Chapter five

Two years prior

Raine stood over her chair in slight confusion. There was a paper sitting on it. Lined paper from a notebook, messily folded, sitting there on her chair. It wouldn’t be confusing except for one fact. “Raine,” the paper read in the slightly bold and messy handwriting. Riva pushed her playfully, not noticing the paper. She stopped, also staring at it.

“Uh Raine?” she asked, looking at it blankly.

“Mm?” Raine replied, also having the same expression.

“Is it just me or does that handwriting look awfully familiar?” Raine nodded, her hands quivering as she reached for the paper. Half of her wanted to rip it up into tiny pieces and toss it in the trash. But she wanted to know what he had to say. “Are you going to open it?” Riva asked, whispering for no particular reason. Raine gulped.

“I don’t know,” she whispered back, now having the paper in hand. They sat down in their chairs right next to each other. Huddling together, Raine unfolded the first crease in the letter as Riva watched, their hearts racing equally as fast.. Finally, after a bit of fumbling she had the entire paper unfolded to reveal more messy handwriting. Raine took a shaky breath and began to read it to herself.

Raine,

Ever since I got to know you better, I’ve been having something I needed to tell you. Raine stopped, already fearing what was to come. She continued on. I know we only started talking this year but we did it a lot. And I know that I probably shouldn’t be doing this because it might get both of us into trouble, but I can’t keep it in any longer. It was almost as if she could feel the hesitation and fear while he was writing this. I used to think that you were just the average middle school girl, but I was wrong. You’re so... amazing. And beautiful and smart and... I know this might seem a little too soon but... I like you. Like like like you. Like love. I have feelings for you now. Y’know what I mean? You’re so... you! Please don’t let anyone else read this, since it’s probably going to get us into huge problems. I just need to know if you feel the same about me then maybe we can... I don’t know... just get back to me soon, please. Raine and Riva sat there, absolutely shocked. Riva stared at Raine, dumbfounded.

“This has to be a joke,” she whimpered.

“We both know it’s not,” Raine replied, beginning to bunch up the piece of paper into a small ball. She clenched her fists in absolute fear and anger. “Why…” she groaned.

“Dude, you have to tell him the truth. If you really want him to stop pursuing you and getting you into crap like this then you’ve gotta put an end to this,” Riva said sternly.

“I know-- I just-- AGH!” Raine was so frustrated, “I don’t wanna get involved in this anymore. Can’t I just not reply?” Riva grabbed her by the shoulders.

“No. This has to stop,” she replied harshly. Raine sighed shakily and took out her own paper, scribbling his name on the front.

“I’m gonna need some help here,” she looked at Riva, holding her pen above the paper in hesitation.

“Just tell him how you really feel. It’s gonna be fine,” Riva murmured, leaning on Raine’s shoulder. Raine nodded and began writing.

…

Unknown Number: Hi Karen, I just wanted to let you know about some stuff that I’ve seen Raine doing at school.

I’ve been seeing her hanging out with Luke a lot, which I know is something you don’t like her doing. They sneak out early before each class and start doing stuff together. They sneak out in the middle of class together too. They sit together in every class and hold hands under the table. At one point, I even saw them kiss. I just thought you needed to know this. I can’t tell you who I am because Raine won’t want to be friends with me anymore if she finds out. I’m doing this because I know that what she’s doing is wrong.

Karen: Who is this?

Unknown Number: I can’t tell you.

Raine’s mother looked up from her phone and called her daughter. “Raine! Come here, look at this.” Raine stared at the messages in absolute fury and fear. What a pit of lies! She thought. “Have you been doing this?” Her mom asked, glaring at her.

“Mom, I swear, these are total lies!” she cried, as tears began to pour out from her eyes, “I’d never do this! I don’t even want to do this!” Raine’s mother sighed in exasperation, scrolling down her contact list until she found the person she was looking for.

“Hi, Julie? Yeah I just got some questionable messages from someone and I just needed some confirmation,” she continued to tell Julie what had happened, “Yes, could you ask Noah about it?” Raine stood there, her lips quivering.

“He said no, he never saw Raine doing any of that. I’m so sorry, if there’s anything you guys need, you know what to do,” Raine heard faintly at the other end of the line. Karen and Raine both sighed in relief.

“Honey, I know you didn’t do it, I just… I wanted to be sure,” her mom murmured, “who do you think this was?” she asked. Raine frowned in despair.

“I think we both have a pretty good idea as to who it was.”

