Love is Blind

Love is Blind

By Shayna B.

Copyright 2013 Shayna Bueckert

Smashwords edition

Prologue

Freak. Reject.
Defective
. These are words
that teenagers are familiar with. Many have been called one those
names at one time or another, for a variety of reasons. But the
ones who get called names the most are the ones who deserve to be
commended for their bravery. They are the ones that go through life
while overcoming obstacles that others can’t even begin to
comprehend.

I used to be one of those people who would look
at these people with pity and sometimes sympathy. But never with
respect. Not until I became one of them, that is. While I may not
look like one of them, rest assured that I am. My life changed one
fateful night and nothing in my world would ever be the same again.
Months of pain, frustration and anger taught me many things. It
taught me patience, tolerance and most of all how to really embrace
life, since it had almost been taken from me.

But that isn’t what this story is about. No,
this story is about another fateful day in my life. It’s about the
day I met a boy my age, suffering through the same things I had.
But while I overcame the anger, he embraced it. While I strived to
live my life normally, he was content to continue on in misery,
pushing everyone away who tried to help him.

Until me. I wouldn’t let him push me away, no
matter how hard he tried. My name is Hailey Baker, and I’m going to
tell you how I discovered that love really is blind.

Chapter one

Gravel crunched under my shoes when I walked up
the path that led to the park a few blocks from where I lived.
Beside me, my dog Tonto trotted along with his Frisbee clutched in
his mouth. We went through the gates at the front of the park and
headed for the swings. The area was deserted at this time of the
day, and there wasn’t another soul in sight. Tonto waited
patiently, Frisbee still in his mouth, while I sat on one of the
swings and set it into gentle motion. I closed my eyes and relished
in the feel of the soft breeze on my face as I swayed back and
forth.

I stayed like that for a few minutes before
opening my eyes again and looking at Tonto. “Okay boy, want to play
for a bit?” He got to his feet and wagged his tail, which I took as
a yes. I got off the swing and we walked over to an empty field.
The grass was perfectly manicured, the trees bordering the area
trimmed to perfection.

Tonto shoved the Frisbee into my stomach and I
chuckled as I took it. “Okay, okay I get the point.” I flicked my
wrist and sent the disc soaring through the air. Tonto galloped
after it and leapt in the air, snagging it neatly with his teeth.
He trotted back towards me proudly, his tail wagging happily.

We played for almost half an hour before it was
time to go home for dinner. As we turned to leave, I noticed that
someone was sitting on one of the benches that were near the field.
I’d seen him a few times in the past, always at the same bench and
always with his dog lying at his feet. He looked to be about my
age, but I’d never gotten close enough to him to be sure.

I lifted a hand in greeting like I always did
when I saw him, but once again I got no response. He had his head
tilted back slightly, so I assumed he just didn’t see me. I
shrugged mentally and headed out of the park. Tonto and I walked
back to the house, and I let us in the front door. “We’re back,” I
called out.

A man came around the corner and paused. “Oh
good. Have you seen my cell phone? I can’t seem to find it.”

I rolled my eyes. “Liam, you really need to put
a tracker on that thing. And on your car keys. And the remote,
and-”

“That’s enough lip out of you, missy. Just
answer my question.”

I fluttered my eyelashes at him. “Well since you
asked so nicely, I did see it in your office this morning. Have you
used it since then?”

“Yeah, and now I don’t know where it is. I tried
calling it off the landline, but I didn’t hear it.”

“I’m not surprised, with how big this house is.
I’ll keep my eyes open for it.” I headed into the kitchen.

Liam and Tonto both followed me in. Grace was
already in there, and she smiled warmly when she saw me. “Did you
have fun at the park, Hailey?”

“Yeah, Tonto really likes playing. And he’s
getting pudgy, so the exercise is good for him.” I went to the
cupboard where I kept the dog treats and pulled the bin out. I
reached in for a biscuit and frowned when my hand brushed against
something bigger than a biscuit. I pulled the object out and lifted
a brow when I saw it. “Oh Uncle Liam, I do believe I found
something that belongs to you.”

Liam glanced over as I held the object up. “Hey,
there it is!”

“It’s no wonder Tonto is gaining weight if
you’ve been sneaking cookies to him.” I tossed the phone to Liam
and then pulled out a biscuit and handed it to Tonto. “If you’re
going to keep giving him treats, then you should start walking him
as well.”

Liam gave me a sheepish smile. “Sorry Hales. I
just can’t resist when he gives me those puppy eyes.”

“He’s a dog, Liam. It’s kind of in his nature to
give you the puppy dog eyes,” I said dryly. “You just have to use
your will power when he gives you the sad pathetic look.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s what you always say. It’s
not my fault that I have such a soft heart.”

“Just keep telling yourself that.” I walked over
to the kitchen sink and washed my hands quickly before sitting at
the table. Liam sat across from me as Grace set plates on the
table. I inhaled deeply and smiled. “Smells great, Grace. Are you
eating with us?”

She shook her head and untied her apron. “I need
to head home. Just leave the dishes in the sink and I’ll take care
of them in the morning.”

We said our goodbyes and then Liam and I dug
into our meal. Grace was an amazing cook, and I always enjoyed
eating whatever she made. Halfway through the meal, Liam looked
over at me. “Are you nervous about tomorrow?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “A little I guess.
It’ll be weird going to a school where I don’t know anyone.”

Liam frowned and set down his fork. “Would you
rather go back to your old school? I’m sure we could arrange
something if that’s what you want. It’s only an hour away from
here.”

