Catching Fox Read online

  Catching Fox

  By Aimee McNeil

  Catching Fox

  Copyright © 2015 by Aimee McNeill.

  All rights reserved.

  First Print Edition: December 2015

  Limitless Publishing, LLC

  Kailua, HI 96734

  www.limitlesspublishing.com

  Formatting: Limitless Publishing

  ISBN-13: 978-1-68058-410-3

  ISBN-10: 1-68058-410-3

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

  Dedication

  To my daughter, Taylor.

  So strong and beautiful.

  In life there will always be some,

  who will try to knock us down.

  It is up to us to pick ourselves up,

  and keep moving forward.

  Because in the end, you are the only one,

  who can truly get in your way.

  Follow your dreams and be true to yourself.

  I love you forever and always,

  To the moon and back.

  xox

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Adalynne sat on her wooden swing, twisting her new white shoes into the dirt beneath her feet. Tears dripped from her cheeks and she watched as they disappeared into the fabric of her dress, leaving tiny dark spots on the material. The ropes of the swing creaked loudly with every sway as she gently pushed it back and forth.

  “Why are you crying?”

  Adalynne looked up through a veil of perfect blonde curls. A boy close to her age was standing in the line of trees backing onto her property. His voice was so quiet that she thought at first it might have been the breeze. His unkempt dark hair fell over his eyes in dark waves. His knees were visible through his ripped pants and his shirt was adorned with a monster truck with its tongue hanging out. It was a sight that brought a smile to her lips despite her tears.

  Adalynne wiped her face with the back on her hand and studied the boy. “Where did you come from?” she asked, looking around to see if anyone else was in his company.

  “I live through that way.” He pointed into the dense trees behind them. “I heard you crying while I was playing in the woods,” the boy explained, looking nervous.

  “It’s my birthday today and I wanted to wear my favorite dress with pink and blue stripes but my mom made me wear this yellow dress and it scratches my skin,” she confessed sadly.

  Adalynne slipped off the swing and closed the distance between them. The boy took a hesitant step back with her approach. “What’s your name?” she asked curiously. He didn’t answer her question but instead looked behind him, anxious and ready to flee. “Don’t go,” she pleaded.

  The boy stood frozen, watching her intently. Adalynne moved slowly out of fear she would scare him away. She had never seen eyes like his. The color green they exhibited was vibrant and breathtaking, putting the foliage around them to shame. It made her think of her bright green crayon that she had used earlier to color the leaves of her trees. He was so beautiful and quiet she thought he might be her imagination. She smiled big and bright, letting him know she wanted to be his friend.

  When she was close enough she reached out and took his hand to confirm he was real. His hand trembled beneath her fingers as she held it gently. “My name is Adalynne,” she said softly. He looked back at her with wide eyes. Not even a hint of a smile on his lips. “It’s my mother’s name too.” She found herself talking out of fear he would leave if she didn’t keep his interest. “It’s probably why she wants me to be just like her.” Though he remained quiet he seemed to be interested in her words. “Sometimes I wonder if I had another name it would be different and I wouldn’t have to wear uncomfortable clothes, and she would just let me be me and have fun.”

  “You want a different name?” he whispered. He seemed puzzled by her, as if she were a strange creature that mysteriously washed up on shore, his curiosity keeping him captivated.

  “Yes! I would love another name.” Adalynne reached out and took his other hand in hers as well. He looked down at his hands tightly clasped in hers.

  “What would you want your name to be?” he asked.

  Adalynne giggled. “Hmmm…” She pondered the thought. The idea of picking her own name excited her. She watched a bee hover over some nearby flowers and her smile deepened. “Bee,” she responded happily. “Because then I could wear stripes all the time and play in the flowers whenever I wanted.”

  He smiled back at her then. It was simply beautiful. “What would you choose?” she asked happily, her tears forgotten now. He shrugged his shoulders and slowly tried to pull his hand from hers but Adalynne was scared to let him go. There was something different about this boy that drew her to him. “How about…” Adalynne thought about what was befitting of the boy in front of her. She remembered when she was playing in her backyard and saw a fox peeking through the trees. It left as quickly as it came without a sound. She never told her mother for fear she wouldn’t let her play outside anymore. “Fox?” He could be her secret fox.

  Adalynne grew excited with her suggestion. “You remind me of a fox because you are quick, quiet and…beautiful.” The smile fell from her lips. “You don’t like it?”

  “No…I do…I like it,” he responded with a small smile, bringing her own back to life.

  “I like you,” she confessed.

  “Adalynne!” She turned back toward her house when she heard her mother call her name. The boy pulled his hands from hers and retreated back into the woods as quiet as he came. It felt like he took a piece of her with him when he left. Her sadness returned as she walked toward her mother’s call.

