How long it lasts, I couldn't say—hours? Minutes? An eternity?
The sobs slow not because I run out of tears, but because sheer exhaustion pulls me under.
I fall asleep with my head on his lap, his hands trailing through my hair.
Seven
FELIX
Ihave to piss like crazy.
Ember is passed out—understandable given the intensity of the panic attack she suffered, followed by a solid hour of the most agonized sobbing I've ever witnessed.
She's asleep on my lap, one hand curled over my thigh with her cheek on her hand, her other resting directly across my bladder. And…elsewhere.
Thank god I had my phone accessible so I could catch up on emails to distract myself from both my bladder and the unintentional intimacy of Ember's positioning. But now I'm out of emails to answer, I've scrolled through my various social media feeds until my eyes are crossing, and my bladder is screaming to the point that I can't ignore it much longer.
When I reach the point, after another fifteen minutes, that I know I have to go right the fuck now, I start worming my way out from beneath Ember, carefully replacing my lap with a throw pillow. Either I'm sneakier than I thought or she's out for the count, because she doesn't stir beyond nuzzling into the pillow and wrapping both arms around it.
I damn near sprint to my bathroom and take the longest piss of my life, groaning a sigh of relief. Wash my hands, check on Ember—still asleep.
I tiptoe out of my room, gingerly close the door, and head out to my back deck to call Nyx.
He answers on the third ring. “Yo, Fee, what's up?"
"No one says ‘yo’ anymore, Nyxie."
"Yeah? Well, I do, so fuck off." I hear a torque wrench zapping in the background. "What's goin' on, buddy?"
"My…uhhh…friend, I guess, has a vintage VW bus that took a shit. She said there was a grinding, a thunk, and then it conked out and won't turn over. She sorta lives out of it, too, so getting it fixed ASAP is a priority. Can you help?"
"Fuck yeah, I can. I actually have a bus in the back lot with a totally shot body and a low-mileage engine. Bring 'er by and I’ll hook her up."
"Make it as cheap as possible, yeah? I'll cover your expenses."
A pause. "She means somethin' to you, huh? This girl?"
I hesitate. "I mean…yeah. Maybe? Starting to? I dunno, man, it's complicated.”
"No, it fuckin' ain't, brother. You got hung up on Amy, convinced yourself that you're the worst person in the world, and never so much as dipped a fuckin' baby toe in the dating world again. If I didn't know you had a hookup on Tinder, I'd think you were celibate."
"It's not a hookup Tinder, man, fuck."
"No? Then what is it? How many girls from there've you been on more than one date with?" He laughs. "Wait, wait, wait, I’ll go you one better—how many of them have you even taken on a date? Because my sources say you usually skip the date and go right for the hookup."
"You callin' me a manwhore?"
"No. That's Riley. You're…I dunno what you are. A sad strange little man, and you have my pity."
"Fuck you and yourToy Storyquotes, Nyx."
"Great! Now I haveguilt!”
I groan. "Fuck off with it, seriously. It's weird."
“Fuck you. Real men watch cartoons, andToy Storyis the greatest animated film of all time. Fight me."
“You're a grown man, Nyx."
