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“Don’t ‘hey’ me. Tell me that you’re done being a martyr and that you will let people help you.”
“I promise. Cohen, Milo, and Asa are here. Even if I wanted to run away, they’d find me. Heck, I’m pretty sure Milo has placed a tracker on me already,” I grumbled, rubbing my forehead.
“Good,” he huffed, a pleased tone to his voice. “I gave you a pass last year, but not anymore. You hurt Sawyer, and I won’t let you do that again.”
“I know. And you’re right. It was selfish of me. I was just in such a dark place, it felt like the only way out. Can you forgive me? I’m sorry I left on your birthday and used that as an excuse to sneak away. I’m the worst friend, and I promise to make it up to you when I’m back.”
“You better. I think a chick-flick marathon is in order.”
I smiled, my shoulders dropping. Rhett might seem like an oversized bear to most people, grumbling at them to get out of his way, but he was a true romantic at heart and had been my movie-watching companion for a few years.
“You bet. Thanks for caring and looking out for Sawyer. I’m glad she has you.”
“Hmph, well, I’m glad to have her. We both need you too. You’re our friend. Don’t forget what that means to someone like me.”
Nodding, I realized he couldn’t see me. “Yeah, you’re right. Is Henry around?” I asked, knowing I needed to talk to him too.
“No, he’s out with Soren. They went to hear Shadows of Mayhem. I think Henry might write a song for them.”
“Wow! That’s so cool, I didn’t realize they’d contacted one another. Shit. Okay, I feel like I’m missing so much. Maybe I should just come home?” I bit my lip, knowing Rhett wouldn’t spare my feelings from the truth.
“Take care of what you need to, Fin. Everything will still be here when you return. But if you don’t deal with it, you’ll just find yourself back to where you are now, missing out on everything. So, it’s better to handle it now.”
Taking a deep breath, I accepted what he had to say. “You’re wise, Rhett Taylor. Can I say goodbye to Sawyer?”
“Be safe, Fin,” he grunted.
“I will.” Smiling, knowing that was his way of saying he cared.
I waited until my bestie returned, already feeling lighter from talking to them both. Once we said our goodbyes and I promised to check in every few days, we hung up. Leaning my head back against the chair rest, I took a deep breath and then exhaled, the stress falling away as the air left my body.
“How’s my sister?”
Jumping, I peeked over my shoulder, finding Asa leaning against the glass door. I hadn’t realized he’d come outside. Blushing, I hoped he couldn’t see it and hadn’t heard all the boy drama I’d spilled to Sawyer.
“Um, good. She’s excited about qualifying for nationals. One step closer to the Olympics now.”
Asa smiled, pride showing for his sister. “Yeah, did you see it?”
I shook my head, dropping my eyes. “No, I, uh, forgot.” I began to fidget with the chair, picking at nothing just to distract myself.
“Hey, don’t do that. I know you would’ve been right there if you could’ve. So do Sawyer and your brother. Let's just focus on doing what we need to do to return home. Okay?”
Glancing up, I found him watching me, nothing but love and warmth on his face. “Yeah, that sounds good. Um, do we have any more information? Sorry I just left. I kind of needed some air.”
Asa walked in front of me, leaning against the balcony, facing me. “Yeah, Cohen spoke with his handler, and they’ve arranged for us all to be allowed to accompany you.”
“Really?” I raised an eyebrow in question, wondering how that happened.
Asa chuckled, grabbing my hand. “Cohen said we were all going to be there anyway, so they might as well put Milo and me to work.”
Smiling, I linked our fingers, raising our hands to peer at it. “So, Milo, too?”
“Yeah. He doesn’t start at his residency until late summer, so he has some time off.”
“And,” I swallowed, dropping my eyes, “what do you think about him?”
“I think the better question is, what do you think about him? Orfeelfor him?”
