Lost

Chapter 8

I push my food around my plate slowly, in attempt to make it look like I've eaten more than I actually have. I'm not hungry, I never am.

"Maddie," my dad says strictly.

"What?" I mumble.

"Eat."

Zach flashes me an apologetic look.

"Can I be excused?" I ask, but not waiting for answer as I push my chair back from the table. I walk quickly over to the back door to enter our backyard.

We live right near a lake, and the bench looking out on the water is one of my favorite places. It's a great place to sit and escape, it helps me forget everything that's going on in my life.

I sit on the bench and shiver, I should've grabbed a sweatshirt.

My dad is always going on and on about how dramatic I am. If only he knew what was really going on. Ever since my mom died, I've never been the same. My life changed that day, and so did everyone around me.

Although Megan and I were only seven when it happened, I remember every second of that day.

It had seemed like any ordinary day at school, until we got called into the office. No one told us why, but Megan and I knew that something was wrong.

My dad brought us to the hospital, and he had cried the entire way there. Megan asked him what happened, and when he told us, she hugged him and cried on his arm.

I remember just standing there, and I didn't shed a single tear. But on the inside a crack was forming, and it's why I'm still broken today. It feels like that crack keeps getting bigger, as everyone's hurtful words rip through me.

My thoughts are interrupted as someone comes and sits down next to me.

"Not now dad, go away," I groan.

"It's me," he says, "Zach."

"Oh, sorry," I say, and turn my head to look at him.

His gorgeous green eyes stare back at me. "Are you okay?" he asks. "You seemed kind of upset back there."

"Are you sure?" I ask sarcastically. "I definitely had a huge smile on my face."

He ignores my sarcasm and his tone indicates how serious he is. "Just because you're smiling doesn't mean you're happy. You can talk to me, it's okay."

"It's never okay," I say, my eyes watering.

"I promise you it will be, one day."

"How would you know?"

"I just know," Zach says quietly. "Everything always turns out good in the end."

"Right now, I'm not worried about the supposed happy ending," I say. "I'm just trying to get through each day without falling apart. Today is just a little harder to get through then others."

He looks up at me as I talk, and I suddenly regret everything I just told him.

"Sorry, you don't care. I should just stop talking."

"I do care, and I always will. I'm not the type of person to walk into your life just to get up and leave. Once you get inside my heart, you don't leave it, ever."