I sit on the edge of the bed next to her rolled up form. I reach out and tuck an errant hair behind her ear. “What’s not okay?”
“Everything.”
“Okay. You’re right. Nothing is okay.”
“I know.” I chuckle at how sure of herself she sounds. “Will…will you stay?”
She sounds so broken, like her entire world is caving in on her in this moment. I know I don’t know her, but I can’t help wanting to make sure she’s okay.
“Okay. I’ll stay,” I relent. “But you have to promise not to feel me up, okay?”
She laughs and my chest starts to ache. It’s an odd feeling, almost like it’s being lit from the inside out. I feel…something, and that hasn’t happened for some time.
“Promise. But you have to promise you’ll stay.”
I swallow once, twice. “Promise.”
The room is bathed in silence, and I can’t stop the wheels spinning in my head. If Hudson were to find out I stayed the night…Fuck. I’d be in some deep shit with him. Hell, I already feel like I’m in some deep shit with myself.
Grabbing a pillow and a small blanket from the foot of the bed, I create a makeshift bed on the floor near where Haley is. The sound of a soft snore lets me know she’s fallen asleep. I slip my feet from my shoes, removing my socks as I go. I begin to lift my shirt over my head but think better of it. I don’t want her to wake up and freak out because I’m half-naked. Shit. I don’t want her to freak out at all. For just a brief moment, I start to think about leaving again, but then I remember the promise I made. Ihaveto stay. It’s the right thing to do. So, I settle down on the floor, packing the pillow just how I like it and covering myself with the small blanket. My feet stick out, but at least it covers most of me.
I roll over on my side, trying to get comfortable, but it’s just not happening. I have no idea how much time passes before I hear Haley start to shuffle around. The bed dips and shakes as she moves. A pillow lands near my head, another blanket is thrown over me. Her cold feet against mine. I don’t move. I have no ideahowto move at this point. Her proximity is intimidating. I can barely make her out in the dark room but I can see she’s laid herself out on the floor next to me, so close that her hair brushes against my face. It tickles, but I still can’t move.
“Gaige.” Her voice is so quiet and shy. “Are you awake?”
“Yeah.” Mine is hoarse and scratchy. “What’s up?”
“Can I tell you a secret?”
I smile at her repeated words from earlier. “Acquaintances share secrets?”
She rolls over until she’s facing me, our noses inches apart. She closes her eyes as she says, “They do now.”
It’s so quiet in the room, our erratic breaths the only thing heard. We’re both afraid to talk. A slight frown puckers the skin between her brows. Whatever she wants to say, it’s hurting her. I hate that it’s hurting her. I lick my lips, about to ask her what she wanted to tell me, but she beats me to it.
“You remember what I told you we were doing tonight at the bar?”
It takes me a moment to remember and when I do, I also remember the pain hidden in her eyes as she spoke of it. “Celebrating life.”
“Yeah,” she says quietly. “I’ve never been so sad to celebrate life before.”
Confusion falls over my features and I know she can see it. “What?”
“She’s pregnant. My friend.”
“Well that’s awesome.”
She’s so close I can feel her tears start falling. They’re falling so quickly they drop, drop, drop on my arm she’s lying next to.
“Maybe it’s not so awesome?”
It comes out as a question because I genuinely have no idea what to say. Do I press the issue or wait? Waiting seems the safest, but I do reach out and pull her closer to me, wrapping my arms around her and dragging her until she’s lying halfway on top of me. There’s tension built up in her entire body, and it’s not because we’re so close together. No, this has been there for some time. It’s like a weight has made a home on top of her shoulders. Something inside me screams, begging me to help her carry some of it.
Her tears continue to silently roll down her cheeks for several minutes until a few sniffles here and there let me know she’s beginning to relax. I can feel the slightest amount of pressure release off her shoulders, but it’s not enough. She’s still carrying so much around.
We lie there quietly, comfortably. I stroke her hair, lulling her into slumber.
“Gaige?” Her whisper is so quiet I almost don’t hear it.
