We just stood there on the sidewalk, phones pressed to our ears, listening to each other's quiet breathing. I lowered my phone first, and she did the same a second later.
"You were following me," she said. It wasn't a question.
"You ran off," I replied. "I was trying to find you to apologize."
The first thing that hit me, clear as anything, was this wave of relief. 'She didn't hear them.' She had been walking behind me, which meant she couldn't have heard what Tyler and Ronnie said.
She didn't hear them talk about her like that. The thought that she was safe from their disgusting words was the only good thing that had happened in the last hour. The rage I felt was still there, but now it was different. It was quiet, and it was all about her.
"What are you doing back here?" I asked.
"I... I forgot my textbook," she said, her voice small. "I came back for it."
