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“I will.”
“Drake—” my voice caught. The idea that my closest friend was battered and bruised in a hospital bed made my insides churn and I fought the rising bile in my throat. “Do you know who did this to her?”
“I have some ideas. We’ll know more when she’s not high as a kite on pain medications.”
I laughed, but it was tight and got stuck in my throat. “I bet she’s loving that right now.”
“She has no idea she has a broken leg and thinks this is all some cross faded dream.”
“Take care of her, please.”
“You know I will. Good luck today.”
“Thank you.” I ended the call.
And nearly an hour later, when they called me up, I scanned the crowd looking for Trask. Instead, I was faced with a room full of strangers.
30
TRASK
Iwas sitting at a stuffy restaurant with my parents and the Denvers. This was supposed to be a surprise birthday get-together for my mom. Instead, it was Dad and Ken hunched over, talking shop. Karina, Karen, and my mom talking nonsense and drinking too much. Karina’s mom was content to sit in a buzzed haze and nod occasionally. Both parties tried hard to get me involved. If I’d had it my way, I wouldn’t have been here. But I fucked up, and this was my penance.
Dad bailed me out. Well, not actually bailed. It didn’t even get that far. It was a drunken fight between two friends over a girl. Donnie was going to lose his scholarship if he got arrested, which he would since he was high and drunk out on the street. At least that’s what my dad told him. So Donnie walked away. Sort of. He more like staggered to an Uber and hopefully went straight to a dentist.
My knuckles were still bruised and scabbed. I got a sick sense of joy looking at cuts that would scar. My dad had been furious. I finally felt like I wasdoingsomething.
I couldn’t help but think of the phone call last night between Eliza and me. Her little voice broke my heart. Why couldn’t she see mine was breaking too? I loved my parents, I really did, but I couldn’t look at them without this seed of resentment taking root. I’d called Jude. He told me to quit acting like a pussy. I tried talking with my dad privately. He told me to act like a man. Eliza was alone and here I was surrounded by friends and family and I felt just as alone.
“Trask,” Karina said, gripping my thigh for half a second. “What the fuck happened with Donnie?” She kept her voice low. Our parents were in an animated discussion about some zoning thing.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“He called me. What has Eliza done to you? What did I do to you?”
“Nothing,” I said. “You haven’t done anything to me.”
“Then why are you acting like this?”
“My actions do not affect you. We aren’t together.”
“Yes,” she said. “They do. I love you. I’ve been waiting for you. Don’t you know how much it hurt to see you with her? She was my best friend. She hurt my cousin and me. She tried to ruin my family. How could you stoop so low? And now you’re angry because she broke it off and you’re out for blood? Did she put you up to this?”
It was my turn to get angry. “Karina, I am going to tell you something that is going to be very hard for you to understand. Are you ready?”
She crossed her arms over her chest, pushing her tits up. “Go on.”
“This is not about you.”
She looked confused. “What do you mean?”
“I knew it was going to be too hard for you to comprehend. This. Is. Not. About. You. Donnie is a fucker and you know it, your parents know it, everyone does. It’s why you aren’t close and why he was shipped off to a school several states away. My relationship with Eliza is not about you. How thick do you have to be to genuinely think the world and the actions of people around you are personal slights? Grow the fuck up.”
Karina gritted her teeth together. “I convinced Daddy to get you that internship. I have been the one waiting for you. I poured so much into this relationship. I won’t let you end it just because you’re having an identity crisis. Get it together or you’re going to end up like Eliza when she inevitably pulls the same shit.”
I leaned into Karina, whispering in her ear. “With all due respect, fuck you.”
She clutched her glass so hard I thought it was going to break.
