Page 28 of Unbearable
I look at him like he’s crazy. “We can’t just leave you hanging. That’s not fair.”
“Watching you come apart in my hands was enough.” He helps me up from the table and hands me my jeans. “Come back tonight and we’ll take care of it.”
Oh, I’ll be back. For sure.
I know it’s a forty-five minute drive but whatever. I smile when he picks the wrench up and places it in his back pocket. “At least you’ll be thinking of me today.”
He winks. “Not just today. I’ll think of you every time I pick up a wrench from now on.”
Why am I excited about that?
IT’S CLEAR I’M not making it to my nine o’clock class so I take my time once I leave the shop.
I’m dragging ass and in desperate need of caffeine, mostly because I was up all night with Tyler. I stop off to get coffee before getting on the freeway. Inside the small café, I see Sophie waiting for her order. It’s been a while since I’ve seen her. She and I were friend’s way back in middle school but when she and Rawley used to date in high school, we became even closer. I’m not sure why we drifted apart after their breakup.
She spots me immediately. “Hey, Raven. I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve seen you.”
“I know. It’s been a while. Probably since the Fourth of July party, right?”
She frowns, probably remembering the night where her and my brother got in a huge fight in the driveway. She also doesn’t realize I know all about the fight since I was there watching them.
They call her name for her coffee, and then mine and she nods to a nearby table. “Are you in a hurry? How much time do you have?”
“I’ve got time. Do you want to sit down and catch up?” I don’t have time but something in her eyes tells me she needs someone to talk to.
“Actually yeah, if you don’t mind I’ve been wanting to talk to you.”
I have a feeling I know what the answer is going to be, but I ask it anyways. “How are things going?”
Tying her hair back in a ponytail, she lets out a heavy sigh. “Shitty. Completely fucking shitty.”
“Rawley being a dick?”
She rolls her eyes. “When is he not?”
“I can’t think of anytime actually.”
We both laugh and then she shakes her head. “I just don’t get him. I try to help. I mean, after your dad died, I reached out to him to tell him how sorry I was about everything. Your dad was an amazing man and was always so kind to everyone. It’s hard to believe someone that alive is gone. ”
“Thanks for saying that. He was pretty great.” Naturally, I thought my dad was the greatest but that was the thing with Lyric, everyone thought he was a good man. “We were all concerned with Mom after we lost him and I think we forgot how hard Rawley took it. He and Dad got in a huge fight the night he died and I think he holds it against himself.”
Sophie lets out a sigh, as if she’s gone over this a thousand times inside her head. “I can only imagine. I called him and asked him if he wanted to grab some coffee or maybe dinner and talk or something, and he suggested I meet him at the bar one night.”
“Makes sense. I swear that place has become a second home to him.”
“It has.” Sophie nods. “The only way he can stand to be in the same room with me is if he’s either high or drunk. That night we met at the bar, we got drunk and ended up in bed together. The next morning Rawley was such an ass. I thought….” She sighs, as though she honestly thought hooking up with him would have changed anything between them. In some ways, I can relate. “I spent the next day in bed. The breakup with us was hard enough that I don’t know what I was thinking that night. I guess I thought if I was there for him he’d see I made a mistake and didn’t mean to hurt him senior year.”
“What did he say?”
Her eyes well up with tears. “Just that it didn’t change anything and thanks for letting him get his dick wet. Typical Rawley behavior lately.”
I’m actually surprised he said thanks.
“He’s not the same guy he used to be. He’s drinking and smoking more than ever. Beck’s a horrible influence on him and I just… he’s going to end up doing something he shouldn’t.”
Everything she’s saying is just a reminder to me that I don’t even know Rawley anymore. Sure, we still act normal around one another and he still uses every chance he can to annoy the shit out of me but she’s right, he’s not the same.
When I was younger, I took it upon myself to watch over him. He’s always been a little different, more the brooding type but I was always the one to keep him from going too far.
