Chapter Three: The Truth

When Saturday comes around, Cole's nerves begin to mess with him when he remebers his date with Briar. And when an unexpected truth is revelaed at their date, Cole's drawn closer to Briar, his feelings stronger than before. What will Cole learn?

 

 

                Friday came and went, and when I woke up Saturday morning, I was already beginning to feel nauseous. I almost felt like I should call off our lunch date, but I decided not to. I wanted this, and I knew if I blew her off, I would regret it. I just needed to go out and have fun. But still, there was something about her that kept me from wanting a friendship. She was flawless. It was hard to look at her without wanting her to be mine.

                As soon as I finished dressing myself, the phone rang. I jumped, and walked over to my nightstand where the phone lay. I picked it up, and clearing my throat. “Hello?”

                “Is this Cole?”

                “Yes.”

                “Hi Cole! It’s Briar.”

                My stomach suddenly felt like it was twisting up into a mess of knots. I took a deep breath. “Hi Briar, how are you?”

                “I’m fine; I’m just reminding you to pick me up at about eleven, in case you forgot.”

                “No, no, how could I?”

                She giggled, and took a deep breath. “Okay, great, I feel better now. I’ll be outside waiting okay?”

                “Sure, I’ll be there in a few hours.”

                “’Kay Cole, see ya!”

                “See ya Briar.”

                “Bye.”

                “Bye.” I hung up the phone, and stuck it back on the receiver, taking a deep breath myself. It still seemed too early, but I was going with my gut instinct this time. I was gunna let whatever happened, happen.

                I made my way downstairs, feeling nervous and jumpy. I was hoping by the time I got to Briar’s that I would start to feel a bit more calm. I reassured myself over and over that I would be fine; everything would go great; we were just friends going out to lunch. But deep down inside, I wanted much more than just a friendship.

                “Hey Cole.”

                I jumped. Turning around, I saw my mom, Denise, staring at me. “Hi Mom,” I muttered, walking into to kitchen.

                “When are you going out?”

                “Oh, um, in a couple hours I’m just… gunna get something to eat before I leave.” I stared at me feet.

                I felt Denise staring at me. I lifted my head. “Yes?”

                “Nothing.” She was smiling. “Sophie called this morning while you were sleeping.”

                I swallowed, gritting my teeth. “I hope you told her never to call here again.”

                “I told her to try back later if it was necessary.”

                “Mom." I narrowed my eyes at her. "Well that was stupid, because nothing she says is going to matter or change my feelings toward her."

                “I know Cole, but I couldn’t be mean, it’s not who I am.”

                “I don’t care!” I argued. “Next time she calls, tell her not to call back… ever.”

                Denise sighed and raised her hands defensively. “Okay Cole, I’ll do that.” She turned away and walked back into the living room. I grumbled as I walked over to the fridge. I didn’t ever want to see Sophie again. And I didn’t want to talk to her, either.

                Within minutes of my breakfast, the phone began to ring again. I sprang from my seat and ran over to the receiver, picking it up eagerly. “Hello?”

                “Hey, you’re awake now.”

                I narrowed my eyes into slits, and bashed my fist against the counter top. “Don’t call back here, Sophie, I don’t want anything to do with you anymore. I wanted to be friends at first, but now I could care less.”

                She chuckled over the phone. “Oh Cole, you’re so cute.”

                “Bye Sophie.” I slammed the phone down on the receiver and screamed.

                “Cole, cut that out!” My dad yelled back to me.

                “I don’t ever want her calling here again!”

                “Okay, fine then!”

                “I’m serious!” I squeezed my eyes shut and dropped to the floor. I felt so pathetic. I didn’t want to be acting so childish, but I was trying to move on, I was trying to forget about her. And every time I tried, she came crawling back.

                I lifted my head. I inhaled a deep breath of air, and let it out slowly. This too shall pass, I thought. I had heard that so many years ago from my father, and I haven’t forgotten it since.

                I stood up, and decided that I wasn’t going to allow her to ruin my day. I was going to have a good day. I was going to allow myself to start over.

                By ten-thirty, I was out the door and I drove off down the road in my dumpy pick-up truck that was as old as me. But it got me around, and it was better than not having a car at all.

                When I finally pulled onto Langley Road, I saw Briar out on the front porch, leaning against the wooden rail. I honked the horn, and she jumped slightly, looking my way. I rolled down my window. “You coming?”

                She smiled, and ran towards, her long, deep chocolate hair trailing behind her. She jumped into the truck with me and slammed the door. “Let’s go.”

                And with that, we took off, but didn’t go straight to lunch. I had other places I wanted to show her first.

 

                “I come here a lot.”

                Briar was smiling. “Nice, a funny place for a park but…”

                I laughed. “Yeah, well, that’s Newton for ya. But, it is a fun place to come. I love it here.”

                Briar nodded, leaning against the park bench. She shut her eyes. “I loved going to parks when I was in Maine, we had ones right near the ocean. It was so beautiful…”

                I stayed silent for a minute. I wanted to know why she had to move from her hometown of so many years, but now wasn’t the time, and I knew that.

