do you know about your accident?”
“Not a lot.” A sudden shot of fear strikes me.
“I’m sorry, Mia,” she murmurs with sympathy swirling in her eyes. “You were hit by a car when you were out running.”
No. No. No. This can’t be happening to me.I swear my heart just cracked inside my chest. My lip quivers, but I attempt to hold it together. “What happened?”
She peers at the ground before making eye contact. “You should speak to your family.”
It’s hard when my mom won’t talk to me about it, but I keep my comment to myself because it’s not Ruby’s fault. She’s the only one who has been honest with me.
“Can you take me home?” My voice is distant, but inside, my head is screaming with questions I have yet to find out the answers to.
CHAPTER
EIGHT
MIA
Over the next few days,I keep finding myself staring at my running shoes. The thing that brought me happiness is now tainted. So many questions threaten to suffocate me. Since I was only twelve years old, where was I when I was hit? Why did it happen? Was I distracted, or was it done on purpose? To be honest, I wish Ruby never told me.
I’m on this rollercoaster of emotions that I can’t get off. One minute I’m scared, the next sad, and then livid. Running was the one thing that helped me on days I was stressed.