…

Three years prior

Raine laughed, chasing after Cleo. “Wait up!” she shouted, panting.

“Why would I wait up? This is a game of tag!” she yelled back, still running. Riva zoomed past Raine as soon as she stopped. Noah and Caleb watched from their hiding spot in amusement. A couple more of their classmates got as far away as they could from Raine. Raine was fast, but she couldn’t hold that speed up for long. Raine stood there in the middle of the playground, looking at her options. She glanced at Evan, one of the smaller sixth graders. Not very fast, but not too slow either. He wasn’t too far away.

“C’mon! You’re it! Start chasing us!” one of the kids yelled. She heard heavy breathing behind her. Close. She turned around and zipped towards Riva, practically slapping her on the shoulder.

“NO TAG BACKS!” She yelled quickly and began walking towards Noah and Caleb, totally giving away their hiding spot.

“Raine!” they both hissed as Raine gave away their hiding spot. Riva was quickly approaching them. Raine smiled as Cleo nudged her, smirking.

“I am untaggable,” she jibed. Riva poked Cleo behind her.

“No tag backs.” Riva laughed.

“Untaggable, eh?” Raine asked, running away. Sixth grade… before everything got… complicated. Everyone was friends with each other. They didn’t have a care, as long as they were together. Crazy how things can change so drastically in just three years.

…

The Accident

“Did you two forget anything?” their dad asked, looking at Caleb, who was beside him and then looking at Riva through the rearview mirror.

“Neeyope,” Riva said, popping her lips as she said it.

“Don’t think so,” Caleb mused, trying to think if he had forgotten anything.

“Well, that’s a first,” their dad jested, pulling into the lane to turn left. The arrow was red. Riva scrolled through her phone, looking through her inbox to see if the teachers had posted anything on Google Classroom. Caleb sat happily in the front seat, having beaten Riva to it for the first time in forever. Tires squealed up ahead. Their dad leaned forward, squinting as he tried to see what that was about. He shrugged when nothing happened and pressed on the gas lightly as their light finally turned green.

Nobody noticed the truck that was now zooming towards them, trying to pass the red light that slowed him down on his way to an important meeting. He was going to be so late. His tires squealed again. Why were they doing that? Suddenly, he heard a loud POP as his back tire burst. The metal of the now broken tire was dragging against the ground and pulling him towards the unsuspecting family. Sparks flew everywhere as he slammed his foot on the breaks. But he was going too fast. It was too late.

BAM! The truck slammed into the Lopez van. The airbags inflated as everyone lurched forward, glass flying everywhere. The front of the truck stuck out of the back of the van. Riva’s head banged into the roof of the car, several pieces of glass sticking in her scalp. Everything went black. The vehicles were mashed together and still moving. Finally, they crashed into the traffic light pole, practically splitting the van in half. The traffic pole crushed Caleb’s leg and their dad was unconscious due to the airbag. He felt dizzy as pain shot up practically everywhere throughout his body. He looked back at Riva, blood dripping from his face where the glass had cut him. She was bleeding and unconscious too.

Taking a pained breath, he reached into his backpack to call the ambulance.

“911, what’s your emergency?” a woman answered calmly.

“H-help-- C-car accident-- Fifth Street-- La Mesa,” he croaked. It was all he could muster. He was fading and fast.

“Help is on the way, stay ca…” he didn’t hear the rest of what the woman said. A loud ringing sound invaded his ears as his head pounded. His heart raced. He didn’t want to die. Please, let us all be okay, he thought to himself. His head drooped, hanging by his seatbelt as he finally let himself go. And then, darkness.

…

Present Day

Caleb glanced over at his phone on the desk next to his bed as it rumbled deeply. He frowned, wondering what the notification would be about. Suddenly, his mom walked into the room with a distraught look. She’d been that way ever since they’d moved Riva to a different room. For what reason, Caleb wasn’t sure. He hadn’t seen his sister since the day before. What could be wrong? All the adults were acting odd around him and he began to think that something was seriously off. Was Riva alright?

“How are you feeling today?” his mom asked, obviously trying to take her mind off of something.

“Fine,” he replied, clicking through the channels on the television in the small room, “Is something wrong?” he asked after his curiosity had gotten the best of him. His mom took in a shaky breath.

“Honey, there’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about,” she stated seriously. Caleb furrowed his eyebrows, turning off the TV, and directing his attention towards his mother.

“W-what do you mean?” he asked nervously.

