Never Fall For You

-Jason-

The next few days were hard on everyone… especially Kat. It broke my heart to see her sitting in class, and have to ask randomly to be excused to go to the restroom. Because I knew that she was only going to prevent everyone else from seeing her cry. And no matter what anyone said, I could see in her eyes that she still blamed herself for everything. And I longed to reach out and hold her just like I did that day at Hunter’s house.

Aaron’s funeral was set for Saturday. The entire week leading up to that seemed to fly by, mostly because I didn’t want to go to the funeral. Going to the funeral would mean that Aaron was actually gone. And no one else in our small circle of friends seemed to be ready for it, either.

Friday afternoon finally came, and the tension and dark clouds that seemed to relentlessly loom over our heads, hadn’t eased up one bit. I was halfway to my car, when I heard quick footsteps behind me. I ignored it to begin with, but when a voice called out to me, one that I wasn’t expecting to hear, I stopped suddenly, and turned around.

“Kat” I said, surprised, and she bumped into me lightly.

She looked up at me through red, swollen eyes that had been bursting into tears randomly throughout the week. A forced smile tugged at her soft mouth, and she sighed heavily.

“I just” she began, then stopped, and looked away from me. I smiled down at her, fighting the urge to just pull her into my arms. She took another deep breath. “Are you going to the, uh… You know… tomorrow?”

I nodded. “Of course” I answered.

She nodded too, still looking away. “Well, um, Phee is riding with Hunter” she said. “And I don’t want to ride by myself. Just in case I… you know…” she rolled her eyes “start crying or something.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Would you like to ride with me?” I offered, not quite sure if that was what she was getting at.

She looked up at me, biting her lip. “Do you mind?”

I shook my head. “Of course not” I answered quickly. She let out a soft sigh, of relief, I’m assuming, then smiled up at me. “So, pick you up at 8:30?”

She nodded quickly, and I smiled. Then, just as I turned around to head for my car, she softly said “Hey, Jason?” I turned back around immediately, and she grabbed my hand. “Thanks” she said, and I smiled down at her.

“My pleasure” I answered. We then said goodbye to each other, and I headed for my car.

By the time I got there, Tyler was already sitting in the passenger’s seat, waiting for me. His arms were crossed over his chest, and when I got into the car, he scoffed at me.

“What was going on between you and Kat?” he asked, as I started the car.

I rolled my eyes.

“Really, Tyler?” I asked, pulling out of the parking lot, and heading onto the main road. “She just lost one of her best friends, and you’re worried about whether or not she was flirting with me?”

“Whatever, man” he said, and I shook my head.

We ignored each other the rest of the ride home, which was fine with me. In fact, that seemed to be our M.O. for the past week. But I didn’t care. I had more important things going on, than worrying about whether or not Tyler was mad at me.

The next morning, I pulled into Kat’s driveway, just as she was coming outside. In spite of the current situation, I had to admit; she looked beautiful. She was wearing a knee-length, black lace dress, a black coat, black tights, and black heels. And her long dark hair was pulled away from her face, but fell loosely down her back. I got out of my car, just as she was approaching, and she stopped, looking at me crookedly.

When I opened the passenger’s side door for her, she paused, then smiled. “T-thank you” she murmured, stepping into the car.

“No problem” I answered, closing her door, then going back around to my side.

We drove in silence the whole ride there. Kat was staring out of the window while I drove, and I could only assume that she was trying to keep herself from crying. When I finally pulled up to the church, where the ceremony was being held, I got out of the car quickly, then opened the door for Kat. She stepped out slowly, smoothed out her dress, the took a deep breath.

“You ready?” I asked, looking down at her.

She sighed, her big brown eyes looking up at me intensely. She forced a smile, then slid her hand into mine. I was a little surprised. But a warm feeling settled over me, and I squeezed her hand.

“Ready” she said, and we both walked towards the church.

As soon as we stepped inside, I became overwhelmed with the amount of people that were there. Did these people all know Aaron? We’d barely gotten through the door all the way, when Kat suddenly went completely stiff.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, looking at her. Then I followed her gaze, to the tall blonde that was standing by the casket, in a slim, short black dress, and knee-high, shiny black boots. Claire.

Without a word, Kat stomped down the isle, and I followed behind her quickly.

“Kat” I whispered, but she didn’t respond. “What are you doing?”

Then, as if to answer my question, she snatched on Claire’s arm, causing the girl to turn around, whether she wanted to or not. She looked surprised, as she stared down at Kat’s face, and I could tell that the small girl was boiling with anger.

“What are you doing here?” Kat hissed, pointing her finger in Claire’s face.

Claire wiped away fake tears from her eyes, then folded her arms over her chest.

“He was my boyfriend” she sneered. “I have every right to be here.”

Kat raised her eyebrows, fuming at this point, I could only imagine. Then, she narrowed her eyes at Claire, before speaking slowly.

“It’s your fault he’s gone to begin with” she spat, her voice low.

And that’s when it happened. Claire’s eyes grew dark as she stared down at Kat, then her long arm flew back, then her open hand came forward to meet Kat’s cheek with a loud smack!

That’s also when Kat’s small body suddenly jumped Claire, taking her down in a blur of fists.