Because He Loved Me.

Lucy and I laid on the warm, golden sand of the private beach a few miles outside of town. Our normally pale white skin is turning a dull brown. I put on my sunglasses and roll over onto my back. Lucy sighs as she puts her book down.
“Sweetie,” She says, rubbing my back.
“Mmh?” I say, turning to face her. Lucy wrinkled her eyebrows, concern setting in.
“You have been quiet all day…we usually talk about everything and all we have talked about is the sun,” I nodded, agreeing with her. Lucy knew when something was up with me. The past few weeks have been torture but Lucy has made them a little less painful.
“It’s just…you know how I was telling you about the boy I liked?” I said, turning to my side and resting my head on the palm of my hand. Lucy lowered herself to my position.
“Yes?” She answered, adjusting her sunglasses and squinting a bit.
“Well…I saw him with Heather,” I saw Lucy made a disgusted face, “Bowling the other night when I was with Santino…” She immediately hugged me with her free arm.
“Oh sweetie,” She cooed, “Don’t worry, Heather is just a piece of ass to him. You are more beautiful and smarter than her. He cannot take her seriously,”
“Mat did,” I sighed and immediately regretted saying his name. Lucy cleared her throat and fixed her position. “I’m sor-”
“No, honey, I need to get over that fact,” She says, holding her hand up, “I know, but Heather isn’t someone he would want to marry. Men want to marry a successful woman who they can get along with. Most guys with wives like Heather get married than divorced after a short while,”
I gulped and nodded, shivering as people passed causing a dull wind. I wonder if that is true. Most guys my age just want a girl to be a sexual beast and able to make them a sandwich after it’s all over. What happened to the sweet guys who wouldn’t care if a girl wanted to wear non revealing clothes and who read instead of doing cheerleading or dance squad? They went to the center of the universe where I will never find them. Just my luck!
If Drew really wanted to be with me, he would. He would try to connect with me and ask me out, not go out with whores and hit them later that night! This is ridiculous, I am not thinking about him any more…yeah that’s it. I am just going to see where life takes me. Maybe along the way I will meet a decent guy…well those chances is like saying an ostrich can survive in Antarctica.
I turned onto my stomach and groaned. Looking to the side, I saw a few people playing volley ball. How appropriate is that? It matches my mood. Person on the right: I like Drew. Person on the left: Screw that prick.
Like.
Screw.
Like.
Screw.
Like.
Scr-
My thoughts were cut short as the wind was knocked out of me. Heaving on my own breath, I looked over to see a big football next to me. I hissed out, my eyes narrowing into slits.
“Che diavolo?!” I yelled, choking a bit. Lucy was panicking next to me, asking me all these questions. She basically tipped over her chair as she held my hand. Sand kicked over me as I looked up to see Officer Matthews in a bathing suit. What a site…damn…
“Sorry about that,” He chuckled nervously as he grabbed the football. I finally got my breathing back as he stood there awkwardly, staring at my body. Luce cleared her throat as he snapped out of it.
“I will let you off the hook this time, Matthews,” I said, sticking my tongue out.
“Oh why thank you, princess,” He said, bowing down mockingly.
“No problem, peasant,” I played along and laid back down, fixing my top. Matthews laughed and shook his head as he walked away. Lucy gave him a disapproving glare. I look at her, giving her my obvious blank face as of asking “what?”
“I like him…but he shouldn’t be talking to you like that…” She shakes her head and fixes her chair. I stare at her confused.
“Talk to me like what?”
“Well it should be on a professional level…not friendship…especially since he is older,” Lucy says and sits down, picking up her sun screen. I shake my head and sink back into my towel.
*&*
As I walked into the kitchen, I heard my parents talking in the living room. Quietly tip toeing to the door and pressing my ear against it, I heard muffled discussions. My jaw dropped as I heard another voice very familiar. Matthews.
“So we know who it is?” My father said, hope in his voice.
“Not exactly-” Officer Matthews began.
“Well then,” My mother said, on the verge of tears, “I do not want to hear it!”
“Karen!” My father scolded, “Please tell us what you know.” I heard a grunt and someone wiggling in a chair. A loud breath was wheezed out.
“Well we found out that at the location of your son’s….death, we found some evidence…”
“What kind?” My mother asked.
“We found a knife,” Officer Matthews spoke up, “It wasn’t just any knife either, this was a hunting knife. Now I went to the local hunting places and they said no one has lost a knife nor purchased in weeks. I looked at the bill and we found that a certain Mason Peter bought a knife last yet no one has seen him since the flood we had back. We are ruling him as dead now but if we get into his records we can see where he is,”
I froze in panic. Some one killed my brother? I was there…I didn’t see where he was though. Who could have killed my brother? He was so kind to people, not in any one’s way at all. He would actually stand up for kids who were being picked on and he actually did community service instead of just getting a guy to sign it.
Anger rose in my stomach as I opened the door, my jaw locking. Officer Matthews stood up in alarm as my father had his arm around my mother who looked like she was going to burst at any time.
“Issy…” My father said. My eyes widened in fear and I shook my head.
“Don’t call me that,” I spat and crossed my arms. My father looked at me disapprovingly. I looked down at my shoes and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.
“We have news…” My mother said her voice soft as bells.
“Don’t wanna hear it,” I said, holding up my hand and shaking my head. Officer Matthews looked down at the floor, avoiding my eye contact.
“I suppose I will get going now…” He spoke after several seconds of silence. He brushed past me and said, “Remember what I said in the beginning,” I nodded in response as he walked out. I swallowed my tears and ran up to my room.
*&*
“Holy shit,” Santino breathed out, scratching the back of his neck. I nodded and tied my hair in a pony tail.
I invited Santino over a while ago and told him all about the evidence thing, even the beach thing and the whole mixed feelings about Andrew. Santino seemed to understand about the mixed feelings thing and actually hugged me as I spilled my guts out to him. For a guy, Santino knows when it’s time to comfort girls. That is what makes him Santino.
“You can say that again,” I said, sighing and laying down on my bed. Santino joined me, except he laid on me and put his chin on my chest. I laughed, “You are such a goof,”
“That’s why you love me,” He smiled and did the “motor boat”. I guffawed and pushed him on the floor. Santino made an ‘oomph’ and said “I’m okay”.