AllFreeNovel
Share Us
First steps. First words. The first tears from a scraped knee. The kisses to make it all better. Bedtime stories. The first day of school. One missed graduation after another. The first fight between a teenager and a mother. The image of a wedding—never realized.
Every moment stolen from me forever.
My baby!
1
EDEN
My heart racesfrom excitement even as my breath slows down. I pass several streets, occasionally stopping to listen for approaching footsteps, or worse, Dad’s Ford truck.
But tonight, I’m lucky.
Soon, I hear music and laughter coming from my friend Diana’s house at the end of Clover Road.
Party time.
I grin like a fool, thinking about how much fun I will have tonight. I should feel guilty, but I won’t. It’s my high school graduation, for fuck’s sake, and I have a right to celebrate.
As I approach the house, laughter and music spill out from the open front door, welcoming me inside. I slip into the house and instantly start smiling at the crazy energy of my friends and classmates as they jam out to vintage late 90s and early 2000s music.
A small group of people stand by the pool, drinking beer and laughing loudly. I take a deep breath and walk toward them, grabbing a Coors from an open cooler as I try to blend in.
“Eden Clark, as I live and breathe!” Diana squeals in delight when she sees me. “You made it! Oh my God, Ilovethis look! Come on, girl. Let’s show them how to dance!”
Diana’s skirt is shorter than mine, and her eyes are already glassy from drinking. She’s wearing heels and not Chucks like me. But most importantly, her parents are nowhere to be seen, despite all the cars in the driveway. To hear her tell it, they don’t really care as long as the house doesn’t burn down and the cops don’t show up. It’s not the first time Diana has thrown a party like this.
God, what I wouldn’t give to have her parents instead of my overbearing dad.
She pulls me to the patio, and the pulsating beat of the music ignites something inside me. I throw my hands up in the air and shake my hips to NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye.” My yelps rise above the rest of them.
Diana’s eyes widen as she watches me act wild. The attention urges me on and I throw all caution to the wind, acting crazier and crazier. Slowly, the fear dissipates that my dad will appear to snatch me away like he’s done so many times before. I’m just happy to be out of that house and having fun like normal people.
Even if it’s just for one evening.
The first of many evenings, I resolve silently.
“It’s always the quiet ones.” Diana is laughing when I open my eyes. She grips my hand and pulls me close to whisper in my ear. “Check it out—Trevor’s got his eyes on you.”
I glance over my shoulder and see that Trevor—our high school’s star quarterback with an athletic body toned from hours in the gym and on the field—iswatching me.
My heart skips a beat when he catches my gaze. I had—no, still have—the biggest crush on him. And if I’m throwing caution to the wind tonight …
Just play it cool, Eden. Don’t get weird. Don’t get nervous. Oh God, he’s coming over.
“Hey, Eden!” He grins like he has me already. “Didn’t think you’d show up.”
“Neither did I,” I admit stupidly.Ugh. So much for playing it cool.
Trevor smiles. “I’m glad you’re here.” He takes my hand, and we start to dance. Our bodies move in sync with the rhythm of the loud music. As our arms circle each other’s waists, I feel his chest against mine. His hands caress my back, moving lower. Our lips are inches apart, and I feel the heat coming off his body. Our mouths are about to meet when an unexpected panic wave swallows me whole.
This is all happening too fast. What am I doing?
My father will ground me forever if he finds out.
No.
Whenhe finds out.
