[Edited]
Disclaimer: I do not own this story. It belongs to Stephanie Meyer. I only own the unfamiliar plot line, other characters and anything else unrecognisable.
Chapter 2
I was zoning out again. When I checked my phone I had a few text messages and miss calls from Angela and Owen.
Hey, wanna hang out? Mom & dad r at some conference. We could grab lunch at the diner.-A
Babe, why aren't u answering? I miss u. - Owen
"Case, are you okay? You didn't respond to my text. Should I come over? Call me."
"I'm worried. It's Tuesday and I still haven't heard from you. Are you on house-arrest? Did they ground you till you're thirty. Please call me Case."
"Baby, are you okay? I'm worried. Call me...Casey I love you."
I'm coming over. It's Thursday and I've heard nothing from u. If they grounded u they wouldn't keep u from school. - Ang
Owen said not 2 bother u. We're worried Case. Call us, text us. Just do something that we can know you're still alive. - A
I switch my phone off and toss it across my bed. I haven't spoken to either of them since the party. I feel bad for ignoring them but I can't deal with being around anyone right now. A week has gone by. I haven't been to school and have barely left my room. Mom was a zombie and I couldn't face her. Not that she left her room either. Hell, I was starting to become a zombie myself. After everything that's happened, my dad leaving us and not even bothering to say goodbye or explaining why he left, I haven't cried one tear. I feel a million different emotions but I can't bring myself to cry. I guess I've become numb to everything. My dad was my hero and the fact that he abandoned me hit me like a pile of rocks but crying isn't what I do. No matter how angry and hurt and betrayed I feel, the tears just won't fall. I just don't cry. I've been avoiding everyone. I haven't spoken to my mom since she told me he left. And she's been cooped up in her room acting like the living dead. At this moment I think I'm angrier at my dad than I am hurt. Or that's what I'm telling myself. I don't think I can cry because of it. My own father betrayed me and I can't bring myself to cry about it because, well, because I'm stubborn and he doesn't deserve my tears.
I decide to take a shower. Moping about my dad leaving us is not going to bring him back. My mom was doing enough moping for the both of us and the rest of Forks and quite frankly I was tired of zoning out and avoiding my friends. After my shower I decided to get something to eat and then head out to the beach. I needed to clear my head before I spoke to any of my friends. I made myself a sandwich and scoffed it down quickly, then ran upstairs to get my keys and phone. Before I head for the door I checked on mom. Her screaming and yelling finally died down and she was out cold on the couch. I threw a quilt over her, placed a quick kiss on her cheek and was out the door. I exited so quickly that I didn't notice the person behind me and bumped right into them. I looked up and was staring straight into Owen's sea-green eyes. They looked confused and worried but somehow relieved as well. He immediately grabbed me into a hug and man did it feel good. I felt awful for avoiding him but I couldn't face anyone, I just wasn't ready. But having him here now, being in his arms, I finally felt how much I've missed him and how much I needed him.
"What the hell Case?" he says frantically when we pull away from the embrace. "I thought you were mad at me about something because you weren't answering my texts or calling me back. But then Ang told me you weren't answering her texts and calls either I started to get worried."
"I'm sorry Owen." I sound pathetic as I lay my head down on his chest relishing in the feeling of his arms around me. I needed this.
"What happened Case?" he gently strokes my hair. I bite my lip when it starts quivering. Being in Owen's arms is doing something to my numbness. I can feel my eyes stinging, tears threatening to fall but I am not going to cry. I have to be strong. I clear my throat.
"Shit went down." I mutter somberly. I don't lift my head from his chest but I know he must be frowning so I elaborate. "When I got home from the party, I expected to be grilled heavy about coming in at five in the morning but that wasn't what I came home to." I swallow hard choking back the tears. My head suddenly feels fuzzy. It's hard talking about this. I didn't think it'd be this hard. I didn't think my dad would leave me. But he did. And I don't even know why. I can feel the anger rising again. I don't wanna talk about him. He's the reason my mom is acting like her life just ended. He's the reason why I've been avoiding my friends because I've been too much of a wreck to socialize. He's the reason I feel like I wasn't good enough because he abandoned me. He's the reason I just wanna scream because it just hurts so goddamn much.
It's takes a minute for me to realize what I'm doing; I'm screaming out my thoughts, shoving Owen as I bang my fists on his chest. It wasn't just in my head.
"Case. Casey! Calm down!" he says his voice panic-stricken as he shakes me gently. I finally look him in the eye again and stop my near mental breakdown. I exhale breathily.
"I'm sorry, I just…" I trail off struggling to find the right words. I mean what can I say other than "he left"? There isn't anything else to say because he didn't say anything when he left. He did just that, left. And I hate him for it.
"It's okay Case. Come on, let's go to the beach. You look like you can use a breather." He gently tugs my hand and leads me to his car. I'm so thankful for Owen. I don't know what I'd do without him. He doesn't push me to finish my sentence, well, I just basically screamed everything out, but he doesn't force me to speak about it. I allow the numbness to overflow and feel comforted by the thought that I still have Owen.
