Page 5 (1/2)

Micha

"She’s already got you all hot and bothered" Ethan sips on his soda "Look at you Drunk after eight months of sobriety and I don’t believe it’s a coincidence it happened on the saht she showed up"

I slam another shot back and wipe my lips with the back of my hand "I’m fine man And I can’t blame what I do on anyone else but myself This isn’t Ella’s fault "

Ethan laughs, tipping his head back, bue of the cupboard "Who the hell are you trying to convince? You know just as well as every single person in the room knows that you two are each other’s probleet it over with"

I punch him in the ar on thin ice tonight"

He holds up his hands, surrendering "Sorry, I forgot how you get when you’re like this"

I grab a fist full of his shirt and jerk hiain, he forfeits up his hands "MichaYou’re trashed out of your h rasp "Coffee’s aelse" My eyes travel to the back door , and suddenly I understand what I need I pat Ethan’s shoulder "Clear everyone out before ht, oing?"

"On a walk" I knock people out ofrass and climb over the fence Ella’s dad’s Firebird is parked in the driveway, so he h He won’t notice or care if I sneak in I’ve been doing it since ere kids

Although, ot

I stare up at her bedroole, Ithe branch to theCupping hts are off, but the glow of the hts a trail to her bed She’s fast asleep I inch open the , slicing er tip, the taste of blood and vodka bitter against h theand hit the floor with a soft thud

Her friend shoots upright from the bed on the floor, her eyes wide "Oh et to my feet "Shh" She still looks worried so I dazzle her withsmile

That seems to win her over and she settles back in her bed As carefully as I can, I step over her bed and crawl in with Ella She’s always been a heavy sleeper and doesn’t stir I press ainst her back, drapeGod, I’ve missed this way too much It’s not healthy I burrowthe scent of her hair, vanillathat’s only her

I shut ht months, I fall into a peaceful sleep

Ella

I sleep horribly for half the night, tossing and turning, like the princess sleeping on a pea Only I auilty conscience I don’t knohy I feel guilty about blowing off Micha I’ve done it breezily for the past eight ht next door with his sad puppy dog eyes and charot worse when ht, bu over cups and bottles, drunk off his ass Later, I heard hi in the bathroom my mom died in It still hurts to hear because his tears are my fault

Once I fall asleep, I aht’s rest I’ve had in ages When I wake up in the late afternoon, I feel refreshed and calm Until I realize why

Micha is in , lean arle part of hi ne s to Micha I pretend to be asleep, engulfed in a wonderful drea to wake up until he leaves

"I know you’re awake," he whispers in my ear His voice is hoarse and his breath is stale with booze "So open your eyes and quit avoiding al to walk into someone’s house without per into someone’s bed - that’s the move of a pervert"

"I didn’t walk in I fell in," he says, ahs "Now there’s irl" He brushes his soft lips across my forehead "I’ve le in his arms "Please don’t start It’s too early"

His eyes are guarded and his hair is a mess He chuckles lowly, a sound that ripples deep inside irl You and I know that deep down you’re secretly glad to be pressed up to s around ainst his warmth God, I’ve missed this so much Way too much and so has o?" he asks, crushing as? Because it kind of surprises me You never really liked school"

My et into this right now I just want to have a relaxing summer and then I’m headed back to caainst hs and I seal

His eyebrows knit "It’s like you’ve been kidnapped by a bunch of nuns or so"

"Maybe I was," I say submissively "It wouldn’t hurt anyone if I was"

He considers this and an artful smirk curves at his lip "That’s not true Nuns can’t have sex and I still haven’t fulfilledsex with you"

I open ue locked and loaded with an equally perverted co I’irl any drive ahead of her"

With one swift roll, he has me pinned down beneath his body and my arms trapped aboveat the endless ocean He sucks on his lip ring, lost in thought "You’re going to tellhis head so his lips are next to "

"Micha, please" I despise how breathless I sound "You knohy I left You were there that night you saw ain" Anxiety claws up ht of his body "Please let me up I can’t breathe"

He props up on his ar away You know that"

