What She Learned (Currently in progress) by Bailey Lee (classic novels for teens TXT) 📕

The immediate afterthought of our kiss: I just made the worst mistake of my life!

I mean, I had to go back home at the end of the summer. I had also just kissed a pretty much complete stranger. The past 5 days had been more evenful than my whole life. That was just GREAT! 

I didn't know what had gotten into me. I would have blamed it on the over-all confidence that California had, but I really couldn't. And that made me feel worse. I had become just the kind of person I avoided. 

I didn't know what to do, and that made me forget that he was there.

I couldn't keep my mouth shut, so I had to make the situation worse by making him upset.

"That was a mistake." I hadn't realized he was smiling the biggest smile I had ever seen on anyone. Not until he wasn't.

"What do you mean?" 

I take it back. Saying that was the worst mistake of my life. 

"I'm sorry, but I don't live here. I have to go home and deal with my strict parents and their constant supervision. It's not fair to you, or me, for that matter."

"We'll see about that." 

"What could you possibly mean by that?"

"I'm gonna convince you that we will work. Even if it takes all summer."

 It took Austin two weeks to convice me. The first few days, I think he decided to lay low because he knew that I wouldn't give in that easy. Stubbornness was a huge part of me. If I wasn't, I wouldn't play football on the guy's team and I wouldn't surpass half the team, either. I'm waiting for the right guy. It's impossible to tell what it would be like to be with a guy later on. They could always be acting, but if Austin was acting, he should be famous by now.

After three days of laying low, he knocks on John's door. I didn't think anything of it, so John answers. 

"Kara! You have some explaining to do!"

Shit! Why didn't I think? I knew that he was planning on doing something, I just didn't know what. I had been worrying about the no dating rule that has been set in place since middle school. I was thinking about how sheltered kids who don't want to be sheltered, end up rebelling.

That was me all freshman and sophomore year. I wanted to dye my hair blue. I wanted tongue and nose rings. I wanted tattoos. I thought that they were cool. My mom had a million tattoos, cartilage piercings, and nose rings. She set the example, and then she contradicted it. I got them all, though. I got a semi-colon tattoo on my wrist to remember my father. I got a barbell nose piercing. I got a single metal ball piercing in the center of my tongue. I dyed my hair ocean blue. I didn't chop most of it off, though, which was my original idea.

It all stopped, though. I saw that it didn't solve anything. I got it all because I felt like I was put in a glass box and told to behave, to be obediant. I didn't do obediant, but I didn't seem happy from it all.

I took my nose piercing out, but kept it, just in case my mom changed her mind about it. I kept the tongue piercing, though. It was hard to see, and I loved it. I fixed my hair and started hiding my tattoo. All was well. I sank into the shadows, and stopped seeking attention. It fit me better than being the center of everything.

Then John speaks again and shakes me out of my thoughts. Thoughts of rebellion.

"Why is he showing up at my door saying that you two have a date, when you're mom specifically told you no dating? Who even is he?"

I tell him that I will explain it all the second I get back. He shoots me a warning look, and goes back into the living room. I'll have to keep that promise.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I was not happy. And he could see it. I see him dip his head in guilt. Now I felt guilty. 

"What did you have in mind for our date?" 

My poor attempt at cheering him up worked. He smiled ear to ear. 

"Come on. You're gonna love it."

"Are you freaking kidding me?" 

"I knew you'd love it."

"This is the best thing you could have even done for me! I can't believe you actually did this!"

What he had done was schedule us for skydiving! It was a chidhood dream for me, and he knew that, because I'd told him. The weird thing was that I had absolutely zero second thoughts about jumping out of a plane from so high up. I was too exited. 

We were given the basic directions and sent on our way. There was a big waver to sign, but what can you expect. They push people out of planes for a living.

The rush of the wind mixed with the pumping of adrenaline in my veins was insane. I could have been falling to my death, but I wouldn't have cared. It was amazing. I saw Luke enjoying himself too as we fall, and it was ten times better. We were dancing with death, and we were totally loving it.

Publication Date: 10-04-2020

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