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"That’s just tragic" I could hear the ereed because that was all I could do By the tiot to the salon ere both beyond ready for a little pick e was definitely in order

We got pampered and all loosened up Maybe too loose because when it came tis and ht brown it had been I had hi hair so that I had aly and drareen of my eyes iridescent I really liked and so did everyone else apparently because as soon as we got out of the salon I had a bunch of girls around the sae as us stop and ask where I had it done

Ayden and I went and got sorab a cocktail at a bar close to the apartlanced atI frowned and shot back that everything was fine I waited for him to demand to knohere I had been all day, to ask what I was up to but instead he just answered back that was good and wanted to knohat tiht My sto awful rise up in the back of htful but I hated it and I wanted it to stop so I texted:

- I think I have a ht so I think we’ll just have a girl’s night at hoo out with your friends or whatever

I wanted him to tell ot back:

- Alright Letfor your head Keep your door locked I still don’t trust Davenport

I wanted et mad at me, I wanted him to throw all that attitude he norot was quiet acquiescence and easy agreeability, things that ry and not sure why or what to do about it I tossed the phone into my purse and ordered us another round of drinks

"What’s wrong now?"

"Nothing"

"Come on Shaw I’ve been with you all day; tellon, the boobs, the hair and the freezing visit to the grave so is behind it all You make hed dejectedly and twirled the straw around in ht because I was getting a raine"

"Which I assume is not true"

"No and it don’t really want him to stay away I just wanted him to do what he normally does and throw a fit, to act te over whether I like it or not because he wants to Instead he just says okay like it’s no big deal and I don’t knohat to do with it It’s not like he can’t be sweet and nice when he wants to but that’s just not his default He’s coumentative but lately all he wants to do is s It weirds me out and it just isn’t like him so I don’t knohat to do about it"

"Maybe try being stoked that your boyfriend sounds awesome?"

I tried to s but I didn’t have the heart for it "It’s not just e talk or I ask his, it’s in bed too Norasasm but lately it’s been a lot more like may I do this, and is it okay if I do that, and how does this make you feel, and are you okay with this? He’s never been the type to ask for permission, he takes what he wants and by the endto really freak me out because I don’t even kno to talk to hi like a paranoid lunatic"

"Well you have to talk to hi hi entirely different or you’re both just going to be disappointed"

I knew she was right but that didn’t o about it "Whatever happened between hiot trashed is what started it He left the aparter"

"I know a couple people alking to class when it happened They said it looked like Rule was going to tear Gabe apart but then he let hiuard broke it up so I don’t knohat could have triggered such a strange reaction in him"

"I don’t either but I hate it and it’s just one ed to interfere inpretty down so we had a few more cocktails than planed and then Ayden decided that since ere already boht We ordered wings to go from the bar and hiked hoet dropped off at the car in theWe stumbled in and crashed on the couch We watched three sappy, ros with a bottle of wine, indulged in ice creas that were not remotely funny It wasn’t until I finally crawled into bed hours later that I realized that I hadn’t called Rule or even sent aI think my heart cracked a little when I looked at the screen of es He hadn’t even bothered with a goodnight or an I miss you

I tossed the phone somewhere on the floor, careful this time not to hurl it at the wall and crawled under the covers I assumed since I was pretty plastered that sleep would suckI tossed and turned for over two hours until I finally gave up and realized I wasn’t going to sleep unless I changed so I had spent the lastin an e shitty just didn’t hold the sah one of the dresser drawers that Rule had started stashing sos in when he stayed over I found his favorite Defiance Ohio t-shirt and striped down and put it on It orn, soft and mostly it reminded me of him so when I crawled back into bed I finally fell into a fitful rest knowing that I had to get a handle on whatever was going on before I went crazy or turned into an insomniac lush

Chapter 15