Lock and Key

Locks and Promises

He quickly set me down, rubbing the back of his neck. I couldn't help but wonder if he had felt the butterflies too.

"I told you, I wouldn't let you fall." He said. He still had one of his arms wrapped around my waist. We were much closer than we should've been, so I backed away putting some distance between us.

He cleared his throat. "Shall we go?"

I laughed at his attempts to be proper and walked ahead of him, to his car that was parked next to the neighbors house, so it wouldn't be noticed by father.

He ran ahead so he could get the passenger door for me. I thanked him and got into his nice warm car.

It was October now so the weather had gotten a bit colder, and now people had started wearing light jackets and sweatshirts.

"So, where are you taking me?" I asked, as he started the car and pulled away from the house.

"Somewhere I like to go to think." He explained. He trusts me that much to bring me to his thinking spot?

He noticed my confusion and said "Don't worry. Its just the park."

I nodded and looked out my window. From the corner of my eye, I could see that Finn would glance at me ever so often. I was tempted to tell him to keep his eyes on the road, but I stayed quiet.

The drive took less than five minutes, and soon enough, the car pulled up to the curb right next to a small park.

The park was beautiful, it had trees all around it and a big pond in the middle. There was a wooden bridge stretching across the pond. There were also benches scattered across the lot.

"Wow. This is beautiful." I marveled, as we both got out of his Jeep.

"Yeah. It is." He agreed. He followed me as I walked up the small dirt path. I was heading straight towards the bridge.

I had no idea why I had gotten the sudden urge to grab his hand. I didn't though, respecting the fact that he had a girlfriend. I decided it was the right time to finally ask about her.

"How's it going with you and Maddie?" I pondered.

"It's going fine. Why do you ask?"

"It's just... Your so nice to me, and it seems like you care about me a lot. Maybe a little too much. What does Maddie think of all of this?" I ask, not wanting to upset his girlfriend.

"She doesn't care." He replied, his face blank from emotions.

"What do you mean? Of course she would care. She's your girlfriend! If I was your girlfriend, I would definitely care." My face got red as I realized what I had said. "Not that I wanna be..."

He raised one eyebrow and shook his head, laughing under his breath.

"I think you've already noticed this, but Maddie flirts with every guy on the planet. I'm almost positive she's using me for popularity." He shrugged.

"You don't love her?" He shook his head. "Why are you even with her then?"

He just shrugged and looked ahead. I think he was trying to tell me that this conversation was over, and I respected that.

We made it to the bridge. From far away, I didn't notice the main detail about the bridge; The bridge had a chain link fence on it. It wasn't just any old chain link fence. There were locks covering it. Each lock had a different set of initials.

I had seen something like this in a movie once. Couples would come and put a lock with their initials on it, and throw the key in the water. It symbolized forever.

I peered over the edge of the bridge, and just as I had thought, there were many keys at the bottom of the pond. The light of the setting sun was bouncing off of them, making them easier to see.

"This is... Incredible." I smiled, and looked over at Finn. He had a longing look on his face. I put my hand on his shoulder and his gaze moved from the locks to me.

"Yeah. It is, isn't it?" He looked down at his shoes, just as I heard someone call out a name.

"Carly?" I turned around and was attacked with a hug from a woman I had never seen in my entire life.

"Umm... I'm sorry?" Was all I said as she let go of me, looking at my face.

"I can't believe I found you." She said, she was crying by now. It hurt me to have to tell her that I wasn't who she thought I was.

"I'm sorry ma'am. I think you have the wrong girl." Finn said, beating me to it.

"No. This is my Carly." She confirmed, the tears glistening in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry. My name is actually Lilah, and I've never seen you before." I put my hand on her arm as an act of comfort.

"But... I'm you're mother." I frown at her as I hear Finn make a noise, sounding like a gasp.

"I'm sorry, my mother died in a car accident seven years ago. I really hope you find your daughter though." What I said wasn't any comfort to her though, and she started to sob.

"Please!" She grabbed my arm, and I gave Finn an alarming look. "You have to believe me! I've been looking for you for seven years. The times match up. Please!"

"Finn. Can you take me home?" I Ignored her shouting and sobbing. She kept trying to grab on to me but Finn grabbed her arm.

"That's enough." He ordered. She let go immediately, a hurt look in her eyes.

Finn started guiding me away from the woman, I could hear her shaky sobs and couldn't help but feel guilty.

"You go off to the car. I'll make sure she doesn't follow." He told me, low enough so she couldn't hear. I nodded at him and followed his orders.

As I walked back, I turned around one last time. Finn had one hand on her shoulder, for comfort and he was telling her something.

I watched them from afar once I was inside his car. I was shocked to see that Finn was handing her a piece of paper. She was nodding in understanding and Finn walked away from her.

"What did you give her?" I interrogated as soon as he had gotten into the car. He widened his eyes and said his answer a little too quickly.

"Just the number of someone who can help her find her find her real daughter."

I gave him a suspicious look but nodded anyway, accepting his answer. What else did I think could he be doing anyway?

He started the car and drove back to my place. We rode in silence, even though I was still really confused from our encounter.

It was dark by the time we got back to my house. Still not saying a word, He helped me up onto the tree and back into my window. I stopped him before he jumped back down.

"Thank you. I had a lot of fun. Even if our night got a little ruined." I laughed a little.

"I'll be back tomorrow for another adventure." He smiled, and my heart fluttered at the thought of seeing him again the next day. I could tell something was bothering him though.

"You okay?" I asked, and he nodded, giving me another fake smile. He was about to climb down but this time, instead of me stopping him, he stopped himself.

My eyes widened when I felt his warm, soft lips press against my cheek. My face felt warm, I got one more smile from him, before he left.

That time his smile was real, and for one of the first times in a while, so was mine.

Wasn't that a cuteee chapter? It was also a very confusing and eventful one.

Who was that woman? And who's Carly?
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~haylie♥