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“Vic,” I whispered, leaning my head against her bare legs.
It had been a few hours since Father stormed off. Dylan was to the side of us, passed out after raiding Father’s alcohol cabinet. His snore barely audible over the sound of the action movie he had forced us to watch.
I turned to look up at her when she didn’t answer.
She swallowed thickly and clutched at her shorts.
“Kohl,” she said back, though her voice held more of a warning to it.
“You know I’ll support you with anything, right?” I asked.
She gave me a stiff nod.
“And I you,” she whispered.
I leaned forward, brushing the barest hint of a kiss against her knee.
“Then I think it’s time you be honest with me,” I said.
I couldn’t get the image of Father reacting to her news about her mother out of my mind, nor could I get the way she stared him down out either.
This time, instead of fighting me, she brought her lower lip between her teeth.
“We're friends,” I said, trying not to wince at how bitter the word tasted in my mouth. I trailed my hand up her leg in a soothing motion. “You can tell me, whatever it is. Hell, I’ll even help you if you want.”
Her eyes widened at my admission.
“You don’t know what you’re getting into,” she muttered, shaking her head. I turned, shifting to sit on my knees and face her fully.
“I don’tcare,” I said, trying to fuse as much power into my words as I could. “Anything. I would do anything for you. Don’t you know that?”
“Kohl—”
“No,” I said quickly. “Let me finish. I would stand by your side even if the goal was to watch the world burn. Fuck, I’d hold the kerosene.Please, just let me in. Whatever,whateverit is, I promise to be the one to help you with it.”
Her eyes searched my face, no doubt looking for any hint that I was lying to her.
Just as she opened her mouth, the harsh sound of her vibrating phone cut through the air. I tried not to groan aloud when she picked it up.
“Dad, I thought you were—”
Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open. Her shaky hand came to try and cover the slow crumbling of her expression.
My heart dropped into my stomach.
“Vic—”
“My dad—he got into—oh my god.”
She dropped the phone into her lap, her other hand coming up to cup her mouth.
“Vic, what’s wrong with your dad?” I asked, my hands coming to her caress hers, but as soon as she flinched away, I paused.
“I need you to drive me somewhere,” she said, her voice muffled.
“Yes, anywhere,” I said, this time not hesitating to pull her into a standing position. She leaned into me, taking deep breaths as she tried to calm herself.
