We ate breakfast in bed together and he turned on my TV like everything was normal. I tried to enjoy it but my mind kept going back to last night. That scar on his chest. How big it was. How fast he hid it. I grabbed the remote and paused the show. He looked at me right away. What is it Iris? I swallowed hard. I did not want to ruin the moment but I had to know. I told him he did not have to answer if he did not want to, but I asked what the scar on his chest was from. His smile faded. Oh you saw that? I started apologizing over and over but he grabbed my hand and told me it was okay. He asked me to promise not to tell anyone. I lifted my pinky and said I pinky promise. He looked down and his whole body changed. When I was younger I saw my parents fighting. My father threw a broken beer bottle at my mom and I jumped in front of her. It sliced my chest open. I stared at him, speechless. Tears filled my eyes and I hugged him tight. I told him I was sorry that happened to him. He said it was okay and that his mom never knew how to pick the right men.
Then he pulled away and asked if he could ask me something. His face made me nervous. What is it? I stuttered. Do you mind if I stay here with you. I held my breath. You mean like move in? He nodded. I told him it felt a little fast and he immediately got upset. It is fine if you do not want me to. My mom is with another drunk and I do not like being around him. I blurted out no it is okay of course you can stay. I am sorry you have to deal with that. He looked at the time and said we were going to be late for school. We jumped out of bed and ran outside. I looked at the empty driveway and asked where his car was. He said he ran here. I froze. He lived on the other side of town. How did he run all the way here? But I did not say anything. He smiled and said you know what lets just skip today and do something fun. I asked like what and he grabbed my hand and we ran into town.
We hung out all day. Then we stopped in front of this small beat up white house with peeling paint. I asked why we were here and he said this is my house. I was shocked. I did not mean to judge but I always pictured him living in some huge place. He told me to wait outside. I said okay. He went in and I could hear yelling from the street. My stomach twisted. Should I go check on him? I did not know what to do. Then the door slammed and he walked out with a bag full of his stuff. We walked back to my house and I said I cannot believe we are doing this. He laughed and said me too roomie. Then he thanked me for letting him stay. A couple weeks passed and I got used to him being there. I could not imagine him not living with me. Everything felt perfect. No new bodies had been found. The whole town felt calm again. I finally felt safe.
Until my phone dinged. It was Katie. My heart dropped. I had not talked to her since the day I snapped at her. How could I forget about her. My best friend since we were kids. I opened her message and it was a long paragraph about how I changed and how I forgot about her. My chest hurt reading it. Tears hit my screen. I texted her apologizing and explaining everything. She replied saying she wished I had never gotten a boyfriend. That made me upset. I was finally happy and she was not supportive. I left her on read. I could not deal with it. I could not believe I just lost my best friend of eleven years. I cried into my blanket until Leon came in and held me. I fell asleep in his arms.
When I woke up I checked my phone. It was 3:54 in the morning. I looked beside me and Leon was gone. My heart jumped. I sat up fast and whispered his name. Leon? No answer. The house felt too quiet. I got out of bed and looked around the dark hallway, I was alone.