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Chapter 15 - Marcus: Boundaries
I had just finished my run when my music cut off, and my phone began to buzz. I looked down at my phone and saw a name I had not been expecting to flash over my screen.
Linda McNeil
My heart sank, as I realized what this was probably about. I was yet to speak to her or Ryan about my ‘engagement’ to Maddie. I slid my finger across the screen and answered the call.
“Hi, Marcus,” Linda’s sweet voice came through the receiver.
“Hey Linda, how are you doing?” I tried to keep my voice as level as possible without sounding off. I hadn’t spoken to Linda in almost a year.
“I’m fine. I heard that congratulations are in order.”
I gulped. “Yes. Thank you for that. How are you and Ryan doing? Ash told me that she was moving back.”
“That’s actually why I’m calling. I’m looking for Ash. She hasn’t been answering my calls, and I’m worried about her. You are usually her lifeline, but I’m guessing with you being engaged, maybe you aren’t as close as before."
There was a hidden jab there, but I let her comment run over me like water. I knew she would have her reservations about my engagement.
“No. I’m sorry I haven’t spoken to her.”
“I know this may be asking a lot, Marcus but could you please just check on her? I will send you her home address. I just need peace of mind, knowing that she is okay.”
I should have said no, but then what kind of monster would that have made me? So I agreed.
“Sure, Linda. I will go and see how she is.”
She thanked me and then hung up the phone. I shouldn’t have been doing this. The more distance I put between me and Ash, the better.
I looked at the clock and saw that I had four hours before I needed to head to dinner with my family. My mother had thought that it would be good for us to get a family meal in before the wedding which was in just a few days.
I ran into the house and made my way to my room to take a quick shower. When I was showered and dressed, I made my way out of the house and to my truck.
I put the GPS on and pulled out of the driveway. Ash’s house was a ten-minute drive from Maddie’s house which was ironic because that was the same distance my house was. It wasn’t until I pulled into the neighborhood did I realize that her house was practically five doors down from mine.
I pulled into the driveway of the quaint little home that had been empty for the past year and a half since Mrs. Amberton moved out. I killed the engine and waited.
There was a car in the driveway, and I knew it had to be hers. Why else would there be a car? I could have just texted Linda and told her that Ash was safe and sound. I could return to where I had come from. But I also knew I had to see Ash face-to-face. It wasn’t just for Linda, but it was also for me.
I had promised Sarah that I would take care of Ash for her and here I was doing this. I knew that my fake engagement and marriage were hurting her, but I didn’t know how else to go about things. Telling her flat out that I didn’t want her would not have been much worse.
Ash didn’t process things the way a normal person processed things. Her brain twisted and turned in ways that made scenarios not what they were out to be.
If I were to tell herI don’t have feelings for you,her brain would compute it asI think you are ugly and worthless. This wasn’t just something I was making up. This was something that she had once explained to me not too long ago.
She was an egg, and I had to handle her with care.
I got out of the car and made my way to her door. I was about to climb the first step of the porch when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out of my pocket and read the screen.
Stink Bug (fiancée):not that I care :p but do you think I should dye my hair a darker color?
Me:I think a nice vomit green will truly compliment the inner witch in you, stink bug :D
Stink Bug (fiancée):if you were on fire, I would pour gasoline on you. I just asked you a question, but you choose violence instead.
Me:I’m kidding lol. Don’t change your hair, it’s perfect the way it is.
Stink Bug (fiancée):not that I cared anyway. Don’t forget we have dinner with your family in an hour. I might come home to change and then we can just go together.