                She opened her eyes, and gave me a slight smile. “But I supposed I should get use to Massachusetts parks, right?”

                I returned the smile. “You’ll get use to it. Down on the Cape, there are some really beautiful parks.”

                “I can imagine.”

                “During the summer, we usually take a trip down there, I’ve always enjoyed it.”

                “Yeah, well, oceans are great. I love them.”

                I looked around me, admiring my surroundings. I always loved Massachusetts, I could never imagine moving. “Salem’s great too. There’s a beach there with a sandwich shop near the coast, it’s great, I haven’t gone in a while though.”

                Briar was staring at me, and she tugged on the sleeve of my hoodie. “Cole…”

                “Yes?” I asked suspiciously, turning to face her.

                “You have to bring me there.”

 

                I rolled my eyes, smiling. “Oh come on! Salem? That’s like… an hour long drive! We have to go all the way to Salem?” I protested, raising my brows at her.               

                She nodded. “Yeah! Wouldn’t that be great? No, it wouldn’t be great, it would be awesome.” Her crystal blue eyes glittered. “Wouldn’t it Cole?”

                I bobbed my head up and down. “Yeah, I guess it’d be worth it. But we’re gunna have to leave now, because it’s eleven fifteen.”

                She smiled brightly. Her face seemed to be illuminated. She was so perfect. “Really?” she inquired, hands resting on her knees.

                I stood up. I sighed. “Yes.”

                “YES! Thank you, Cole! Thank you!” She jumped off the bench and wrapped her arms around me. Pulling away, she turned towards the car and shot me a smile over her shoulder. “I’ll race you to the car, ready, set, go!”

                “Hey! No fair!” I hollered as I took off towards her. She was only a few strides ahead of me. But as I was gaining, she just seemed to go faster. I frowned. “Hey, hold up.”

                She stopped dead in her tracks, tumbling in the process. Catching herself, she turned around to face me. “What?”

                “Nothing, I just wanted to win!” And with that, I shot past her and slapped my hand on the truck.

                “That’s cheating,” Briar complained as she walked over to me.

                I shrugged. “You’ll win next time.” I opened the car door and jumped in. She followed. We looked at each other. “Ready?”

                “Ready.”

 

                The drive down was long, but it wasn’t horrible. We always had something to talk about. When we finally pulled into a parking lot a few minutes from the beach, I was relieved. We got out and stretched, happy to be outside. The smell of salt water overwhelmed me. I grinned. “Wow, this is nice.”

                Briar walked around slowly, admiring the landscapes. “This is really beautiful.” She stared off of the parking deck, gazing at the glossy water. “Well, let’s go!”

                We walked down the street, looking at all the little boutiques and candy shops. Every couple minutes Briar would see something that would catch her eye. We’d wander in, look around, and leaved, empty handed or we’d have something so small it would fit in our pockets. Little things, things to remind us of the day.

                When we finally arrived to the sandwich shop, I was exhausted, and felt like sitting at one of the tables and eating.

                “No,” Briar insisted. “We have to go eat near ocean.” She gave me a pout. “Please Cole?”

                “Alright, fine,” I grumbled playfully. Before ordering, we decided what we wanted and placed our orders, grabbing chips and sodas to accent our lunch.

                I ordered a roast beef grinder with all the toppings I could think of. Briar ordered a bologna sandwich.

                “That’s it? A bologna sandwich?”    

                “Yes…”

                “Just bologna, cheese, and mayonnaise, that’s it?” I couldn’t believe it.

                “Yes!” She smiled. She looked at the clerk. “That’s it sir, thank you.”

                I shook my head and she paid for our lunch, and we left the shop happily, anxious to sink our teeth into the food.

                When Briar finally picked the perfect spot to sit, I plopped down in an instant. If there was a next time, I was picking where we sat.

                I unwrapped my grinder. “Mmm, I can’t wait to eat this.”

                Briar opened her sandwich, and took a whopping bite. “Yum!” she said through a mouthful of food. “Oh Cole…” She swallowed, and grinned to me. “You have to try this sandwich, it’s to die for.”

                I laughed. “Nah, I’m all set.” I didn’t see how a plain sandwich could taste any different than something you’d made at home. I bit a huge bite from my grinder, and let it melt in my mouth. After I finished the first bite, I turned to Briar. “You see? That’s a real sandwich.”

                Briar shook her head. “No, no, this is awesome, have a bite.”

                I laughed again. “No, really, I’m okay.” I took my drink from the bag and opened it. I had the bottle centimeters from my mouth, and Briar was staring at me.

                “Cole… try this sandwich.”

                “Briar, really, I’m okay, but thank you.” And just as I went to take a sip, it happened. Briar pounced from where she was sitting. She knocked the sugary drink out of my hands, and it landed in a soggy mess over my neck and down my shirt. She pinned me to the ground, straddling my waist, placing the sandwich on my stomach. Her small fingers were clutching my wrists. “You sure you don’t want it?”

                I just laughed. “Oh Briar… you... haha…”

                She let go of my right wrist, and snatched the sandwich off of me, trying to shove it in my face. I turned my head to the side and welcomed mayonnaise on my left cheek. “Cole!” she yelled playfully, trying to shove it in my face.

