AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I won’t.” I shifted on my seat, giving him my undivided attention.
“I’ll start when we were in middle school because it’s the only place I know where to begin. I’m about to share some fucked-up shit.”
A cold shudder coursed through me as I tried to brace myself for what he was about to tell me.
“Kip, Bass, and I go way back, but I’d met Bass first when he’d moved to the neighborhood from Australia. We lived a few houses apart from each other in a middle-class neighborhood. It was safe. We rode our bikes in the middle of the street, played football, and we never thought anything about it. Bass and I were just normal kids in sixth grade. Then, everything changed on a fucking dime.” He looked out over the park as he spoke. Dope snuffed out his joint and set it on the concrete picnic table beside him before he continued.
“I didn’t know anything until after the fact, so my information is all secondhand, and I suspect not the entire story. But.” He wiped his palms along his thighs, clearly something he did when he was stressed. “One fall afternoon, Bass and I agreed to meet up after dinner to play Dungeons and Dragons. He never showed.” He visibly swallowed, and I realized how difficult this was for him.
“Take your time, Dope.” I wanted to slap myself for saying that. My heart was beating so hard I thought it would burst through my chest. I needed him to spill the details before he had to call 911 because my blood pressure was through the roof.
“I tried to call his house but there was no answer. I just figured he had to go somewhere with his parents, and he’d catch up with me later. No big deal. Shit happened. But he didn’t meet me for school the next day, either, and I knew something was wrong. I could feel it in my gut, but I dismissed it as being stupid.” He rubbed his jaw, his gaze connecting with mine.
“I do that, too, then I regret not listening to that voice.”
He nodded. “Instead of going to classes, I hurried to his place and rang the doorbell repeatedly. No one answered. I knew where they kept the key, so I jumped over the back fence and located it under the shriveled-up tomato plant in the garden. Seconds later, I let myself into their garage and then into the house. It was eerily silent and dark. Not a single light was on. I didn’t call out to Bass because I thought no one was home. What bothered me was why he’d take off and not tell me. We shared everything, ya know?”
“Cami and I are like that,” I said, encouraging him to continue. Cami and I used to be like that before I had dark secrets that I couldn’t share with anyone.
“I walked down the hall and spotted the locked front door before I turned to go to the kitchen …” Dope’s voice was so low I had to strain to hear him. He stared at the ground while his hands fisted, his entire body stiffening. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Chapter 42
Sebastian
Shards of pain ripped through me as I stirred, trying to open my eyes as I acclimated myself to my surroundings. A thick fog lingered in my head from the accident, but I remembered that Ella had stayed with me until I’d gone to sleep. Eager to see her, I sat up slowly, making sure the room wouldn’t spin. Every inch of my body hurt like a son of a bitch, but that’s what a car accident would do. The fact that I’d survived was a miracle, and I planned to make the best of my life. Hopefully Ella would continue to be a part of it.
“Alexa, light on.” My voice sounded foreign to my ears, and I blinked as I adjusted to the brightness. Glancing at the clock, I realized it was almost nine in the evening. I’d slept for hours without any interruption. The hospital had driven me fucking nuts with the nurses and doctors running in every fifteen minutes.
I stood, testing the strength in my legs, and straightened slowly. My stitches were still healing, but they would come out in a few more days. It took me a minute, but I finally made it to my en suite bathroom and took a piss. God, it felt good to be home. The loud growl of my stomach agreed.
Once I’d relieved myself and washed my hands and face, I left my room and made my way to the kitchen. To my surprise, I didn’t find Ella. Kip was there instead.
“Where’s Ella?”
“She had to run to her place to grab a few things. You’re stuck with me.” He flashed me a cocky grin. “Sit. I’ll heat up some Chinese food that Dope picked up.”
I grunted, holding onto the side of the table as I sank into the chair. “I’m starved for some real food.” I massaged my forehead. “Is there any Advil around? I can’t seem to shake this headache. You would think the pain meds would take care of it, but I guess it’s Advil for the win.”
Kip briefly hesitated before locating which cabinet I kept the meds in. “You hit your head pretty hard in the accident.” He reached for the bottle and shook it. “It’s all out, man. I’ll ask Ella to pick some up for you on the way over.”
“That’s strange. I don’t recall taking the last of it.” The room blurred for a moment, and my stomach rolled. “I hate the fucking pain meds. They mess with me, and I can’t remember anything. They’re supposed to help, but they make me feel like shit.”
Kip scooped some rice, broccoli, and beef onto a plate before he popped it into the microwave. “Maybe some food will help. If not, try some crackers and 7Up. Dope bought some for you, just in case.”
“I hate this. I feel helpless.”
“You’re not. If someone broke into your home, you’d still put a hell of a beating on him.” Kip chuckled. “I know you don’t like being down and out, but you’re healing fast. You’ll be back at the club soon.”
He set the piping hot food and a fork in front of me. “I don’t recall the accident at all.” I eyed him, a creepy sensation ghosting over me.
“As I said, you hit your head hard. The doctor wasn’t sure if you had brain damage. It was a fucking relief when you recognized us. It could have been so much worse.”
Silence settled over us like a wet blanket, heavy and suffocating.
Kip sat in the chair across the table from me as I played with my food. “I’m glad you made it out alive, man. We thought we’d lost you for a while. It sucked ass.”
His words meant a lot to me, and I looked up at him. “Like you and Dope could get rid of me that easily.” I cracked a grin at him. “It’s weird as hell not remembering anything, though. It’s like … like I know someone else was there, but it’s just a shadow in my memory.”