‘It’s about your sister…”

…

Noah and Raine both waited in anticipation for Caleb to reply to Noah’s text. No such luck. They both slouched, disappointed, and worried. Noah felt something drip down the shoulder of his shirt. He looked over at Raine. Her eyes were shiny as she bit her lip, trying to hold back more tears.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, wiping her cheek, “I’ve just been really stressed lately…” she trailed off, deep in her own thoughts. He nodded uneasily, unsure of what to do. He never liked to be around when someone was crying. It always felt so… awkward. He was a bit confused. Sure, the situation they were in was pretty worrying, but it didn’t seem to be all that was bothering Raine.

“Is… something wrong?” he asked quietly. Raine’s eyes widened a bit.

“Oh… uh,” she looked around at the students scattered around the lounge. Not the right environment to talk about this in. “No, just kinda tired today. That’s all,” she replied, tightening her lips.

Oh. Noah concluded that she didn’t wanna talk about it. He wondered what it could be about. He glanced at the clock over the entrance of the building. 3:17 PM. The campus usually closed around 4 o’clock but he never hung around long enough so that it was closing time. He began putting his things away in his dark green backpack.

“I think I’m gonna head out,” he said a bit guiltily. He didn’t just want to leave her when she was feeling so… well, so low. Raine gave him a small smile.

“I don’t really wanna go home just yet. Maybe I’ll go to the park or something.”

Noah scratched his neck in embarrassment, “I mean…” No, this is stupid. Shut your mouth, Noah. “Uh, nevermind.”

“What?” Raine asked, now curious.

Noah sighed heavily, his ears turning red. “I was gonna say… that maybe… I don’t know. Maybe you could come over to my house? I mean that is if you want to. I’m not forcing you or anything. Obviously, you probably have better thi--” Noah stopped. Raine grinned at him.

“Why are you acting so weird about it? It’s not like I’ve never been to your place,” she giggled, picking up her own things.

“I know…. I dunno. I mean I didn’t know if your parents would let you,” he replied hesitantly. Raine gulped back the lump in her throat.

“Yeah, makes sense.” They both walked out until they reached the sidewalk that connected to the main roads. Noah stopped, looking at Raine again.

“Uh, so where are we going?” he asked, his ears burning up again.

“Your house, of course!” she laughed, giving him a small shove.

“Hey, you never confirmed anything, so how can I be sure?” he asked, smiling a bit. She laughed. They walked on in silence. Noah’s hands began to tremble nervously. She was going to his house! Noah. Chill. She’s been to your house before. Calm down. His stomach lurched. What was he going to do? No, this was a stupid idea. His house was a mess! God, it’s not a big deal. Stop freaking out. He glared at his feet in an attempt to distract himself.

Raine looked at Noah. His hands were shaking so badly. Was he okay? She furrowed her eyebrows. Was it really that cold? She asked herself.

“Um…” Raine began, watching Noah carefully, “Noah… are you alright? You’re shaking.”

Noah looked up suddenly and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Mhmm,” He replied. Why is he acting so weird lately?

“Are you sure? You’ve been acting kinda odd lately. Has something been bothering you?” she asked. Before Noah could answer, his phone buzzed. Noah sighed with relief and pulled out his phone. They both stopped walking.

Caleb: hey, can we talk? Raine looked over Noah’s shoulder eagerly. He finally replied!

Noah: yeah, sure. what’s been up with you guys? Noah asked.

Caleb sighed shakily, wiping his cheeks. He had to tell them. They were his best friends.

Caleb: well... A small little bubble with three dots appeared on Noah’s screen. Caleb began typing. Noah and Raine waited a minute or two. He was still typing. Every now and then the dots stopped and disappeared completely sometimes.

“Uh… maybe get to your house first?” Raine asked as the wind began to blow a bit more. Noah nodded in agreement. Whatever Caleb was going to tell them, it seemed like it was going to take awhile.

Caleb thumbed his messaged carefully. How was he meant to put this? He couldn’t just tell them that… No, don’t think about it. And Raine… this would break her! No he couldn’t tell them about that. Just the simple facts. Noah clenched his teeth, grinding them together; something he did whenever he was really nervous. Should I say something? About what, though? It’s so awkward. He cleared his throat in an attempt to lighten the mood.

“So…” Raine looked at him, raising an eyebrow, “nice weather we’ve been having,” he joked with a small grin. Raine smiled amusingly.

