Sterling didn’t see Eden the whole class. He hadn’t caught even one glimpse of her since she had walked into the locker room, and that worried him. He didn’t know where she was or what she was doing. She didn’t need to report to him of her whereabouts, but if he expected her to be in a place, then he would definitely be worried if she didn’t show up.
As soon as class was over, he grabbed his phone to call her. And saw a message from her before he could…
He sighed heavily and leaned back against the lockers, dialing her number.
Eden felt the wind in her face and she inhaled deeply, her eyes closed. Maybe a park, sitting on a swing, wasn’t exactly the best place to be, but it was something. She liked it; liked the cold wind in her face, the goosebumps it sent through her body, and the calm it washed over her. When… things had been rough, she used to spend some of her time here. Some, in another place. She couldn’t go there—not anymore, so now it was just the rooftop.
Eden didn’t know how much she’d be itching for a fight. To feel her fist connect with another, to feel the pulsing pain, to feel a punch… she missed it. After all, why wouldn’t she be? It helped. It helped a lot. Maybe too much, to the point where it became like a drug. And now she was forcing herself away from it and it was hard. It was so hard, because she knew she couldn’t hide the bruises. He’d know, and he’d… he’d be disappointed.
So come rain on my parade,
‘Cause I wanna feel it.
Come shove me over the edge,
‘Cause my head is in overdrive.
I'm sorry but it's too late,
And it's not worth saving
So come rain on my parade—
Eden’s eyes snapped open when her phone began to ring, Doomed finding her ears. She sighed, slipped it out to see Sterling as the caller ID. He was definitely upset, wasn’t he?
Eden answered the call after a few seconds. “Hi.”
“Where are you? What are you doing? And why weren’t you in class?” Sterling asked quietly, rubbing at his forehead with his hand. “I had no idea where you were. I’m worried, E. It worries me when you disappear without a trace. Could you at least let me know beforehand next time?”
Eden winced at his questions and at the tone of his voice. She was expecting a lot of disapproving questions, but not that quiet voice. That made it a lot more… intimidating.
“So many questions,” she murmured, swinging back and forth. “I am… okay. I was just thinking. I didn’t get into a fight. I wasn't in class because I wanted to clear out my thoughts. I wanted to be alone. I’m sorry about that. I should have warned you before. Sometimes I disappear without a trace, but I did leave you a message. I didn’t mean to worry you. And I didn’t tell you because either you would have stopped me, convinced me to stay, or would have skipped with me. And really, I don’t want you skipping classes because your girlfriend feels like she wants some time to sort herself out.”
Sterling sighed and shook his head, dragging his hand down his face before pushing it through his hair. “Okay. I’m glad you’re safe and not hurt or anything. And thank you for texting me at all, even though I didn’t get it until just now. If you need time to sort yourself out… Then I guess you should have it,” he sighed, shaking his head. “Just please be careful. And come back soon. And safe. I’ll even drive you home. Or come pick you up if I need to.”
Eden smiled at his worry, swinging her legs back and forth on the swing. She grabbed one chain and leaned back, phone pressed to her ear.
“Come pick me up?” she said hesitantly. “If it’s not much trouble.”
“I can do that. Where are you so I can know where I’m going?” Sterling asked as he pulled his clothes out of his locker. He put his phone on speaker, turning it down so he was the only one who could hear, and started changing.
“I can send you my location,” Eden answered with a shrug before she paused, hearing the shuffling of clothes. “Sterling… are you changing right now?”
“Mmhm. Why?” Sterling asked, pulling his shirt over his head. “Yes, you’re on speakerphone, but the locker room is mostly empty now and the volume is low.”
Eden rubbed her face with her free hand, eyes closed. “That wasn’t—that wasn’t what I meant,” she muttered under her breath, inhaling deeply at the thought of her boyfriend. “Er, so I should probably text you my location. So you can find me.”
“Yeah, please. I’ll come get you as soon as I’m done here,” Sterling said as he pulled his new shirt on and then finished changing his pants.
“All right,” Eden murmured. “See you in a few.”
She hung up and pulled out her messages, sending Sterling the address of the park she was at. Then she slipped her phone back in her pocket and closed her eyes.
Sterling’s phone beeped just as he finished changing. He grabbed it and put the address into his GPS, then started it to his car. A few minutes later, he was on his way to pick Eden up.
Eden browsed through her song, tapping on Mother Tongue by Bring Me The Horizon. She breathed in deeply, exhaling softly. She was really a piece of work, wasn’t she?
About five minutes later, Sterling pulled up to the address Eden had give him. He parked, then got out of the car and looked around. With a smile, he saw that she was sitting on a swing, and he made his way over.
“Hey,” he said softly when he had reached her.
Eden immediately looked up when she heard Sterling’s soft voice. She smiled and jumped off the swing, closing the distance between them.
“Hey yourself,” she murmured when she stopped in front of him. “You look tired. PE give you a rough time?”
“A bit. Nothing I can’t handle, though. And nothing a hug and kiss from my girlfriend can’t fix,” Sterling declared, his smile widening as he opened his arms for her.
He wasn’t upset, Eden realized as relief flooded through her. She immediately fell into his embrace, breathing him in.
“You’re wonderful,” she murmured. “The best. Have I told you that?”
Sterling hummed and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. He kissed the top of her head with a smile, nuzzling her hair.
“Not today you haven’t. I’m glad you think so,” he murmured before sighing. “…Please don’t just leave like that again…”
Eden exhaled softly through her nose, burying herself deeper in his embrace. “I’m sorry,” she murmured. “I thought you’d have your phone on you. I didn’t think you would see my message so late. And… I just wanted to be alone, I guess.”
“It’s okay. I’m just glad you’re okay,” Sterling whispered against her hair. “Let’s go, yeah? We can get your stuff from school and then leave.”
Eden pulled away to look back at the swing where her bag was leaning against the pole. “I already got it,” she murmured. “I sort of knew I’d be gone the whole class, so… I brought my stuff with me.”
Sterling smiled a bit and nodded. “Well, all right, then. One less stop we have to make. Do you want to go back to your apartment?”
“Uh, we can,” she shrugged. “Or we could go to the bookstore? I really, really want the next book of ACOTAR.”
“Oh, those were the books you were telling me about, right? Sure, we can do that,” Sterling agreed, offering her his free hand, the other holding the keys for his car.
