Etching Our Way (Broken Tracks 1)

“Promise,” I answer, hooking my finger around hers and shaking.

They both wander off into the main room and I look up at Harmony, stepping closer. “You ready?”

She nods, cautiously. “Sure, but I want to know where we’re going.”

“Nope,” I say, my lips lifting into a smirk as I spin around and hold open the door for her. “It’s a surprise.”

She hesitates before rolling her eyes and walking past me and down the cobbled path. I unlock the car, holding open that door for her as well before she climbs inside.

I run around to the other side and slide into the driver’s seat as she asks, “So, no chance in you telling me where you’re taking me?”

“Nope.” I turn the key in the ignition then reach over and pop open the glove compartment, pulling out a piece of material before handing it to her. “Put this on.”

She takes it from my hand, her movements slow but jerky. “What… what is it?”

“A blindfold.” I can see the apprehension on her face, the unsure look inside her honey eyes as she looks back down at it. “Please, Harm. I promise it won’t be long until we’re there.”

She sighs and wraps it around her head, tying it off at the back. “Happy?”

“Extremely.” I chuckle and flick the turn signal on, pulling out onto the road and heading to the place where all of the animosity started.

It’s a twenty-minute drive at most, and I feel every single one of those minutes as the doubt starts to set in.

Maybe I shouldn’t be doing this?

I can feel her nerves mixed with mine swirling around the inside of the car as the silence wraps around us, not even a single note being played on the radio.

I clear my throat as I pull up on the grass verge, seeing the tree in front of me. Memories of the last time I looked at that tree assault me: the image of her sitting on the grass, the rain pouring over her as I drove away.

This time is different, I tell myself before pushing open the door and stepping out, walking around to her side and helping her out.

I can tell she wants to say something, but instead, she bites her lip, stopping herself.

I pull her toward the tree before turning her around, lifting my hand behind her head and undoing the knot she tied in the back.

Her eyes flutter open and slam closed against the harsh sunlight before she tentatively opens them again, looking around me at our willow tree. “What is this?”

I hesitate, maybe I should have taken her somewhere else to tell her instead of bringing her here: back to the beginning? “I needed to bring you back to where it all started.”

“Is this a sick joke?” She laughs sarcastically until she sees the look on my face. “Oh, you’re serious.” She raises a brow. “You thought this would be a good plan?”

“I… erm…” I look around, the sun breaking through the softly moving branches of the tree and down to the trunk that we used to sit against for hours as I watched her draw and paint. “Yeah?”

She spins around and starts to walk toward my car, throwing her arms out. “Unbelievable.”

“Wait!” I shout, catching her as I jog across the grass, wrapping my hand around her bicep and spinning her around to face me. “There’s more—”

“More what, Tris? More insults you need to throw in my face? More time to tell me how I’m not good enough for you?” She huffs, blowing out a breath. “I’m a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, I don’t fit into your life. Isn’t that what you told me?”

My mouth opens but no words come out, my brain to mouth function not working as I let go of her so fast, feeling the burn of her words against the palm of my hand.

She’s thrown my own words back at me and I don’t know what I can say to that.

Her eyes fill with a mixture of sadness and anger as she walks past me, pulling her cell out and holding it in the air, likely searching for service. “Damn thing!”

The first step she takes has my breath catching in my throat; the second cracks my heart; and the third has me springing back to life.

“Harmony!” She doesn’t acknowledge me as she makes it closer to the tree and I storm toward her. “Can you just stop!”