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“You should go now,” I deadpanned, closing the patio door before he could follow me outside.
_______________
“Word on the street is you threw Feely out on his ass earlier,” a familiar voice said a little while later.
“Word on the street would be right.”
“Care to explain?”
“Nope.”
“So, you’re still pissed?”
“Yep.”
“Shit.” Closing my bedroom door behind him, Hugh strolled over to the beanbag in my room and sank down. “He must have done something fairly terrible to get on your bad side, Gibs.”
“Oh please.” Rolling my eyes, I tossed my rugby ball into the air before catching it. “Don’t pretend like Feely didn’t rush across the street to fill you in the minute I told him to fuck off. You two are as thick as thieves.”
“Kind of like you and Cap?”
“Exactly like me and Cap,” I agreed. “Which is how I know he went straight to you with the drama.”
It wasn’t that deep with Feely. By tomorrow, the whole thing would be long forgotten about, but for now, I was still in my feels.
“I wasn’t going to deny it,” Hugh replied calmly. “I just figured I’d come and check on you.”
“Why bother wasting your time?” I shot back, spinning the ball out once more. “I’m always okay.”
“True,” Hugh said in an even tone. “Except for when you’re not.”
I didn’t have an answer to that, so I remained silent.
“Gibs.” A heavy sigh escaped him. “Talk to me, lad.”
“About what?”
“Maybe you could start with whatever it is that makes you shut down like this.”
Pulling up on my elbow, I turned to look at him. “Do I look shut down?”
“Yes,” he shot back without a hint of hesitation. “Given the fact that I’ve known you every day of your life, I would say yeah, you’re clearly in shutdown mode.” He kept his brown eyes locked on mine when he said, “This is about Lizzie.”
My blood ran cold. “No.”
“Come on, Gibs.”
“Jesus Christ.” Frustration filled my chest to the point where I wanted to rip the four walls off this fucking house. “Why does everything have to be about her?”
“It doesn’t.”
“According to you and Feely it does.”
“No,” Hugh tried to reason. “Feely told me what happened. What he was trying to do, and I get it. I know she’s not been the best person to you in the past, but…”
“Listen, lad, I get that you and Pa have had this weird attachment to the Viper since forever, but I don’t want a damn thing to do with it,” I quickly cut him off by saying. “I’m not her friend, I’m not her punching bag, I’m not her fucking anything. So, whatever issues she’s having, don’t come around here projecting them onto me, because in the words of Rhett Butler, ‘Frankly, I don’t give a damn!’”
Hugh was quiet for a long time before finally rising to his feet. “You care, Gibs.” He moved for the door. “You don’t want to care, but you do,” he added quietly. “Same as the rest of us.”
