A Shattered Moment (Fractured Lives 1)

Thankfully, Trina picked a small table for two that was in a less-crowded area. I turned my chair so my back would face the majority of the room. Relieved to be at least sitting, I set my cane against the wall and off to the side so it wouldn’t be in the way. I kept my eyes down, opening the small box of cereal to dump into my bowl. It was a struggle fighting the urge to look behind me to see how many people were staring. The voice in the back of my mind pleaded to return to the safety of my room. Obviously, I wasn’t quite ready to jump into the whole social scene yet.

“Are you going to eat that or pulverize it?” Trina asked, jerking my attention back to my hand, which had mangled my poor banana.

“Uh, I eat it that way,” I lied, looking up at her.

“Right, mushed is better,” she teased, calling my bluff. “You know, you have nothing to worry about. So what if you need a cane to walk? You’re not all that special.” She winked.

I let out a startled laugh at her words. It was the first time someone had been so blunt with my condition. I liked it.

Her smile turned to a scowl as she took a bite of her quiche. “Great, a guy I went out with just walked in. He doesn’t give up.” She ducked down, using me as a shield.

Whipping my head around, I spotted a guy who looked vaguely familiar. It took me a second to place him. We’d had a class together the previous year. All I remembered about him was that he was obnoxiously loud.

“Really?” I asked, turning back around to face her.

“I know, right? Can you believe it? I swear I don’t know what I was thinking. In my defense, I was pretty plastered when we met, and I thought he was funny. As soon as I sobered up, I saw the ass face for who he really was. We only went out a few times, but he was a total jerk-off when I tried to end it. He couldn’t seem to take a hint.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just the normal bullshit, like calling me constantly. When I ignored those, he sent me a million text messages. I had to have my parents switch my cell number.” She peeked around me. “He manages to show up wherever I am. He’s a total stalker.”

“What a dick. Are you worried about him?” I asked as she picked at her quiche.

“Not really. I just wish he’d get the hint. It’s getting old trying to avoid him. You’d think by the way he’s acting we’d been in a relationship for months instead of a couple measly dates.”

“Maybe you should report him or something,” I said, placing my banana peel in my empty bowl.

“Nah, he’s not worth the bother. I think he’s relatively harmless, just slow. Eventually he’s bound to get the hint,” she said dismissively. “Okay, we can go. He left.”

Trina changed the subject as we left the dining hall together, chatting until we got to the science building, where she had a class. We parted ways after making plans to grab a bite for dinner later. She was sneaky the way she hurriedly escaped into the building before I could come up with a plausible excuse not to go.

Between Bentley and Trina, my solitary lifestyle had come to a screeching halt. I had to be a glutton for punishment agreeing to go out to dinner two nights in a row. I reminded myself how lonely I’d been over the weekend. It wasn’t like I could have it both ways.

Dinner that night turned out to be stressful at first. Trina seemed to know a lot of people, and she was an attention-getter. Our table at Chili’s quickly became crowded as some of her friends dragged chairs over to join us. I felt like I was suffocating and needed to retreat. I mentally started my counting exercises to calm my nerves. I suspected Trina sensed my distress because she made a point to introduce me to everyone and included me in the conversations. It was awkward initially. One, because there were at least three different conversations happening simultaneously, and two, because I had issues making eye contact with people I didn’t know. Eventually, as I realized everyone was nice and didn’t appear the least bit interested in my cane, I mellowed out enough that I was able to participate. I’m not sure if I necessarily had fun, but at least I was out in a social setting.

Trina and I walked back to the dorms with the same group that had joined us at our table. I prepared myself for a barrage of questions about why I had the cane, and what was wrong with my leg, but they never came. I even had myself worried about slowing the group down until I realized no one seemed to be in a hurry. As a matter of fact, I had to hold up several times as they goofed off. College students really weren’t much different than they were in high school. They still liked to screw around and mess with each other. It was comforting.

Bentley called me later that night after Trina and I got back to our room. She had headed off to the shower, so I had our room to myself when my phone buzzed.

“Hi,” I answered, smiling like a total goober. “How was your class?”

“Not bad. If I can memorize about a hundred body parts, I should ace the exam next week.”

“Maybe I can help you. I’m the queen of flash cards.” I couldn’t believe my own ears. Was that me who had offered to get together?

“Really? That would be awesome. I’d ask my roommates, but that would require Chad actually stepping away from the Xbox.”

“Sure. When I come over tomorrow for the movie, I can help you,” I suggested before giving myself a mental thrashing for sounding overeager.

“Oh no. Tomorrow night is all about Ferris. We’ll have to study on Thursday and Friday. If you’re not too busy, that is.”

A relieved smile crossed my face. “Nope, that works for me.”

“Great. I’ll pick you up after your last class. Text me the details about where to meet you.”

“Okay. Bye.”

“What’s that goofy smile for?” Trina asked when she entered our room wearing Victoria’s Secret sweats and a T-shirt. She had her long curly hair wrapped in a towel.