CHAPTER 11

It wasn’t him.

I sat there, waiting for what felt like forever.

But he never came.

The bell rang, and the cafeteria emptied out.

Still, I sat there waiting.

Maybe he didn’t care after all?

*

My heart broke as the final bell of the school day rang, and I stood before my assigned locker. I looked down at the combination printed on the piece of paper in my hand, turned the knob and pulled.

The inside door was lined with graffiti. Otherwise, it was completely bare. Depressing.

I thought of all my other schools, of how I would rush to find my locker, to open it, to memorize the combination, and to line the door with pictures of boys from magazines. It was my way of making myself at home.

But somewhere along the line, a few schools ago, I stopped trying.

I closed the door with a bang.

“Caitlin?”

I jumped.

Standing there, a foot away, was Jonah.

He wore large sunglasses. I could see that the skin beneath them was swollen.

I was shocked to see him standing there. And thrille