AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dez took a deep breath and clasped his hands in front of his face. “Joel, let me explain something to you. This isn’t the Joel Lattimore show. When we leave, it’s not justourkids andoursignificant others that we need to say goodbye to. It’s everyone. Every-fucking-one. We might go out there, some shit happens, and we don’t come back, and because you were in your fucking feelings, I might not get to see mysisterand mynephewsbefore I leave?”
Joel nodded. “I know. I fucked up. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t give me that placating shit, and let me walk away before I snap your fucking neck.”
Dez stormed off.
Gage raised his phone in the air. “Mate, you better hope I either get a signal, Julien manages to find one, or they show up in the next five minutes. If not, I guarantee at least one of us won’t make it home.”
An SUV came racing down the road—his very own Aston Martin DBX. He’d told Ayesha that she didn’t have to rent a car or use one of Dez’s or Julien’s. He’d assured her he would take care of it. That he would take care of her.
The SUV came to a stop, and Josiah hopped out, still wearing his pajamas. Ayesha exited next, still wearing the pink, cottony dress he’d last seen her in late last night. She’d tossed on a pair of slides, and rather than pinned up or in a ponytail, which was how she usually wore them, her braided hair strands hung loose, spilling down her back.
While she grabbed Theo from the backseat, Josiah raced over, and Gage caught him in a hug.
Joel stepped off to the side.
The rest of the guys hurried over, dishing out departing hugs and unnecessary apologies; it wasn’t their fault they’d nearly missed the chance to say goodbye.
When Ayesha walked up, they did the same.
Neither Ayesha nor Josiah looked his way, and Theo, eyelids lazily opening and closing, returned hugs as best as he could, belting out sleepy screams and giggles. Whereas most children woke up at the crack of dawn, if Theo wasn’t roused, he slept in. The trade-off, however, was that he operated at one hundred percent from the moment his feet hit the floor until bedtime.
Gage kissed Ayesha’s cheek. “We’ll see you when we get back, okay? We’ll be in Maui before you know it. Need anything before we leave? You guys are okay?”
She nodded, eyes red. “Yeah, we’re okay. Please be safe.”
Joel started to face her, a dictionary’s worth of apologies going through his mind, but a small fist struck his midsection. Then came another, and another, until they were raining down on him. Josiah coughed, cried, and punched, and he only stopped because Dez gently pulled him back out of reach.
“How could you leave like that?” Josiah screamed, his face and lenses covered in tears. “What if you didn’t come back? My dad didn’t come back, and I didn’t get to say goodbye to him. I told you that, Joel. I told you! I never got a chance to tell my dad how much I love him and that he was the best dad in the world, and I didn’t get a chance to hug him, so tight, one last time. How could you leave like that? You promised me, Joel. You promised!”
He dropped to one knee. “Josiah—”
“No, don’t say my name. Never say my name, my mom’s, or my brother’s name again! You’re a liar!” Josiah tossed a red folder at him. “Take your stupid gift. I should’ve never made it for you. I hate you, and I hope you don’t come back.”
“Josiah,” Ayesha called. “Don’t say that. It’s fine to be angry, but don’t say that.”
Joel reached out and tried to draw Josiah close, but Josiah screamed his hurt, anger, pain, and how much he hated him and wished they’d never met.
“I’m sorry, Josiah,” he choked out. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry. Please forgive me. I messed up. I’ll never ever do that again.”
“Did I do something? Do you not like me anymore?”
“Josiah, I love you. You didn’t do anything. Everything’s my fault. This is all on me. You didn’t do anything.”
“So, how could you leave like that?” Josiah asked, voice breaking. “After you promised. What if something bad happened, and I never saw you again? What if I never got to tell you I love you and say goodbye? We’re supposed to be best friends, Joel. How could you leave like that?”
Agony split him apart.
Josiah’s entire body went slack, and he drew him in for a hug while Josiah cried on his shoulder. Through his own tears, he could barely see the landscape as he held Josiah tight, rocking him, apologizing repeatedly, and promising that he would never do “something so stupid” again.
“I promise, with everything I am, I’ll never do that again, Josiah,” he said. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I love you, okay? I messed up. You didn’t do anything wrong. I love you.”
“I’m still mad at you,” Josiah said, voice muffled against his shoulder. “But I’m sorry I said I hope you don’t come back. I didn’t mean it.”
Joel held him at arm’s length. “I know.”
“And I don’t hate you. I’m mad at you, real mad, but I still love you. I want to make sure I tell you that.”
