Scribbles of a Broken Heart

Ms. Templeton looked at me amused as I plopped into the leather chair opposite her.

“How was last night?”

“Terrible as usual. And no, it isn’t because I’m not giving my parents a chance. And no, it isn’t because I’m shutting myself off from the world. And no, it isn’t because I’m purposely making myself miserable. Can we just skip my present life and relish in my past?”
She looked at me a little longer before setting down her tea. “Alright. Tell the next part of your story. I believe we left off just before you and Garrett spoke at swim practice.”

I looked at her incredulously, “Seriously? You aren’t going to fight me on this one?”

She shook her head, “I have a brand new notebook that is in need of a story.”

I splashed my feet in the pool, allowing the cool water to wash over the top of my calves. The cold tile underneath me woke up senses still clinging to sleep. My shoulders drooped as I swung my legs back and forth.

Acting depressed at home was easier than I thought it would be. Just the thought that my parents were withholding me from something that brightened my day and gave me a real purpose was enough for me to play the part of a brooding teen. Sickening as it may sound, I liked the worry on my parents’ faces. The look that said they knew they had done something terribly wrong, the emotion that strikes (almost all) parents at the center of their being. Maybe Garrett was right, maybe we could convince them.

“G’morning gorgeous.”

I turned to my right to see Garrett coming out of the men’s locker room in a pair of fitting swim shorts.

“You’re only saying that because I’m nearly half naked,” I accused.

“Yeah, you’re right,” he sat down next to me and dipped his feet in the water. “If you were wearing clothes, I only would’ve said ‘beautiful.’”

Garrett grabbed both of my legs and swung them over his lap. Then, he ran the back of his right hand along my knee down to my ankle.

“How was last night?”

“I was really rude to my mom before dinner. She asked me to get the lasagna out of the oven and I asked her to get out of my life.”

My mouth fell open. “Are you serious?”

He merely shrugged.

“That’s so mean!”

“I think I almost made her cry,” he added.

“Your mom isn’t the one that won’t let her daughter date. She didn’t deserve that.”
I shifted on my side so I could lie down and still keep my legs on Garrett’s lap. I rested my head on my folded arm as I waited for his reply.

“Even so, she isn’t doing anything to get us back together. She knows that I’m miserable, and yet she does nothing. If I can get her to get so fed up with my disrespect and moodiness, maybe she’ll talk to your parents about us.”

I quickly replayed his words in my head.

“That’s genius! What else ya got?”

He leaned closer to me and in a voice just louder than a whisper said, “I’m purposely doing bad
in all of my classes.”

My eyes widened, “How bad?”

“Nothing’s higher than a C.”

“Even P.E.?”

“I haven’t brought my uniform in weeks.”

“What is this gonna prove?”

He lied down next to me so that we were directly face-to-face.

“This is gonna prove how much I need you. My grades were the highest they’ve ever been last quarter since you pushed me to study and helped with a lot of subjects. If my misery doesn’t get to them, I know this will. And progress reports are coming out soon.”

A smile tugged at my lips as I heard Garrett’s words.

“That could work,” I marveled. “I mean, that could actually work. If we can break your parents, they can help us break mine.”

“It’s gonna happen,” he ensured. “We are going to happen again.”

I closed the space between us by pressing my lips to his. They were exactly the way I remembered them: warm, soft, and oh so sweet.

And as I pulled away, I left my eyes closed for just a little longer, savoring the taste.

“We’ve already happened.”