Page 97 of When You Stayed
Taryn waved me off. “He napped in one of the chairs out there, he’s fine.”
“Well, is he waiting for me out there or what?”
Taryn lifted her shoulder. “I mean, I think he’s taken with you, sis. Aren’t you guys together now?”
Yes, but I was still upset with him. My sister would know that, though.
With a sigh, she walked with me. “You might want to hear him out…Mom forgave Dad.”
“Of course she did.” I laughed. Mom and Dad could never stay mad at each other for more than a few hours. But this was a big lie…It made me curious about his side of things. I was actually jealous that Mom got to hear what was going on, and I hadn’t yet.
“Can you sneak me out the back or something? If they were allkicked out of here because they couldn’t agree on who stayed with me, then it’s going to be a mess in agreeing who will take me home. I’m still pissed at Dad and Ford.”
Taryn pulled out her bike key and smiled. “You got it, sis.”
We got home before anyone else. I wanted to shower, but I was too afraid to get my bandage wet, so Taryn helped me wrap it with plastic wrap.
“Do you need me to help you?” Taryn watched me attempt to pull my shirt up over my head.
With the fabric half over my mouth, I explained that I could do this.
“Just get me a fresh towel please!”
Taryn raised her hands while walking out of the bathroom. Once I was finally out of my clothes, I stepped under the hot spray. I was frustrated with myself about the encounter with Rodney. I knew I did everything I could, but I still felt angry over how I was the one in the end who got shot. Rodney nearly blew my fucking arm off, and the asshole had the audacity to try to kidnap me. My mind raced, tossing the scenario that Rodney had spewed over and over.
“Just putting this on the toilet!” Taryn yelled, but I didn’t turn to look. The door clicked shut and I finally had the breakdown I’d been holding in since I discovered that my father and boyfriend had lied to me.
Lifting my face to the water, I let the scorching heat wash away my tears. It was nearly impossible to nail down all the ways I’d fucked up. I didn’t see the betrayal from Rodney coming, or Ford, fuck, not even my dad. How was I so blind? Or worse, if I really wanted to dig into that ball of pain inside my chest, I’d confront that I felt stupid.
“Royce?” Someone yelled through the door.
I wanted to sink to the bottom of the shower, but I knew I had to keep my arm dry.
Turning off the water, I was about to reach for the towel left for me on the toilet seat when the door opened and Ford stepped inside.
Seeing him sent a rush of pain to my chest, but maybe that was just my arm.
“What are you doing here?”
Ford’s gaze slowly traveled down my body as I wrapped the fluffy white towel around me. “I tried to see you at the hospital.”
His voice was achingly soft, and with him standing in front of me in a stark, white T-shirt and clean jeans, and not a hint of his patches or colors, made my lip tremble. Like he was just Ford again. The one I grew up with. The one who kissed me when I was nine, and the one who’d stuck to my heart like an extra vein all throughout my life. I turned away from him so he wouldn’t see the hurt on my face.
“I know that you might not want to see me, and I understand that. I just—I needed to see you.” He stepped closer, and then I saw his expression in the mirror as the steam dissipated.
“You saw,” I clipped out.
He stepped closer. “How’s your arm?”
I found my toothbrush and began prepping it with toothpaste. “It’s fine.” Not true. It actually ached and burned like a son of a bitch. I knew I needed to go get some pain medicine and some food.
“I know you’re—” Ford started, but I turned on my electric toothbrush, locking eyes with him in the mirror. He stopped talking, knowing I couldn’t hear him over the loud buzzing sound.
His chin fell to his chest, making the hair that was longer on top slide forward.
After taking an extraordinarily long time to brush, I finally turned it off and rinsed.
“Royce, come on. Please talk to me.”
