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“When? You can’t just stop, man, not suddenly. The side effects can be worse than the original problem. They can kill you, you know that, right?” Rafe presses something against my lips. “Take this. Take the damn pill.”
“No.” I turn my head away. No way am I taking a pill again, not after all I’ve been through trying to quit.
“Come on, Tyler. When did you stop, yesterday?”
I can barely spare breath to speak. “A month.”
“Yeah, right. Whatever.” Rafe runs a hand through his hair. “Not funny, man.”
When I don’t answer, he leans over me again. “Fucking hell, Tyler, are you serious? You went cold turkey a whole month ago? It’s a miracle you didn’t have a seizure and die. You’re one lucky motherfucker.”
Through the haze descending on my mind, I wonder how he knows about such things.
“Why did you stop the pills?”
“To come back,” I gasp. Dammit, no air is entering my lungs. “To Ash. And Erin.”
“Fuck that. Damn benzo withdrawal symptoms.”
My body tingles, and my stomach churns. I think I’m about to puke my guts out. I try to grab for something as the floor falls away.
“Tyler.” A strong hand grips mine. “Calm down, okay? Breathe, dammit. What do you need?”
“Erin,” I gasp, her name filling my head. The one good memory in my past and present, my one bright light. “Erin.”
Chapter Twelve
Erin
Tessa runs out of her building as I park at the curb. Her blond hair is pulled up in a ponytail like mine, and she’s dressed in ripped jeans and a long black sweater.
Huh. That’s not her usual glamorous chic style. I wonder what happened.
“So, where are we going?” I ask as she slides into the passenger seat.
“It’s a new place, near the campus. You’ll love it.”
“And the guys will be there?”
She rolls her eyes, the crystal blue made more impressive with the thick application of black mascara and eyeliner. “Ash will be there. Don’t worry.”
“I worry either way,” I mutter as I pull into the street. “That he won’t be there, or that he will be the
re and refuse to talk to me.”
“Why would he? I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“He hates me, and he hates his brother. I bet he can’t wait to talk to me about his brother.” I huff as I focus on the road ahead. “How stupid of me to think otherwise.”
Tessa gives me a light shove and grins. “Stop being so negative. Besides, maybe all you have to do is apologize. It’s this brand new ice-breaking technique people are using.”
I grin back at her and shake my head. God, I must be out of my mind, going out with Asher and Audrey. I wonder if Tess is right, if an apology will make a difference.
But I owe it to Asher anyway. Might as well get it over with.
I glance at Tess. I’ve been seeing less of her lately, because she and Audrey have been spending some more time together, catching up.
“So what’s up with the casual look?” I ask.