  Chapter One

  Two Years Later…

  Adalynne giggled in excitement but Fox was quiet. They had snuck into her living room and Fox was nervous about being inside her house. “My parents aren’t home. No one will know you were here.” She reached over and took his hand. He squeezed back before he hesitantly sat down next to her on the piano bench. “I’m glad you’ll be the first person I play this for. I’ve been practicing for a long time.” Adalynne positioned her hands before she began, letting the music play through her. She felt so relaxed with Fox by her side. She flawlessly flowed through the notes. When she finished she looked over at him. His beautiful eyes shone with amazement and in that moment
she knew she needed to give Fox the gift of music. She could see the wild fire burn in his eyes as he fell in love with it. She would never forget the moment it happened.

  Adalynne showed him where to place his hands on the keys and gave him the names of all the notes he played. She found her lesson books from when she started playing and was amazed how he absorbed everything she gave him. They were so entranced in their lesson that they didn’t notice the footsteps coming their way until they neared. Fox flew from the piano seat and hid before Carmen, her housekeeper, came into the room.

  “Hey there, Addie Girl, I thought you might be hungry with all that practicing. I put a few extra on the plate just in case.” She winked at Adalynne before turning on her heel. “Oh and you can tell that young man he doesn’t need to hide on my account. He’s more than welcome as far as I’m concerned,” she called behind her with a chuckle.

  “Thank you, Carmen!” Adalynne replied. When she looked around for Fox she found him looking down at the plate of cookies Carmen had set on the coffee table. She always thought it was funny how he looked at food like it was treasure.

  “They’re still warm,” he commented as he stared down at them.

  “Go ahead. I’m not hungry.” Adalynne smiled. He gave her a smile before he ate the entire plate of oatmeal cookies.

  Chapter Two

  Two Years Later…

  Fox was waiting for her when she got to their meeting place in the woods. He seemed sadder than usual when she approached him, biting his nails like he did when he was upset about something. When he noticed her approach his sullen expression turned into a smile. “Carmen made the banana muffins you like.” Adalynne smiled excitedly.

  “Sounds good. I’m hungry,” Fox said, eyeing the basket.

  “You’re always hungry.” She rolled her eyes and passed him one of the muffins Carmen had packed. They spread out the blanket then lay down on their backs to look up at the sky. Being with Fox was the most natural thing in the world. This is where she felt at home most of all.

  “What’s wrong?” Adalynne asked after an unusual stretch of silence.

  “Dad lost his latest job. He’s been really mad lately,” Fox whispered. He was always edgy when he talked about his father.

  “Are you scared?” Adalynne whispered back, turning on her side so she could look at him. His eyes found hers and held them. She didn’t like it when he was upset and it seemed far too often. Fox never did feel comfortable talking about himself. It was always hard for her to manage a clear picture of what bothered him so deeply. She never pushed for information for fear that he would leave. She thought of her own father who she had seen upset on a few occasions but it never made her feel scared. Even her mother, who was always upset about something and Adalynne had been on the receiving end of her anger many times, had never made her feel scared.

  “Yes.” His beautiful green eyes were Adalynne’s favorite color. She moved closer and wrapped her arm around his chest, snuggling close. He lay very still as she held him.

  “Why do you never talk about your mother?” Adalynne let the question slip from her lips before she could stop herself. Her question lingered in the air without a response from him and she wanted to take it back. She could feel his heart racing under her touch.

  “She died when I was little,” he said quietly after a long stretch of silence. They didn’t raise their voices more than a whisper, as if they were having a forbidden conversation. Though they were far from anyone and everything, the reason they picked this place as their own was it was their escape. Adalynne didn’t say anything for worry she would say the wrong thing. She only waited with the hope that he would continue talking. “I don’t remember her much but she liked to sing. I can remember her singing me to sleep.”

  “That’s a nice memory to have,” she said softly, saddened by his confession.

  “It made me feel safe.” He reached up and returned Adalynne’s embrace for the first time since she met him. They laid there for a long time holding each other until the day grew old and they knew they had to return to their separate lives.

  ***

  It was dark and she had been asleep until a sound against her window woke her from her dreams. She crawled out of bed and peered down to see what had caused the sound. Her eyes fell on Fox, standing below. She pulled open her window and a gentle breeze blew in around her, encircling her in her curtains.

  “What are you doing here?” Adalynne whispered, looking around to make sure his presence was unnoticed by anyone else.

