AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yeah, okay . . .” My voice is thick with emotion, and I clear my throat. I pick up my phone and open the messages app, and the latest conversation I had with Kyler.
Hope you’re okay. I miss you. Please let me know when you’re ready to talk.
The three bubbles appear immediately but the reply takes a little longer to be delivered. When it does, a spark of hope lights within me.
Ky
I’ll be back later. We’ll talk then.
* * *
My stomach churns as I look at the clock in the living room for what feels like the hundredth time. Ky didn’t say what time he would be home, and it’s been hours since he sent his text. My housemates have made themselves scarce to give us the privacy we need, but the time is ticking and there is only so long they can stay away from their home. Devon and Jude have gone for a workout at the gym, stating it would be a welcome distraction from worrying about their teammate. Nolan and Millie went . . . somewhere together, which in any other circumstance would not only strike me as strange but would also draw suspicions on how they’ve suddenly become very cozy in their friendship. And I stayed at the house, frenetically pacing and no doubt wearing down the already worn-out carpet into a non-repairable threadbare state.
To say I’m anxious would be putting it lightly. I’ve barely eaten since the half bowl of soup I attempted earlier; my legs are restless, hence the need to pace; and my palms are clammy. I keep telling myself this is Kyler; my Kyler. The person who is so tender with his words and actions in the darkest nights. The person who’s selfless and always puts others first. The person who wouldn’t hurt those he loves. I hope this includes me, although I know I should brace myself for what’s coming. While the hurt won’t come in physical form, I should expect it in his words.
My chest tightens with the sound of the front door opening and the churning sensation in my stomach becomes more amplified. It takes a few seconds for Kyler to appear in the doorway and when he does, I can’t hold back the gasp emitting from me. He looks terrible. Bruises cover his face and his left eye is so swollen he can barely open it. His jaw is various shades of yellow and blue. There are also butterfly stitches holding together a cut across his right eyebrow. He clutches his right arm around his body, as if to stop any sudden movement, and there’s a bandage wrapped around his hand. My eyes quickly scan the rest of him searching for any other obvious signs of injury or pain but other than the slight bend in his stature, I find nothing. This is good, I find myself thinking, this is just like any of the other numerous fights he’s been in. A few days of bed rest and he’ll recover.
“Kyler,” I breathe out, a small thread of relief replaces some of the anxiety still within me. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Thea.” Kyler’s words are sharp and there’s a recognizable undercurrent of anger laced within them.
“Let me help you sit down, here lean on?—”
“I said, I’m fine. I can do this myself.”
He slowly maneuvers himself toward the kitchen and grabs himself a bottle of water before resting against the breakfast bar. I watch as he takes a gulp, followed by another, and then places the now half empty bottle on the counter.
“I’m going to make this quick, because I just want to get my shit and get the fuck out of here.” There’s a gruffness to his voice, or maybe it’s tension in his jaw, and I can hear the restrained anger in his words.
“You and me? We’re done?—”
“Ky, please—” I quickly interrupt.
“No! You need to listen to me.” Kyler takes a deep, steadying breath, but the tightness in his eyes, coupled with his cold, hard stare indicates it doesn’t nothing to ease his fury. “I trusted you, Thea. I foolishly let you get close to me, and then I let you get close to Lacey. I should’ve known, should’ve realized someone like you wouldn’t be interested in someone like me.”
“No, Ky, that’s not true. I would never do anything to hurt you.”
“Wouldn’t you?” Kyler’s eyes flash once, and he looks up to the ceiling while shaking his head. “You used me! How else would your stupid Abercrombie boyfriend and his lowlife dad know where to find us? You clearly had this planned all along. I mean—” He laughs once, bitterly.
“Think about it! You both knew who I was because of my friendship with your brother. All it took was for you to put two and two together from the photo they had of Ally with me in the background and the connection was made. You could put your stupid plan in action. Did you have fun plotting all the ways you could get close to me? Did your boyfriend fantasize about you fucking another guy?”
“No!” My response is half gasp and half sob. “Ky, it’s not like that?—”
“Then how is it, Thea? Tell me! If it’s not like that then why would you hand over your phone to him without question? Why would you let him track where you were? Why do you still trust him after everything you know about him?”
“Kyler, I swear to you, I didn’t know anything about this. I didn’t know Adam or his parents knew about Lacey being Austin’s child. I didn’t know about the photo.”
“No? So, I guess you didn’t know about the check either?”
Kyler pulls out a folder piece of paper and throws it on the counter. I pick it up and open it, my eyes widening in disbelief as a feeling of light-headedness takes over.
“What . . . what is this?” I ask.
“Isn’t it obvious? It’s payment for my cooperation. Twenty-thousand bucks to stay away from you. Your piece-of-shit boyfriend had great pleasure in specifying the terms. Now you both can run off into the sunset together and live your perfect life and leave me the fuck alone.”
“Ky, please believe me. This is all Adam and his dad. They’re the ones who planned all of this. Everything I felt—feel—for you, what we have together, it’s all real.”
Ky laughs once, bitterly, and his eyes slowly meet mine. There’s a cold, darkness to his stare. He takes something else out of his pocket, and I immediately recognize the black leather of the band I gave him at Christmas. Once again, he throws it on the counter, and it comes skidding to a stop in front of me.
