Bowling
*Dallas*
January 8, 2016
It’s been two weeks and a day since the night of Naper Lights. Two weeks since Mikey confessed to killing my brother. Two weeks since I last saw Kyle.
Two weeks of this unsettling fear of losing Kayla.
She is so strong. She wakes up every morning and goes to school, not letting a hitman that has a gun pointed at her back keep her from living her life. I, however, am scared. I’ve always liked being in control, to have the say in what goes on and how it goes. To be out of control is unacceptable; it leaves me powerless, and I don’t do well with being powerless.
Michael Saunders has left me completely powerless. He is after the girl I love for some sick, morbid revenge. I can’t always be with Kayla, and she is too independent and stubborn. I told her that it would be best if, perhaps, we didn’t go bowling with people from the basketball team tonight. That we stay indoors, cuddled together on the couch as we are now.
I have no objection to the idea, but Kayla is determined to live without being governed by fear.
Kayla has her head on my chest, her body pressed snugged against mine with my arms wrapped around her waist. I find myself always holding tight to her, convincing myself that if I let her go, she will disappear. Just like Kyle.
Kayla absentmindedly plays with the hem of my shirt, twirling it around her finger and rubbing the soft material. I look down at her, only seeing the outline of her nose and lips and the top of her head. I run a hand through her soft hair, tilting her head back in the process so she’s looking up at me. Kayla gives me a small smile, causing me to lean down and give her a peck.
“What are you thinking about?” I ask, noticing the far-off look in her eyes. Kayla returns her head to its previous spot, staring at the muted TV. Characters from Disney’s Frozen run about the screen in silence, neither of us interested in the film. As of late, the simple pleasures, such as watching movies or playing card games, no longer appeal to me.
Life has dealt Kayla and me a trying hand, and with everything going on, I hardly find myself smiling or truly happy. The few occasional times is when I’m with Kayla and my friends.
“I’m thinking about what Mikey said,” Kayla whispers. I feel my brow furrow as I silently dislike this conversation already.
“What part?” I run my hand up and down her spine lightly, drawing lazy circles. I know Kayla enjoys when I do this. She has never said so, but I can tell by the way her body leans into my touch and the way her eyes always droop closed.
Kayla doesn’t respond for a moment, and I look down to see her resting her eyes. I immediately stop my hand, wanting her to confess to her thoughts.
Kayla squirms in my arms, letting out a whimper. I smile, continuing my caress. “That he was right.”
I roll my eyes. She’s being very vague. “What part was he right about?” Kayla lets out a heavy sigh and suddenly untangles herself from my grasp. I drop my hold on her, watching as she sits on her knees, facing me.
Her beautiful hazel eyes glisten as tears gather. My heart squeezes as I long to reach over to thumb those tears away.
My Kayla has been crying too often.
“That it’s all my fault.” Her words are sour to my ears, causing me to frown and look at her with disbelief. “You were right. From the beginning. I am the reason Kyle is dead. It should have been me, but instead it was your brother.”
Kayla’s words are a dagger to the heart. How can she even think this? Doesn’t she know that after everything that has happened that it’s Mikey’s own fault?
“No, Kayla, it is not your fault, do you hear me? It’s the fault of a sick, twisted guy. It’s Mikey’s fault that Kyle’s dead. I was wrong. I was so wrong, Kayla. I was blinded by rage and loss; I was willing to pin the blame on anyone, and you were such an easy target.” Kayla lets out a heartbreaking sob, her shoulders falling forward as if she no longer has the strength to hold them up. As if she is breaking from the inside.
No. Not my strong Kayla.
“I am so sorry, Kay.” I reach forward and tuck a piece of hair behind her ear, rubbing my thumb over her cheekbones. I collect her tears, fervently brushing them away. Kayla slowly falls forward, nestling herself back up against my chest. “I don’t care about the past. I don’t care about what your mom did or that your happiness brought on Mikey’s vengeance. You were a little girl who needed a father. It wasn’t your fault. And that is the end of it. Because I still love you, no matter what.”
Kayla nods her head, sniffling as her tears come to a stop. She places a kiss to my chest. “Thank you, Dallas. For everything.”
Even after practically begging Kayla to stay indoors, especially after her little meltdown, I find myself parking in front of Brunswick Zone. I look over at Kayla, shaking my head as she tosses me a small smile. “This is for Tyler. And Anne.”
I nod. She’s right. Tyler and Anne deserve to live a normal teenage life without all the distractions and complications, even though Anne is determined to help us find the answer to putting Mikey away.
I am grateful for her help. We need another mind on the case, someone new and untainted by everything that has happened.
Holding Kayla’s hand tightly in my own, I lead her briskly into the bowling alley. Only once the door closes behind me do I roll my tense shoulders. I made Kayla promise to never leave the house without someone with her.
Every morning for school, either Anne or myself pick her up. I walk with her to and from the car every time, waiting for the moment when the black SUV will pull up on the side of the road. I will undoubtedly step in front of Kayla to take the bullet.
When we reach the desk to pick up our shoes, I look around to see Tyler and Anne already sitting at lane 7. Travis, Eric, Zack, and their girlfriends are with them as well.
Kayla gives my hand a squeeze. I wasn’t looking forward to tonight. I’m not as talented as Kayla is at acting, at pretending everything is all right with a large, cheesy smile. “Come on,” she whispers, leading me toward my friends.
Anne quickly engulfs Kayla into a hug, and I begrudgingly release her hand to greet Zack, Eric, and Travis. “Hey, Dally! Funny seeing you outside of school. Beginning to think you were sick of us,” Eric says, walking over to give me a quick hug. I give him a slap on the back as I nod to the other two.
