Page 74 of Unfix Me
Kai
Once I had West tucked in- which had been entirely too hard- I ran a hand through my hair. I knew that I might have to pick him up at a certain point in the night, but I was pissed off that he’d gotten so drunk. He knew better.
Shit, I should’ve known better than to let him go alone. He shouldn’t be entirely my responsibility, but who else was going to take care of him?
“Will you sleep with me?” he mumbled.
I sighed. “I can’t, West.”
“Why not?”
With every fiber of my being, I wanted to tell him about me and Sen. I wanted to share my happiness with my best friend. I knew that he would be happy for me and understand why I was setting new boundaries, but it wasn’t my place to out Sen.
“Let’s talk about it tomorrow,” I suggested.
“You don’t love me anymore?”
“Of course I do. Get some sleep, okay?”
It didn’t take long for him to start snoring. I really hoped he wouldn’t throw up in my bed.
After one last look to make sure he was asleep, I changed into a pair of basketball shorts and left the room. I was about to knock on Sen’s door when I heard what sounded like crying. My heart started to beat faster. Ever since that guy recognized him in the parking lot, he’d been acting strange. Whoever he was, I didn’t like him and he needed to stay away. I just wished I knew what was going on.
I thought about letting him work through it on his own. He’d left, seemingly to do just that, but I couldn’t do it. The door was unlocked, so I stepped inside and looked at the bed. He was covered completely by the blankets, not an inch of him visible. There was an ache in my chest as I approached.
Crouching beside the bed, I put a hand on what I could only guess was his shoulder. It startled him and he stopped crying, although I could still hear him sniffling.
“Baby,” I said softly.
“Please go.”
“Not a chance.”
I grabbed the top of the blanket and pulled it down. He was lying on his stomach with his face buried in the pillow. I just ran my fingers through his slightly sweaty hair while I waited for him to talk, or at least look at me.
When he finally turned toward me, I moved my hand to his cheek. “Hey. I want you to know that you look adorable.”
He rolled his eyes. “Don’t lie to me.”
I smiled and his expression softened. “Scoot.”
He moved over enough for me to lie beside him. I wrapped my arm around him so that he could rest his head on my chest. His breaths were still stuttering from how hard he’d been crying and he gripped my side firmly, keeping me in place as if I would want to be anywhere but here.
“We have to talk about this at some point,” I noted.
“I know.”
“Will you tell me who that guy was?”
“He’s… a therapist.”
“Oh. One that you go to?”
“I did.”
As I stroked his back, I tried to read between the lines. Did this have to do with his sexuality or was it a completely separate issue? Had the guy hurt him? The thought made me tighten my grip.
“I want to tell West about us,” I said.