I shook my head quickly. “No, there’s no way I
could go back there. I can’t handle seeing anyone I knew before…
well, you know.”

He nodded. “Okay, but make sure you tell me if
you change your mind.”

“I will.”

We finished the rest of the meal in relative
silence. When we were done, I brought the dishes to the sink and
then headed into the living room. I sat on the couch and picked up
the book I’d been reading earlier. Tonto came in and settled at my
feet with a sigh. I stroked his back idly with my foot and quickly
became engrossed in the story on the pages of the book. I was so
into it that when Liam sat next to me, I jumped slightly and then
winced when my back twinged. Liam gave me an apologetic smile.
“Sorry Hales, I thought you heard me come in.”

“It’s okay; I was just really into the book.” I
stretched and sighed in relief when there were no more twinges in
my back. “Do you want to watch TV?”

“Yeah, there’s a game on that I want to
see.”

I set my book down and brought my legs up
underneath me. “Okay, turn it on.”

We watched the hockey game for a while before my
phone beeped to let me know I had a text message. I opened the
message and smiled slightly. “That was Jared. He’ll be home
tomorrow instead of Thursday.

“Did he say why he’s coming home early?”

“No, but he’s probably worried about me.” I
rolled my eyes dramatically. “He doesn’t seem to think I can go
more than three days without him.”

Liam shrugged. “He just cares about you. He’ll
always worry about you, just like I will.”

“But I’m okay now. You guys don’t need to worry
about me.”

“We’re family, Hales. It’s in our nature to
worry about each other.”

“I guess that’s true,” I admitted. “I just wish
you didn’t have to worry about me quite so much.”

“I worry about you less now than I did six
months ago. Does that help?”

I smiled. “Yeah, it does. Thanks Uncle
Liam.”

He grimaced. “Ugh, I hate it when you call me
Uncle. Makes me sound old and dodgy.”

“You might not be that old, but you are most
definitely dodgy,” I teased him.

“I’d resent that if I didn’t know it was
true.”

I laughed and settled down to watch the rest of
the game. When it was over, I decided to go to bed since I had to
get up for school the next day. I got to my feet and cautiously
stretched my muscles. “I’m going to bed. See you in the
morning.”

“Good night Hales.”

The next morning I woke up with butterflies in
my stomach. While I was relieved to not have to be going back to my
old school, I was also really nervous about starting at a new one.
In the past I’d never had any trouble making friends, but I’d never
really been the new kid before. I wasn’t entirely sure what to
expect at this school, but I hoped I’d be able to make at least one
or two friends. I’d cut off contact with pretty much everyone from
my old school, and I didn’t want to spend my last school year
completely alone.

I got out of bed and had a quick shower before
getting dressed with Tonto waiting patiently for me at the door. I
blow dried my slightly wavy dark brown hair, but didn’t do anything
else with it. I’d never had much patience for things like hair and
makeup, and that hadn’t changed even though nearly everything else
in my life had.

Grace was already there and had breakfast ready
when I made my way to the kitchen. I wasn’t overly hungry, but I
made myself eat anyways so I didn’t hurt her feelings. She’d been a
fixture in my uncle’s life for as long as I could remember, and I’d
always viewed her as a sort of aunt even though we weren’t related.
Liam joined me after about ten minutes, bleary-eyed and wearing
only a pair of pajama pants. He stumbled to the coffee pot and got
himself a mug, letting out a sigh of pleasure as he inhaled the
first sip. Once his mind had cleared a little, he looked over at
me. “Good morning.”

“Morning. Rough night?”

He rubbed his eyes and yawned. “There was a
minor emergency at the office and the manager decided I needed to
be called, even though those kinds of things are what I hired him
for. Needless to say, I am going to fire his ass when I see him
later.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “No you won’t. You’ve
threatened to fire Josh at least once a week for the past six
months. We both know you never mean it, because you’d be lost
without him.”

“Smartass,” he mumbled, but he was smiling.
“Ready for your big day?”

I made a face. “No, but I’ll manage it.” I got
to my feet and brought my dishes to the sink. “I’m going to go
brush my teeth and then I’ll take off. Can you take Tonto for a
walk before you leave for work?”

“Sure, maybe the fresh air will help wake me
up.”

I went back to my bathroom and finished getting
ready, then gave Liam and Grace both a peck on the cheek. “See you
later this afternoon.”

The large garage was attached to the house
through the kitchen, so I went through the door and walked to my
car. Liam had given me an electric blue 2011 Camaro RS when I’d
moved in with him, and I absolutely loved it. He’d had a special
seat installed that helped my back, so it was comfortable for me to
drive. Sometimes having an uncle who had more money than he knew
what to do with was quite beneficial. And the fact that he didn’t
let the money go to his head was also an added bonus.

I slid carefully into my car and started it up,
smiling at the sound of the engine. I hit the garage door opener
that was on the visor and backed out of the garage. I pulled onto
the street and started driving to the school, taking in the scenery
around me as I went. The houses on my street were all large,
suggesting that everyone in this part of the town had money. And
the parking lot at the school confirmed that thought. My car wasn’t
the only Camaro there, and I saw more than one Lexus as well as a
Mercedes or two as well. I managed to find a spot fairly quickly
though and I pulled into it and parked.

I grabbed my bag from the seat beside me and
exited the car, making sure to lock the doors. I could see a few
people looking at me curiously as I walked by, but no one
approached me as I went inside and found my way to the office. I
got my schedule from the secretary, as well as a school map. I
stepped back into the hall and studied both documents, trying to
figure out where I was supposed to go.