The three of them introduce me to their girlfriends, but by the time introductions are over, I regret to say I have forgotten their names. I frown at myself, really wishing Kayla and I hadn’t left her house.
“How have you been, Dal?” Travis asks, sitting on the table to tie his shoes. I watch him for a moment. Travis used to be a great friend of mine. For some reason, we fell out of touch this senior year. Perhaps it’s because we don’t have any classes together.
Would that have happened to Tyler if roles were reversed? I almost feel sick to my stomach.
I’m a horrible friend.
“I’m been okay, T. How about you?” Travis shrugs his shoulders before wrapping his arm around Ashley’s waist.
Wait, Ashley? Did I really not recognize her when Travis introduced us?
I need to get my head screwed on straight.
Ashley sends me a coy smile that makes me shuffle on my feet. I am suddenly uncomfortable, remembering the way I broke her heart.
I was a horrible boyfriend.
I rub the back of my neck, looking for Kayla. She’s already walking over to my side, her eyebrows etched with concern as she grabs hold of my hand. “Dallas?” Her voice is so quick and small; I am sure I’m the only one who heard it.
“Heyyy! It’s Bookworm!” Kayla’s head snaps over at the sound of Zack’s voice. I pull my eyebrows together in confusion.
I don’t like that name.
It sounds like he’s taunting her.
“Hello,” Kayla says, her voice stronger than I would have assumed. She is a strong person; however, she doesn’t like to be the center of attention in front of a group of people. She is typically more boisterous when it’s just Anne, Tyler, and myself.
“Since when did you like the quiet ones, Dally?” Eric asks, holding his own girlfriend close to him. I squint, not liking the way he’s silently comparing his girl to mine.
I grit my teeth. “Let’s go,” I grumble to Kayla, turning to walk away. Kayla digs her heels into the ground and holds fast with both hands.
“Dallas, come on…” she whispers, looking up at me with her big eyes. Kayla nods her head to Tyler, who is already talking to Eric and Zack about laying off Kayla. Tyler looks at me for a moment and nods, saying he has everything under control. “Please.”
Sighing, I relent. I step forward and place a kiss to her forehead. “Tyler, Anne, Kayla, and I against you six,” I say, already sitting down at table 6. We bought both lanes 6 and 7.
“You’re out numbered,” Ashley says, and I look her dead in the eyes.
“Don’t underestimate Kayla and me.” I hear Kayla groan beside me, and I almost laugh, looking over to see her head in her hands.
“Not again…” she whispers.
Last time we went bowling, I boasted about how we were an unbeatable team. Kayla was unconvinced; however, we did beat Tyler and Anne. I did practically carry our team on my shoulders, but Kayla did score us a few points.
I smile at how innocent she is. She isn’t competitive, and I admire that about her. Kayla is content with just having fun.
The night ended up being fun. Kayla scored a lot more points tonight than she did the last time we played. The four of us ended up beating the six of them, considering Ashley and the other two girls didn’t take the game seriously.
Every time Tyler went up to bowl, Anne, Kayla, and I would converse about Mikey. Kayla was a little hesitant about bringing up the conversation, considering she wanted tonight to be focused on making Tyler happy. I pointed out that he is indeed happy. He hasn’t stopped smiling since we began bowling.
“We need to find someone he can confide in. Or someone he did confide in,” Anne says, nibbling on her fingernails. I note that both Kayla and Anne bite their nails whenever they’re anxious or stressed.
Who would that be? Who did Mikey trust more than he did his friends? Tyler was still the number one option, to use him as a double spy as Kayla suggested. But I am hesitant on getting Tyler involved. We have already endangered Anne…
The only person I could think of was his mother. But she would never go against her own child. Mikey was all she had…
That single thought causes an uneasiness to stir within me. Mrs. Saunders is a sweet, kind lady. Putting Mikey away for murder is going to leave her alone for the rest of her life, and she doesn’t deserve that.
But Mikey doesn’t just get to walk away as if everything is all right.
I hand my shoes to the lady behind the desk, along with Kayla’s. Kayla is bent over, pulling on her black boots, and I quickly avert my gaze.
One would have to be blind to not see that she has a perfect figure. Kayla is absolutely stunning, and I am lucky to have her as my girlfriend.
While I am sexually attracted to Kayla, I know it will not happen. We haven’t talked about it, but I know she’s waiting until marriage. I respect her decision, and I will wait until that time…because I plan on spending the rest of my life with her—marrying her and having a family with her.
An arm wraps around my waist, and I instinctively cling to Kayla’s small body, placing a kiss to her head. “Thank you for tonight,” she says.
“You’re welcome, baby.” The name rolls off my tongue, and I quickly bite it. I have never called Kayla “baby” before, and I expect her to shut it down. But she only smiles.
We all say goodbye to one another. I am glad Kayla dragged me out of the house to see my friends. It was nice to catch up and be reminded that we are still, in fact, teenagers. That even though outside of Brunswick Zone awaits a colossal number of headaches and upsets, it’s okay to get away from it all for a couple of hours.
As we head for the exit, I notice someone familiar sitting at Lane 1. I squint my eyes as if to get a better look at her, to will my brain to recognize who it is. When our eyes meet, a look of horror flickers across her features, and I can’t help but wonder what’s wrong. The blonde girl stares at me, her lips parting as a look of sympathy now adorns her face.
Gah, who is she?
“Kay…” I whisper and stop walking. Kayla looks up at me to follow my gaze over at the girl. I hear her gasp slightly.
“That’s Shelby!” she whispers with slight excitement.
Shelby…
The girl who was with Mikey when we went jet skiing. As Kayla releases my hand to go toward Shelby, she quickly turns and bolts the other way, out of our sight. Kayla looks over at me with a confused expression.
What was that about?