Missing Pieces - Chapter 43
Hailey
Thursday
"Tyler, what's wrong?" His face had suddenly changed. I wanted him to be in this moment with me. But I could tell his mind was somewhere else completely. And the look on his face worried me. Was he upset about tomorrow? He didn't have anything to worry about. He was brave and so much stronger than he realized.
"I just, I don't want you to regret spending one more day with me."
I laughed. "I couldn't possibly."
"You know what I mean." He put his hand on my hip and pulled me close enough to feel his body heat. His words and his actions always seemed to contradict each other. He was trying to push me away, yet pulling me closer.
"My dad is going to be okay. He's going to fight this just like he has everything else. He's going to be fine. Why are you pushing this?"
He scratched the back of his neck. He slowly looked back down at me. "I'm sorry." He leaned his back against the railing and folded his arms across his chest.
I wasn't sure if it was intentional, but it felt like he was shutting me out. For the first time in a long time, he had made me feel likeI could rely on someone. I wanted him to feel that way about me too. "You're not alone either, Tyler."
A small smile crossed his face. "I know. I have you."
"Which means you can talk to me." I felt like I was on the cusp of finally getting to know him better. I didn't want him to hold back. I wanted him to trust me. I had finally put all my worries and fears out there. If he could do the same with me...maybe we really would have a shot here. Distance wasn't an issue as long as we were completely open with one another.
"I miss him. My dad, I mean."
So that's why he was being weird. He missed his dad. He didn't want me to experience his pain. "I'm so sorry, Tyler." I stepped forward and put my hand on his chest. I didn't really have any other words to express what I felt. But I wanted him to know that I understood. That he was living my biggest fear. "If you want to talk about what happened..." I let my voice trail off.
Something flashed across his eyes. It was only for a moment though. And it was too fast for me to be able to tell what it was. "I have a better idea." He grabbed my wrist and pulled me into his arms.
I laughed as I steadied myself by putting my hands on his biceps. He was really good at distracting me. If his piercing blue eyes weren't doing it, his muscles certainly were. "And what is your great idea?"
"Crepes." The smile was back on his face.
"Crepes?"
"Yeah. There's a great place like a block from here."
I laughed. "When in the world did you do all this research about Venice Beach?"
"I thought it was going to be my last day to have fun for a while. I wanted to make it count."
He had planned a send off party for himself. I didn't care if he had originally pictured me here or not. I knew he wanted me here now. And I was going to give him the best send off ever. "What else is on your list?"
"I want to check out the Santa Monica pier. Apparently the views from the Ferris wheel are amazing."
"Honestly, I'm a little scared of heights."
"Last time I checked, you were damn good at facing your fears, Hails. Besides, I'll be right there with you."
Just that thought alone warmed my heart. I slipped my hand into his. I truly felt like together we could face anything. "Come on then, we don't have much time to waste."
***
"I'm not drunk enough yet."
Tyler laughed.
God, I was going to miss his laugh. I put my chin in my hand as I took another sip of the ridiculously huge drink I had ordered.