“Yes, a spot of tea on a delightful afternoon like this would really… uh… hit the spot,” she replied, “All jokes aside, I’m kinda glad that it's finally starting to cool off.” Noah nodded. He never really like the summer… it was too hot for him. Raine scrunched her nose up, her glasses sliding down a bit while she did. “Did we have any homework today?”

Noah shook his head, “I think Mrs. Miller said something about finishing the page that we went over in class…”

“Honestly… I’m already a page ahead. Sometimes I’ve got too much time to burn in Math class,” she laughed a bit.

“Hah, and I thought I was the only person nerdy enough to get ahead in the packet while we’re in class.”

“Nah, not nerdy. We just work at a different pace, I guess.”

“Or maybe we’re just too smart,” Noah replied, smirking.

“I am, not so sure about you!” Raine laughed, punching him playfully and beginning to run ahead. He ran after her, their backpacks making loud clunking sounds. They reached Noah’s house, their cheeks red and their hands on their knees in a crouch.

“Beetcha,” Raine panted.

“No, I totally won. Besides, you had a head start,” Noah replied, walking up the path to his front door. Raine nudged him, mock pouting. “Fine, you win,” he smiled.

“I Raine supreme!” She shouted.

“Haha, very funny,” he opened the door with a small click. The sweet scent of pumpkin spice wafted out the door. “I’m home!” He called inside his home, walking in with Raine. Shouts from his siblings resounded around the house. With a sigh, Raine dropped her backpack with a loud clunk.

“I swear, these things weigh a ton,” she rolled her eyes, pushing it away.

“Exactly my opinion,” Noah laughed.

“Who’s that!?” His little sister, Shayla asked, running downstairs, “Oh! Hi Raine! It’s been awhile!” the nine year old exclaimed.

“Who’s here?” Samuel, his eleven year old brother, asked, riding down the railing.

“Raine’s here!” Shayla replied excitedly.

“Who?” Samuel tumbled off the railing, face planting into the soft, gray carpet. “MMPH!” He groaned.

Raine laughed embarrassingly, “Has it really been that long?” she asked sheepishly. Noah pulled off his backpack, setting it to the side. Sam jumped up, his head darting our way.

“Oh. It’s Raine,” he walked away dismissively.

“Nice to see you too, Sammy,” she grumbled, shaking her head.

“Raine, is that you?” Noah’s dad shouted from upstairs.

“Hi Mr. Peters!” She yelled, looking upstairs. Noah stood in the doorway, his face flushed. The whole family’s just gotta get involved, don’t they? Raine took a deep breath. “Why does your house always smell so good?” Raine whispered to him. Noah shrugged with a goofy smile on his face.

“Raine, Raine, guess what?!” Shayla giggled, tugging on Raine’s jacket.

“You found a unicorn!” Raine exclaimed with mock excitement. Shayla rolled her eyes.

“No. I lost both my front teeth!” Shayla grinned, showing Raine her toothless smile. Raine laughed as she pulled off her shoes and proceeded to bring her backpack over to the living room. Noah’s phone buzzed, the sound damped out from beneath his jacket.

“Where’s Mom?” Noah asked as his dad began to come downstairs.

“Grocery shopping,” Shayla and Sam replied in unison as they began to chase each other around the house.

“What they said,” his dad gestured towards Noah’s siblings. Raine sighed, plopping down on one of the couches as Noah took off his shoes.

“Stop! I don’t wanna play now!” Sam shouted.

“Aw, come on, just one little game!” Shayla yelled back, running after him.

“No!”

“Yes!”

“No!”

“Yes!” the yelling continued as Noah rubbed his temples, annoyed. He smiled at Raine apologetically.

“Why don’t we head upstairs?” He murmured, picking his backpack back up.

“I can handle the racket, but sure,” she replied, getting her own backpack. They went up the stairs quietly in the hopes that his siblings wouldn’t notice. “Has Caleb replied yet?” Raine asked, a bit tentatively.

“Um, yeah I think so.” They walked into Noah’s room, darkened by the blinds in the window. He pulled them open as Raine settled down in one of the bean bags he had in front of his desk. He pulled out another that he rarely used from under his bed and placed it next to Raine’s. He pulled off his jacket and took his phone out of the pocket. He sat down, pulling up his messages. Noah’s eyes got round as he skimmed through the message Caleb had sent. “Oh jeez,” he murmured.

Raine frowned distressingly. Oh no. The lump in her throat returned as she waited for Noah to go on. “What is it?” She asked nervously.

“Oh man… Raine…” Noah looked at her, his eyes as big as bowling balls. He inhaled sharply as he slowly handed her the phone.