                I shook my head, and with my right arm, I wrapped it around her waist and knocked her to the ground. I brought my body over hers, and wiped my cheek on my shoulder, smearing the mayonnaise on my shirt. My deep brown hair hung in my eyes, and it made it hard to see Briar.

                “Let me go!” she complained. She grinned at me.

                I leaned down close to her face, inches away. “Are you gunna make me try that sandwich?”

                She took a deep, long breath. “No.”

                “You better not.” My lips were so close to hers. They could have touched if I moved my head just a little closer. She reached her hands up and pressed them to my neck. My heart raced, I looked away, I was too tempted.

                She just looked at me and smiled, and then her hands moved down my chest, and she gently pushed me away.

                I rolled off of her, and stared at her mangled lunch. She lay on her side, staring at me, eyes gentle and, lips curved into a delicate smile. “That was fun.”

                “It was,” I added. I looked to my shirt. It was damp, sticky, and slippery. And it was making my skin react negatively. I tore it off and dabbed it with napkins, and then wiped my face. I took some water from the canister to clean myself off better. When I was satisfied, I laid my shirt out to dry. Briar was still staring at me. “Yes?” I asked, grinning.

                She took a heavy breath. “I didn’t want to move here.”

                I nodded my head gently. “Yeah, I know… I’m sorry…”

                Briar shook her head. “No, don’t be… I… I’m so happy I got to meet you and stuff I just… I grew up in Maine…”

                “Yeah…”

                “And I had no choice….” She stopped, and closed her eyes. “There was this guy… I really liked him… a lot… he was a senior…” She looked down at the ground. Her breathing was sharp. “He decided one night to bring me to a party, a senior party, I wouldn’t know anyone he had told me, but I’d make friends quickly… I was beautiful, remember?”

                My body stiffened. I was having a hard time listening.

                “We got there… and his friends… they were saying all this stuff… he told me to just ignore them, don’t listen to them.’ Here Briar, have a drink, chill out!’ But I was having a really hard time chilling out… I kinda wanted to go home.” She looked up to me. I stared back. “He brought me into this room. I remember feeling really sick, really tired. I don’t remember anything. I didn’t know what was going on. ‘Just relax, Briar, you’re fine.’ He lay down on the bed and he was kissing me, all over, on my neck, on my chest, on my stomach. His friends came in and they were… laughing at me. I started to cry…” Her lip started to quiver, and I saw fat tears expand in the corners of her eyes.

                “He started doing all this stuff to me. And then my pants came off…” She shut her eyes and the two plump tears rolled down her pink cheeks and fell onto her lap. “A-And… I kept asking him to please stop. ‘Jeremy, pleeeasse… stop it…’ I kept muttering. And then this girl came in right before he had the ch-chance to actually have s-sex with me.” She was crying now, a steady stream of tears streaking her once pleasant face. I felt like dying.

                “So I rolled off the b-bed as quickly as I c-could, and I collected my c-clothes and I just left!” she yelled, crying harder now. “I w-went home all by myself, I w-walked home, and I n-never even told my…mom…”

                I bit my lip. “Oh Briar… come here….”

                She fell against my chest and cried into my already wet shirt. I rocked her back and forth gently. “Shh, don’t cry, please… you’re making me sad…”

                “And then he started s-stalking me and… I h-had to do something about i-it. I couldn’t just… sit b-back anymore and l-let it hap-pen.” She looked up to me with an angry and confused face. “I hate how I just… le-let it happen.”

                I cradled her face in my hands. “Briar… it’s okay now. He’s never going to be able to find you, I promise. You’re already like… the most popular person in school. And you’ll meet someone who will treat you with all the love you deserve, I promise.” I smiled to her, and kissed the top of her head.

                She smiled through a mess of tears. “Thank you… Cole.” She wrapped her arms around my waist and pressed her head onto my chest.

                I held her tightly against my body. I rubbed her back, and ran my fingers through her mocha colored hair. I shut my eyes.

                She looked up to me a few moments later, smiling gently. “Thank you so much Cole.”

                I smiled back. “You’re welcome… I’m sorry for all you’ve had to go through, Briar…”

                She shook her head. “Don’t worry about it Cole, I’m okay, I’ll get through it… I have been, I think I can keep it up.” She smiled.

                “Well, I’m always here for ya, okay?”

                Briar looked up to me, and cocked her head to the side. She reached out and took hold of my face in her hands, gently brushing my cheeks with the tips of her fingers. “You are an amazing guy. That Sophie girl doesn’t know what she’s talking about. I don’t know why she wouldn’t want you. If you were mine, I’d never let you free.”
                I smiled, my cheeks burning red. “Thanks… Briar.”

                She dropped her hands and looked away. “Let’s go take a walk.”

                “Sounds good.”

Author's Note

Here's chapter three guys! (Long awaited, I know, sorry!) How is it? Anything need work? I was happy with this chapter , so let me know how you feel. I really like Cole's personality in this chapter, he's revealing himself more and more. Did I handle Briar's situation well? I want feedback! Hope you all enjoy!