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Well, I’ll be damned.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, my eyes looking past him in search of her.
“DD doesn’t know. DD doesn’t know,” he says, rocking on his toes and back. “DD doesn’t know.”
“Who’s DD? Is that your new advisor? Is she supposed to be here with you?” I look behind us again, waiting for someone to come out.
“No. No, I’m here because you need a ride. You need a ride because you don’t have a battery. A ride.”
I cock my brow. “How did you know I didn’t have a battery?”
“I know you didn’t have a battery because I took your battery. Colin took your battery. It’s my battery now. I needed it. Needed it.”
“Colin.” My mouth drops open as I stare at him in complete confusion. “I can give you a ride back, just give me the ba—”
“It’s not here. It’s not. The battery isn’t here.”
I stand straight with my hands on my hips, tipping my head in confusion. “Whereeee is it?”
“I used it to soup up my car. Soup up. Now c’mon. Soup up car. We have a race to get to,” he says, turning from me and walking toward the garage exit.
“Colin!” I call out, jogging after him.
He turns, holding onto the straps of his backpack, looking down at the ground as he blinks quickly.
“Your race,” I ask breathlessly. “It’s today?”
He nods once, then reaches for his backpack. Opening the zipper while holding the bag against his chest, he pulls out what looks like a canary-colored shirt. He zips it back up, placing it on his back as he throws the rolled up cloth at me.
I catch it against my chest and watch in shock as he turns and continues down the alleyway. I open the shirt, seeing the team name printed across the chest in white. “The Canary Cowards.”
My heart drops into my stomach.
The team.
Our team.
“Team needs you!” he yells forward into the garage as he continues walking. “Team needs you.”
I swallow what feels like a brick, clutching the t-shirt to my chest, and my eyes begin to water. I tighten my jaw, attempting to hold back my emotions before running after him.
“Wait! Colin!” I reach him in a few steps, stopping directly in front of him and forcing him to stall his motions. “A-are you sure about this? About...me?”
I don’t know how else to ask if he’s still afraid of me, when clearly he’s here. In my parking garage. Throwing shirts at me and stealing my car battery.
“I called you a coward for a reason,” he says, looking me up and down.
I’ve never felt more hurt, more disrespected, more loved in all my life. This man sees through me entirely. I may not understand how he always does it, but I know that much is true.
“Wait,” I stutter, shaking my head. “Why are you doing this? Why give me a chance again after all I’ve done?”
He purses his lips and shrugs. “You love her. Love her. You love her. Don’t waste it, Lake. Love her.”
My face falls into a pained frown, and I literally feel my chest crack in half.
Colin takes a step forward, placing his arms on my shoulders. He gazes down at my shoes and says, “All we have is this time right now. Time is always ticking away from us.”
I suck in a breath, absorbing his words. I nod my head, letting out a heavy sigh. Colin pats my shoulders before pulling them towards him. Before I know it, his head is resting on my shoulder and his arms are around my back, patting me. Colin is hugging me.
