KENNEDY
There’s a fine line between love and hate, so fine that you don’t know you’ve lost balance until it’s too late.
I’m not sure exactly when I lost my balance, all I know is that he was to blame.
Dane Winters.
The boy I’d spent almost all of my life hating.
And now? I find myself on the other side of that very fine line…
PROLOGUE
Dane
16 Years Old
I STOOD TO the side, watching it all unfold in the wings. Jason’s voice grew louder, and attracted the attention of the students passing the hall. Kennedy looked around, her eyes growing frantic, her cheeks reddening in embarrassment. I played Varsity football with Jason, he was the all-star quarterback, and while I thought the guy was a complete tool, what I disliked most about him was his interest in Kennedy Monroe. He was a senior; she was a sophomore like me, and he could have his pick of any girl in the school – why did it have to be her?
“Jason, please, can we go somewhere private and talk about why you’re freaking out?” Kennedy’s voice was soft, and filled with desperation.
“Is it true?” Asked Jason. He towered over Kennedy’s small frame, and if I hadn’t orchestrated this whole thing, I would’ve told him to back the fuck off and leave her alone. But I couldn’t. Because she was the enemy.
For as long as I could remember, my father had warned me about the Monroe family. He told me to stay away from them, that their family had hated ours since our forefathers had founded this town. For a while, I listened, I stayed away, and I allowed my father’s apparent hatred for the Monroe family to become my own. It wasn’t until after we returned from this past summer, that it all changed.
Kennedy had changed. In just three short months, she went from a gangly, dorky teenager to a gorgeous, stunning girl who intruded my every thought, both in sleep and consciousness. She’d started school a year earlier, making her younger than the rest of us, and what I thought she lacked in social graces, she definitely made up for in smarts. She embodied everything I wanted, but couldn’t have. And that’s what had led me here.
“Is what true? I don’t know what’s gotten in to you, but we can’t do this in front of the entire school.”
Kennedy’s voice brought me back to the present, and I straightened, leaning against my locker on the opposite side of the hallway.
“Open your locker, Kennedy.”
I stiffened when Jason’s tone grew harder, but reminded myself that I had to watch rather than get involved and stop it.
Kennedy fiddled with the combination on her locker, and as soon as it popped open, the photos fell out. They consisted of pictures of Jason, close ups of his face, of him at practice, and I even managed to get a few of him at home in his room. It was all very stalker-ish.
I’d outdone myself, and couldn’t help the wicked grin on my face.
“What the hell?” Jason bellowed, picking up a few of the pictures scattered on the floor. “I can’t believe it, he was right.”
My grin fell slightly, and I hoped to God he didn’t mention my name.
“These aren’t mine,” Kennedy said quickly. “I swear, Jason, they aren’t.” She reached out to grab his arm, but he pulled away.
“I didn’t take these!” Kennedy held a few pictures in her hands, and looked up at Jason as if he’d believe her. I knew he wouldn’t. I’d made sure of it.
“Then why are they in your locker?”
“I-I don’t know,” Kennedy replied.
With a shake of his head, Jason looked between Kennedy and her locker one last time. “Dane was right,” – fuck – “You’re a freak.”
Students laughed, and Kennedy slammed her locker shut before running towards the girls’ bathrooms, tears glistening on her face.
It was a dick move, but that feeling of morbid satisfaction uncurled itself in my stomach. It was just too easy.
“You actually did it.”
I looked to the side, and saw my best friend Reid standing next to me.
“Of course I did.”
Reid sighed. “You are such an asshole.”
I pushed away from my locker, and slipped the strap of my bag over my shoulder before heading towards my next class.
“I know.”
Kennedy
15 Years Old
THE SOUND OF laughter echoed behind me, and finally died down when the bathroom door closed. I slipped into a stall, and closed the toilet seat before sitting down and taking a breath. My heart was racing, and my face was hot. Humiliation warmed my skin, and spurred the tears that had started falling down my cheeks. I shouldn’t have been surprised, but Dane had been quiet for the past weeks and I’d assumed his need to embarrass me on a daily basis had finally been satisfied. Apparently he’d been busy planning his latest prank.
I wiped my eyes, and took my cellphone from my bag. We weren’t allowed to keep our phones in our bags, but I always kept it on silent, and on hand in case of emergencies. If anything happened at school, they’d have to call my father, and I had to avoid that at all costs. There was only one person I could call when I needed help, only one person I knew who would drop everything to be there for me.
I pulled up Charlie’s number, and waited for him to answer. He was coming home from college for the weekend, and I hoped he was close. I still had four hours of school, but I needed to leave now. I didn’t want to have to stay and deal with any more crap. I’d had my fill for the day.
My brother’s voice came through the phone, and I relaxed, if only a little. “Hello? Kenny?”
“C-Charlie…” My lip started trembling.
“Kennedy, what’s wrong?”
“Are you close?” I asked. “Can you come get me, please?”
“I’m ten minutes out, baby girl, you hang tight.”
My shoulders sagged in relief. “Okay, I’m at school. I’ll meet you in the parking lot next to the sports field.”
“I’ll be there.”
I ended the call, and after righting myself in the mirror, I checked the hallway to make sure everyone, including the teachers, was in class. When it was clear, I snuck out, and quietly made my way towards the back exit of the school. No one would see me, and I could cut class for the rest of the day without anyone knowing until the teachers took roll call. By then I’d be gone.
I never cut class, ever, but today I felt like I needed to. I needed to see Charlie, and waiting four more hours wasn’t going to happen. I hadn’t seen him in almost a month, and it had been unbearable without him.
As soon as his blue Ford F250 stopped in the lot, he was out of the door, and had his arms around me before I could say anything.
I hugged him close, and breathed in his familiar scent of leather, and pine. The girls always ate him up, but nothing compared to having him as my big brother. He was all I really had, and had been protecting me for most of my life.
“I’m here,” he breathed into my hair.
I pulled away, and wiped the fresh tears that had slipped down my eyes. “I’ve missed you.”
He gave me his boyish grin, his eyes bright and so alive. His hair, which was a darker shade of blond, had grown, and hung on his forehead. He was such a man now, but I still saw the little boy who always bandaged up my ‘booboo’s, and the teenager who stayed with me the first time I got my period because there was no one else who could do it.