The Past is Only the Future with the Lights On

I couldn't move. My feet were stapled in that place, and I was also incapable of shutting my dropped jaw.

"Kel? Everything okay?" Frank asked, lightly touching my arm, causing little tingles to be produced in that spot.

I reluctantly took my stare from the two who were now staring back at me, wide-eyed as well, and looked at Frank, giving him a weak smile. But my smile was soon swooped off my face as he spoke.

"KC? What are you doing here?" Brandon asked as him and Monica approached us, their hands held tightly together.

"I-I'm going here n-now," I noticeably stuttered, looking hopelessly at my feet, feeling Gerard's arm over my shoulders once more.

My gaze drew upward, but instead of seeing tall Gerard, I was met by short Frank. He gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze, helping me feel a bit more confident.

"Frank, this is Brandon and, what I'm guessing to be, his girlfriend, Monica," I said, motioning with my hand towards them. I looked at Monica, her teeth clamped on her bottom lip nervously. "Aren't you worried that he'll do to you what he did to me?" She didn't answer me, just looked down at the ground in shame.

"Shut up, KC. It looks as if you've moved on, just forget the past," Brandon said, breaking his intense stare at me to look at Frank.

"Woah! Frank is my boyfriend," Taylor said, pulling on Frank's arm so that his other arm was no longer draped over my shoulder.

Brandon's eyes suddenly lit up. It was taking so much effort for me not to do to him what I did to Kendra.

Looking around us, I noticed everyone but Frank, Taylor, her clone and I had left, presumably to the bleachers. Without so much as another glance in Brandon or Monica's direction, I continued on my way to the bleachers, hoping I would find the others with little difficulty.

Tears were welling up in my eyes and I was just waiting for them to fall, but the sound of my name being called made me quickly brush them away. I hated to let people see me cry.

I immediately looked up, seeing my friends and their friends waving frantically to catch my attention as they sat up on the top rows of seats, surrounded by other kids from my school and their families and friends.

I made my way up there as well, nearly tripping on the cold metal as I did so.

"Hey, what was all that about?" Dahlia asked me from beside Mikey as I sat on the other side of her at the top set of bleachers.

"Just some old. . .friends," I said, hoping she wouldn't push it further. Luckily, Dahlia knew when to leave things alone, and did just that in this situation.

"I don't think I've ever seen so many people show up to a football game here before," Mikey said, his mouth hanging open slightly in awe as he viewed the crowds of people. I looked around as well, noticing that practically both sides of bleachers were filled, and there were even more people buying food in the large food court. The bright, stadium lights were on because it was already dark outside, and both football teams were stretching and what not on the field, preparing themselves for the game.

I tried to check the away team out, to see if I recognized any one from my old school, but then stopped when I realized I barely knew anybody outside of Brandon and Monica. I wasn't very social in Bridgewater, I guess.

"That's because you've never been to a football game," Ray pointed out, causing Dahlia and I to laugh and Mikey to shrug.

"Kelly? Who were those two?" Frank asked, his voice louder than normal to be heard over the chattering and screaming people around us, as he sat in the row of seats in front of me and next to Gerard, Taylor and Kendra in tow. But instead of joining us, as I assumed they were, for dragging us along after all, they sat with some other whores a couple rows over, not that Frank seemed to care or notice.

I was expecting this question to come sooner or later, when someone wanted to know about my old friends. And even after a month and a half, I wasn't ready to talk about it.

But there was something about Frank. Something that made me feel completely ready and comfortable with talking about it to him. In fact, I wanted him to know.

"Brandon was my boyfriend for a few years; the person I thought I was meant to spend the rest of my life with. . ." I started, not caring that the football game was about to start. I wouldn't have watched it anyways.

And so I told him. Everything. Basically. Just everything about Brandon, Monica and me and the events that led up to me breaking Kendra's nose. But some things I couldn't bring myself to say. Mainly because of all the people around.