Page 79 of Demo
We finish our work quickly and pack up our stuff, and as we step out of the office, Monty asks, “You, um, think you should call Knox? Give him a head’s up?”
I shake my head. I don’t want him to come to my rescue. I still want to hate him.
Chapter 22
Nine years ago …
LYZBETH
Christmascameandwentwithout Knox. Then the New Year. I didn’t celebrate. I couldn’t. My sister went down to Florida to see my mom for the holidays, and I was supposed to go, too, but I told them I had to work. I said Dee and her family would gladly take me in for the holidays, so they didn’t have to worry about me being alone.
Then I told Dee I would be with my sister.
Of course, I fooled no one. My mom and sister video-called me repeatedly until I answered, and when they saw I was clearly in my own apartment on Christmas morning, my mom cried. Shortly after I hung up, the doorbell rang, and Dee came strolling in with containers of homemade food from her family gathering the night before.
I made myself a plate but mostly pushed the food around. It felt like my center of gravity was off ever since I watched Knox walk out the door of my apartment.
He called and texted and once he even came banging on my door. I think he was drunk or high, and I didn’t answer. It was cruel, I know, but they say cleaner breaks heal better than ragged ones, right?
Emily and I texted back and forth, still. No matter what happened between me and Knox, I didn’t have the heart to ostracize the entire family. She filled me in on how his parents and Bram were doing. She even insisted I go to her and Bram’s upcoming wedding in the spring, but I was noncommittal. Honestly, I didn’t know how I would be able to face Knox.
I avoided going out in case I ran into him. Even if he was all I thought about.
It was Valentine’s Day before my sister talked me into going out with her and Kirk, and a friend of his named Dylan. The younger sibling of someone she knew was having a party, and I figured it would be safe, since there was absolutely no way I would run into Knox there. The only time he went to a college party was with me, and since I wasn’t in college anymore, we hadn’t gone again.
As expected, the old Victorian house was busting with college coeds, drinking, dancing, playing flip cup. The four of us entered the house and pushed our way through the crowd to find the keg, where Kirk filled up four cups with cheap beer and dispersed them among us.
Someone caught Kirk’s attention, and he leaned down to Leanne. “Hey, babe, there’s some friends from work. I want to introduce you.”
Taking a sip of her drink, she nodded, then turned to me. “Be right back.”
Leanne’s “right back” was a little exaggerated because it had been well over an hour, and I hadn’t seen her. In the meantime, I had three, no, make that four beers, possibly? Either way, I was feeling good.
In no time, Dylan and I were jumping and laughing and moshing to music coming from the live band.
“Aren’t you sweating in that hoodie?” I shouted to him. He was wearing fitted jeans and a gray hoodie with some band I had never heard of or a logo that meant nothing to me on it.
I was in a pair of skinny jeans, and since I left my own hoodie in the car, I only had on a T-shirt.
“Yes! I’m dying,” Dylan said, trying to pull his hoodie over his head but getting stuck. I was a giggling mess. “Here!” I said. “Let me help.” I grabbed the hem at the waist and helped him pull it over his bent elbows above his head, and when I did his T-shirt rode up, exposing his ripped abdomen that boasted a big tattoo of a dragon along his side. The head was on the side of his peck, and the body went down his ribs, with the tail wrapping around onto the side of his back. It was colorful and beautiful.
“I like this,” I said, reaching out and running my fingers along the design, as if I would be able to feel it. He shivered, and I pulled my hand back. “Sorry,” I mumbled.
He just shook his head and chuckled.
Just then the band broke out into a Weezer cover, causing both Dylan and I to start jumping and cheering and singing,“whoa-oo-oh-oo-oh …”
I stumbled toward him, and Dylan caught me, resting his hands on either side of my hips to steady me, my hands landing on his chest. Looking up, we were frozen for a moment. I thought to myself, I could kiss him so easily. I could just close the distance between us and do it. I could see in his eyes that he wanted me to, and it wouldn’t heal my broken heart, but maybe it would just glue the gaping hole shut for the night, just for a few hours. But as I stared up at this cute guy in front of me, all I could think about was the other person who had the missing piece my broken heart.
Just then I was knocked from the back by someone passing through. “Oh, shit, sor—”
And as I turned around in Dylan’s arms, I was face-to-face, nose-to-nose with Knox.
“Lizzie.”
“Knox.”
And then I noticed his arm was behind him, and I followed it to where his fingers were intertwined with someone else’s. I followed that arm up to see Jenny. My eyes darted to his, which were fixed on my hips, where Dylan’s hands still rested.
