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Stop Using My Fear as Your Game
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I'm learning to swim when my childhood friend, Vivian Thorne, fakes a cramp. My boyfriend, Oliver Wilde, suddenly lets go of my hand and swims toward her. I'm left alone in the two-yard-deep pool, completely stunned. After Oliver carries Vivian ashore, he smiles as he watches me thrash around. "Vivian says you rely on me too much and need a push to learn, so just swim over here yourself." I choke on water and sink. At the sight of my struggle, Vivian laughs so hard she slaps her thigh. Oliver says something to her, then drapes a towel over her shoulders in resignation. Even though I can't hear what he says, I bet it must be, "Now that you've had your laugh, don't tease her the next time. Aria is already pitiful enough with her fear of water." It's true that I was born with a fear of water. I've known them for seven years. All this time, Oliver and Vivian have been tormenting me under the guise of helping me overcome my fear of water. In college, at the beach, Vivian deliberately pushes me off the speedboat. Oliver jumps in to shield her and watches me swallow a bellyful of seawater in the waves. On the graduation rafting trip, Vivian suddenly capsizes the kayak. Oliver swims over to pull her up and watches me slam into a rock, my leg bleeding nonstop. Last year at the water park, Vivian shoves me down the waterslide. Oliver slides down to catch her and leaves me in the pool, nearly suffocating with fear. Every time, my fear and despair are met with a burst of laughter from Vivian. Meanwhile, Oliver stands behind her, always saying the same thing. "No more next time." However, the next time always turns into Vivian's new way of having fun at my expense. Water floods into my mouth and nose, the suffocation shooting straight to the top of my skull. But suddenly, I realize that I can actually float on my own. I grab the safety rope and haul myself ashore. Two pairs of hands reach out to pull me up, but I push them away. "From now on, I don't need you two to help me build up my courage anymore."
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Stop Using My Fear as Your Game Chapter 7
The hurricane passed.When daylight came, the rain stopped.The sun slipped out from behind the clouds, and the sea grew calm again.It was as if nothing had ever happened.The search and rescue team found Oliver in the mudflats after the tide receded.He had been swept 650 feet downstream into a stretch of reef rock, his body wedged into a crevice between the stones. Most of his clothes had been torn away, and his face was covered in silt and fine scratches.I knelt down beside him.Sage tried to hold me back, but I pushed her away.Bit by bit, I wiped the sand from Oliver's face.His eyes were closed. Not only were his lips purple, but his skin was also already cold.Even though I felt something inside me shatter so completely, I didn't cry.His right hand was curled against his chest. I tried to pry his fingers open, but they were stiff and ice-cold.I loosened his fingers one by one, only to find there was nothing in his palm. But there were deep curved imprints pressed
Stop Using My Fear as Your Game Chapter 6
Oliver really stayed.He lived in the storage room at David Sterling's place at the edge of the village.He rose before dawn every day to help Mr. Whitmore patch the waterproof tarp on the roof. After that, he would help the fishermen tidy their net-drying racks. Once that was done, he would chop firewood and carry water for Caspian's grandmother, Emily Ashby.Each day, he left something outside the door of my dormitory.Sometimes it was a bottle of mineral water, other times a packet of the only cookie the island shop carried. On occasion, it was simply a note that read, "The wind is strong today. Bring a jacket with you when you go out."Not once did I open the door to take them. Instead, Sage collected them on my behalf.I didn't speak to Oliver either. On the rare occasions we crossed paths at the school, he would simply watch me from a distance.The kids called him "Mr. Wilde" and dragged him into games of hacky sack.When Oliver smiled now, it was different from before. G
Stop Using My Fear as Your Game Chapter 5
Mom was the first to speak, her eyes sweeping from my sun-tanned face down to my old T-shirt and flip-flops."Look at you. What a disgrace. Why are you hiding out on this godforsaken island playing teacher to a bunch of kids? Is this how you repay me for all the money I spent raising you?"Oliver was holding a paper bag. He hesitated, then held it out to me."Aria, I brought you sunscreen and the skincare you always used. Let's go back. The conditions here are terrible.""I don't need those anymore. The aloe vera gel here works just fine," I said. My voice was so calm that it even surprised me.Vivian let out a laugh from behind them."Aria, you're really putting on quite the act. Who'd actually believe someone as terrified of water as you could actually live on an island?"Caspian had run up behind me at some point. He clutched the hem of my shirt and peeked out, half his face showing.Oliver looked down at him, his expression complicated."And this is…""My student."Mom's
Stop Using My Fear as Your Game Chapter 4
Oliver grabbed his phone and dialed frantically, only to find that my phone was turned off. He tried calling again, but it was still off.He went through his entire contact list. A colleague told him I hadn't shown up for work that day, and he couldn't get through to Sage's phone either.He sped back to my place.The complex security guard said he'd seen me wheeling a suitcase into a cab early that morning, that I'd even smiled at him.Mom arrived by cab, her face ashen.The two of them found a letter on the desk in my room, tucked under a glass tumbler."Mom, Oliver, Vivian—I don't want to be your courage-building prop anymore. Spare me and yourselves too. Without a waste of space like me around, you should all be happier."After reading it, Mom went pale, then red, and lastly purple in the face. She snatched up her phone to send a voice message, howling so hard her voice cracked."Aria, you think you're all grown up now? Get back here! If you don't come back this instant, don
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