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“I-It’s not just the tire,” I sobbed, wiping my wet face. “It’s everything. Things keep falling apart left and right. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.” Sniffling, I released an avalanche of word vomit. “I’ve tried to stay positive. I keep looking for solutions to try to turn things around. As frustrating as things are, I continue to keep pushing, and all I do is get knocked on my ass.”
“Alright,” Jamie trailed his fingers down the back of my neck. “Let’s get this straight first, and then we can talk about everything else. Did you call your insurance company?”
“Yes. It’ll be a while before they get here, though.”
“Are you comfortable leaving your car? I can take you home, and make sure you get to whatever repair shop they take it to tomorrow.”
Normally, I wouldn’t leave my car anywhere, but this was a different set of circumstances. I wanted to crawl into my bed, pull the covers over my head, and cry for days.
“That’s fine.”
After another quick call to my insurance rep, I was tucked safely in Jamie’s passenger seat, sniffling like the crybaby I’d transformed into. Now that some of my feelings were purged, it felt like I could finally engage in a normal conversation.
“I’m sorry,” I said, once I finally trusted myself to speak.
“For what?”
“Interrupting your day. I’m sure you had better things to do than dealing with me and my drama.”
“Wherever I am is always where I want to be, Nyx. Today, I wanted to make sure that you were good. Your safety is important to me. You don’t have anything to apologize for.”
Although his words put me at ease, I still felt terrible about taking him away from whatever it was he might have been doing.
“Have you eaten yet?”
“No.”
“What do you want?”
“You don’t have to—”
“Nyx,” he cut me off swiftly. “If we have to have this conversation one more time...”
“Alright, alright, alright,” I waved the white flag. I didn’t have an ounce of energy in me to fight with him.
“Wild West Fowls is nice. It’s not too far away, either.”
“I’m familiar. Their mango lemonade is crack.”
“Tell me about it.”
Our ride was silent, but I didn’t mind it. I needed the time to sort out the million and one thoughts firing off in my brain. Jamie took it upon himself to order and pay for our food and fearing that it wouldn’t go over well, I didn’t even attempt to argued or pull out my wallet.
We took the order to go, waiting until we were back at my house to unpack and sort everything out. I was on my third wing, and the beginning of one of my favorite comfort shows on Netflix before speaking up.
“Thank you, Jamie,” I murmured, reaching for one of my fries.
“What are you thanking me for?”
“That’s what decent human beings do when someone comes through for them. They show their appreciation and gratitude.”
He opened his mouth to respond, but my phone vibrated loudly, interrupting.
“Sorry,” I said, seeing Lincoln’s name. “Give me a second. It’s my brother.” Sliding the arrow on the screen, I placed the device to my ear. “Hello?”
“My bad, Nyx, it’s crazy on the track right now. I’m just now getting to my phone. You straight?”
All my anger towards him and my father dissipated. Lincoln was a pro drag racer, and I’d completely forgotten he had a race coming up. Very rarely did I ever miss one.