  “Can I come up?” His voice sounded different and it scared her. She could tell he had been crying. She nodded in response and he immediately began to climb the tree that grew tall outside her room. She reached out to take his hand as he neared, helping him through her window. When he was inside she noticed the blood on his face. She touched his swollen lip to reveal the blood was now dry. He flinched slightly at her touch but did not pull away.

  “You can sit on my bed.” She motioned toward it before disappearing in her bathroom adjoining her room to retrieve a wet face cloth. She tried to clean his injured face without disturbing the cut. She didn’t realize she was crying until Fox reached up and wiped a tear away from her face.

  They crawled into bed together. Adalynne pulled the blanket up tightly around them. She didn’t want him to be sad anymore. Wrapping her arm around him, she quietly sang. She wanted him to feel safe with her and to know she would always be there for him. She hoped he would remember how he felt when his mother was still with him, so she sang until his breathing slowed and he was fast asleep. He stayed with her that night, curled up beside her in bed.

  The next morning when Adalynne woke, she got up quietly to let Fox continue sleeping. He hadn’t moved since he had fallen asleep. He looked more peaceful than she had ever seen him, despite his swollen lip. Her parents always left early for work and Carmen always let her sleep in, so she wasn’t worried anyone would find him in her room. As she watched him she picked up her drawing book and colored pencils to draw a picture.

  “Hi,” Fox said when he woke a short while later. Adalynne looked up to see his eyes open. It looked funny to see him in her pink frilly bed, surrounded by lacy curtains that hung from the framed poster bed.

  “Hi,” she responded with a smile. “Do you feel okay?”

  Fox sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Yeah.”

  “I drew a picture of us.” She held up her picture she was working on.

  He grinned. “I like it.”

  Adalynne turned the picture back toward her and smiled at her creation. The picture she drew was of a fox and a bee with hearts all around them. “I like it too.”

  Chapter Three

  Two Years Later…

  “I packed lunch today too since you haven’t been coming home until late,” Carmen, called out to Adalynne after she ran through the kitchen, grabbing the basket on her way.

  “Thanks, Carmen, you’re the best,” Adalynne hollered over her shoulder as she made her way to the garage to grab some nails. She remembered they were getting low yesterday. She hurried through the trees quickly, eager to get to the camp before Fox. Lately he was always there first and hard at work when she got there. When she arrived he was already there as usual, sawing away at pieces of wood. They only had a handsaw because they were in the middle of the forest. Their progress was slow but steady as the summer days passed. After all their hard work it was finally taking shape and the excitement of what they built swirled in her stomach.

  “Morning.” Adalynne smiled when he noticed her arrival. They worked for hours that day doing the finishing touches on the roof. When the sun began its descent from the sky in the late afternoon they sat inside, exhausted from the work.

  “It’s perfect.” Adalynne leaned back against the wall. Fox followed suit and leaned back beside her but flinched slightly when his back met the wall.

  “Again?” She reached for the sleeve of his shirt, pulling it up to expose the marks on his shoulder. �
��Oh my god, Fox. You have to tell someone. It happens so often now.” Her concern for him was strong with her words.

  “No. I can handle it. You can’t say anything, Bee. You promised me.” His green eyes turned on her, the fear of what would happen ran deep. She only nodded, unable to form any words upon her lips. His fear felt as if it were hers. She only wished she knew how to help him. She was tired of feeling helpless when he was in pain. She hated his father for hurting him so much but he refused to let her tell anyone who could help. No matter how many times his father hit him he never spoke ill of him. She didn’t understand why he protected his father when he did nothing but hurt Fox. Adalynne didn’t know what she was supposed to do and she was stuck doing nothing at all.

  “I brought something for you, so you will remember me when you go away,” Fox said, reaching for his sweater.

  “I could never forget you.” Adalynne smiled sadly. She was still haunted by the marks upon his skin.

  Fox turned around, handing her a small box. “What’s this?” she asked, studying the box he placed in her hand.

  “Open it.” He smiled encouragingly.

  She pulled the lid off to reveal a chain with a small bee charm. “I love it! Thank you. Can you put it on me?” When Fox clasped it around her neck it fell perfectly in view. She reached up and touched the small charm and smiled. “Can I give you something?” she asked after she admired the necklace.

  “Sure.” He smiled.

  “I want to give you a kiss,” she told him. The smile fell from his lips as he stared at her. She couldn’t read his expression as he stared at her. “Um…I heard that your first kiss is special and you never forget it so I want it to be with you.” She leaned closer to him but Fox remained perfectly still. “Okay?” He didn’t speak but only gave her a slight nod in response. She looked at his lips, the way they curved into the perfect shape. Her stomach felt as if she swallowed fireworks. She leaned in until she could feel his uneven breath upon her face and she closed her eyes before pressing her lips to his.