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He laughs, but it feels forced. The vibe of the room is now strained, and I know it’s partly my fault, but fuck, Tom could at least leave it until we get home. We’ve aired enough of our shit in front of our friends.
I toss the PlayStation remote onto the coffee table, ready to leave, when someone knocks on the door. Wren’s face pales as she gets up to answer it. She glances back at me before pulling it open, and my shoulders tense. She steps out of the way, and Ivy gasps. “Harley!”
Conrad’s grip visibly tightens on her waist, and I can’t decipher the look on his face.
“Hi, Ives.”
THREE
HARLEY
THE ANGER IS still radiating off me as I climb off my bike the next morning in the BHU parking lot. After Ivy and Conrad showed up to Wren and Brady’s, I made my excuses and left. I’m not ready to face that problem yet.
Of course, Tom followed me home, chewing me out for the way I was treating them. Rich, coming from the guy who’s lied to me for the last five years. The night ended with me slamming my bedroom door in his face and turning my music up as loud as I could until I knew he’d leave me alone.
Am I acting like a brat? Probably. But I just found out my entire life has been a lie. I don’t want another brother. Fuck, right now, I don’t even want the one I knew I had. Conrad may be blood, but he sure as shit isn’t family.
I swing my bag over my shoulder and head to my digital media design class. The benefit of having all of my classes in the arts department means that I don’t run the risk of seeing any of my friends unless I seek them out.
I’m early to class because I didn’t want to hang aroundand go round two with Tom this morning, so I find a seat toward the back of the room and pull out my iPad. I open up the design I’ve been working on for a new tattoo and get lost in my art. I’m so engrossed in what I’m doing, I don’t even notice that the room is filling up around me until Robbo pulls out the chair beside me and nudges me.
“That looks sick, bro.”
I glance up at him in a daze, for a second forgetting where I am. “Thanks, man. Just an idea I’m working on for some new ink.”
“Nice.” He takes a sip of his coffee, and I yawn, stretching my hands above my head, wishing I’d thought to stop and get one.
“What are you doing in this class?” I ask him. “Aren’t you studying accounting?” His dad owns a big accounting firm in Brisbane, and last I heard Robbo was going to be following in his footsteps.
“I’m taking this as an elective. Numbers are boring as shit. I had to do something that wouldn’t put me to sleep.”
I laugh. He’s not wrong.
“Where’ve you been, man? I haven’t seen you out on the waves or at any parties. What did you get up to this summer?”
“I’ve been in Sydney visiting my cousin.”
He just nods, and I scratch the back of my head.Well, at least it looks like the rumours haven’t started yet.
I’m thankful that the professor running our tutorial group walks in, signalling the start of class so I don’t have toanswer any more questions. But Blue Haven is a small town; I wonder how long it’s going to take for people to find out.
My morning classes serve as a good distraction for my problems, but as I walk over to the cafeteria to grab some lunch, I run into my biggest one. Ellie stops short when she spots me. Her best friend Sophie, who has her head buried in her phone, runs into the back of her.
“What the hell, Ellie? A little heads up before you…” Sophie’s voice trails off as she looks up and sees me standing in front of them.
“Hey,” I grunt out, lifting my hand pathetically in a wave as I rock back on my heels.
Ellie bites down on her lower lip, and she looks so goddamn vulnerable that, for a moment, I just want to forget all this bullshit between us and wrap her in my arms. But I can’t. Too much has happened. Instead, my hand drops limply to my side, and I say, “We should talk.”
Sophie lets out a loud scoff and steps in front of Ellie. “Hey? We should talk?” she spits out, mimicking me. “Are you serious, Harley? You ignored her for three weeks, and now all you’ve got to say is, ‘we should talk’? What about an apology, huh? What about–”
“Soph, stop,” Ellie says finally, tugging her friend out of the way. “It’s fine. You go grab something to eat. I’ll catch up with you later.”
Sophie glares at me, but Ellie gives her a gentle nudge, and she walks away. When we’re alone, I play with the strap of my bag as I tell her, “I am sorry. I shouldn’t have justtaken off like that; it wasn’t fair.”
“Are you okay?” she asks softly.
I stare at her, taking in her shoulder-length jet black hair and chocolate eyes. She looks nothing like her brother, I realise. Or nothing likeourbrother. Conrad has blond hair like his mum, but he has blue eyes like Dad. Like me.Fuck.I squeeze my eyes shut, swallowing down the bile that’s rising in my throat. I don’t know if I can do this.