I shake my head "No, I couldn’t Not that time That time it was different You were part of the reason I had to leave"

"Because you kissed rowl "Or because I found you that way that night"

I s the giant lump inkiss, one that stole breaths, stopped hearts, and scared the shit out of s I’d never felt before, ones that rendered me helpless

"I don’t want to talk about it Now get off of le hs and rolls off me "Fine, don’t talk about it, but it doesn’t ain I’ll chase you down this time," he threatens with a wink as he cliles "Get dressed and o visit Grady today"

"No, thanks," I decline and tug the blanket over ht I have stuff to do today Besides aren’t you hung over froht? You were pretty wasted"

"Don’t do that," he says, aggravated "Don’t pretend like you have soht ed"

I’et out of bed You’re going to see Grady, whether you like it or not" He yanks the blanket offthere in ht tank top with no bra on underneath He gives lint in his eyes and goosebumps sprout all over my skin

I coverto Grady’s I just got hoot cancer, Ella" He backs for the door, tucking his hands into the pockets of his faded jeans "So get your bratty, split-personality ass out of bed and go see him before you can’t"

My arms fall to my sides as I sit up "Why didn’t anyone tell me?"

"If you would have told soh, I’m pretty sure your father knehere you were, he just wouldn’t tell anyone"

I don’t deny it

"Besides, I told you in the voice atyou haven’t listened to that?"

I shake my head "No, I was too surprised to see your nu, so he does when he’s nervous "Yeah, you should probably just delete that I don’t think you’re ready for it yet"

My gaze moves tolike a cat "How bad is Grady?"

He ss hard "He’s dying, so you need to get dressed and let in to object, but rethink my initial stupidity Grady is the one part of my past that I could never run from At one point, he was like a father to Micha and h I didn’t tell hiet dressed and I’ll be out in a second"

"See you in a few" He winks atthe door wide open behind his up fro the sheet "Oh My Hell What was that about? I h thein the ht, and just climbed into bed with you"

"That’s what he does" I open theletting in the gentle breeze Loose pieces of my hair dance around the frame of my face "Oh, no"

Lila stretches her ar?"

I reluctantly look at her "I think soht have confused your car for a canvas"

She juet a look at the dae done to her beautiful, nearly brand new Mercedes "My poor baby!"

I pull a skirt and a pink tank top out of o check out the daht cry "I can’t drive it home like that My parents will kill me"

"I know plenty of people who can fix it for you," I say, opening the door "Or I use to, but I’o to the downstairs bathroo the upstairs one I turn on the shower so theup and hide my reflection I comb my hair until it flips up at the ends naturally Then I apply a light shade of lip gloss and head out the door, but run into et here?" His breath sin and his eyes are red His cheeks have sunken in over the last eight months and his skin is wrinkled like leather with sores He’s in his late forties, but looks like he’s pushing sixty

"Last night," I tell hi hiot home"

He offers lad to have you holad to be home," I lie with a smile as we reach the top of the stairs

He moves his arm away fro? Like help carrying in your boxes?"

"I think I can handle it onmy arm out as he teeters toward the stairs

He nods and his eyes drift to the bathroo about how much I look like her It hurts his eyes, at least that’s what he told uess I’ll talk to you later then Maybe we could go to dinner or sos down the hall to his roo the door shut behind hi when I was about six, a few nosed with a bipolar disorder His drinking habit wasn’t that bad back then He would spend a few nights at the bar and sometimes on the weekends, but after my mom died, beer and vodka took over both our lives

When I return to my room, Lila is dressed in a yellow sundress, with her blonde hair curled up and there is a pair of overly large sunglasses concealing her eyes

"I feel like crap," she declares, putting her hands on her hips

"This place has that effect onvoiceo outside, leaving the sht, surrounded by the scenery of rundown hohborhood is filled withand far in the distance are the sounds of a lovers’ quarrel and Micha is nowhere to be seen

A long ti wild felt natural, but now I just feel lost

Lila starts biting at her fingernails as she gapes confoundedly at her car "It looks worse up close"