Free Falling for You by Lisa Schroeder

when he’s down, you know?” She wasn’t being mean, just honest. And I could tell by her tone she was concerned, for both of us.
    I sighed. “I know. Still, it’s not right. Nothing feels right with him anymore.”
    “Aw, Rae. That sucks. You guys are so cute together. Maybe things will get better. You never know. I’ll bet he feels really bad.”
    Just then, my phone beeped with another call. It was Nathan.
    “That’s him,” I said.
    “See? He’s probably calling to apologize again. Go talk to him. It’ll be all right. I’ll see you tomorrow, ’kay?”
    She made it sound easy. Like another apology would solve everything, and with a snap of my fingers, I could forget what happened. But it was so not easy.
    “Yeah. Bye, Alix.”
    I watched the phone buzz. Then I turned it off. Because as far as I was concerned, there wasn’t anything left to say.
    •   •   •
    The next day I took a tardy, on purpose. Anything to avoid seeing Nathan.
    While we worked on an in-class essay, Ms. Bloodsaw called me up to see her. I took a seat in a chair by her desk. I wasn’t worried. She wasn’t the type to get upset.
    “What’s your cat’s name?” I asked, admiring the picture of her tabby with green eyes.
    “Eddie,” she said.
    “He’s beautiful. You should enter one of those contests they have. You know, where you submit a picture of you and your pet and the ones who look most alike win a huge prize.”
    She smiled. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
    “It is,” I assured her.
    “Do you have any pets, Rae?”
    I shook my head.
    “Eddie is a wonderful companion. He loves curling up on my lap while I read a good book.” She chuckled. “He loves to sleep, that cat.” And then her tone changed. I could see concern on her face. “Is everything all right in your world, Rae? Your poetry, it’s amazing. Really. And I don’t want to say anything that might keep you from submitting more in the future. But I also—well, I simply need to know you’re okay.”
    Another teacher might have said something judgmental. Made me feel like a loser. But not Ms. Bloodsaw.
    “I’m fine,” I said softly. “I promise. The poetry? It helps.”
    She nodded and I could tell she understood. “Good. I think that’s wonderful. Keep it up. And please, if there’s anything I can do for you, don’t hesitate to ask, okay?”
    I looked at the picture of her cat again. She obviously loved Eddie a lot. Ms. Bloodsaw was a kind person, and I knew she really meant what she said. Of course, there wasn’t anything she could do for me, but I wasn’t going to tell her that. “Sure. Okay. And I’m sorry I was late today. I had something I needed to take care of.”
    “It’s all right. I won’t mark you tardy. I’m just glad everything’s all right.”
    I stood up. “Thanks a lot.”
    When I got back to my desk, Felicia discreetly tossed me a note, then went back to her essay.
    Trying not to make any noise, I opened the note carefully.
Where were you this morning? Nathan was so worried about you. Like, frantic. It was really freaky. We tried to tell him that you probably just overslept, but he wouldn’t have any of it. How come you didn’t pick up your phone?
    Nathan had called me four times and texted me five that morning. I didn’t answer because I didn’t want to talk to him.You’d think he might catch a clue. I needed to figure out what to do about him.
    I wrote back:
You’re right. I overslept. Nathan needs to chill out.
    But would he? That was the question.
    •   •   •
    I tried to avoid Nathan at lunchtime, but I had to go to my locker to get some books, and that’s when he pounced on me.
    “Finally, Rae,” he said, coming up from behind and putting his arms around me. “I was worried about you.”
    His presence was like a weight around my neck. I felt myself slipping down into a place I didn’t want to go.
    I wriggled free. “Look, Nathan. I need to ask you a favor. I need you to give me