Page 126 of Fireworks

Chapter Forty One

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Nate

Asher and I had spent the last three days planning out how he was going to execute this entire plan.

“You sure that she won’t know something is up? This isn’t normal for you.”

Asher patted me on my shoulder.

“A lot has changed in the last few months, man.”

Somehow, his words didn’t make me feel any better. Knowing that being gone brought them closer together was nice, but it was at the cost of him fearing that she was breaking beyond repair.

“Asher, was she really that bad?”

I almost didn’t want to know the answer. Walking to the fridge, he grabbed a beer for himself. Taking a long draw, he set it down on the counter before speaking.

“I’ve never seen her like this before, Nate. There’s no use in lying to you. Her roommate, Ryder, she’s been texting with me every day so I can check up on her. You know how Katie can be. Even if I asked her directly, she would just say she’s fine, too proud to take a helping hand. She could be drowning in the ocean and still insist she would figure it out.

She threw herself into school. Which I guess is okay, but I’m really worried she could start acting out. Ryder said the few times they went out, she was drinking a lot. Her and Paul have been keeping tabs on her. A few other friends she knows have too. It’s just hard with me being down here. I’m not there to save her from herself.”

“You’re the knight in shining armor that saves me from myself.”

Her words rang through my mind again from when she told me about Brandon. I never meant to cause her this much pain. Going up on that plane was the stupidest thing I could have ever done. When I thought that my heart was completely broken, Asher’s words shattered even the minuscule pieces that were left.

The plan was to stay with Asher until he went back home for the holidays. A few days after I showed up on his doorstep, we called his parents and told them exactly what the plan was. They, of course, were on board and asked what we needed of them. The only thing we needed was for them to not let Katie know I was back. I had successfully gotten to see her on campus. As much as I wanted to show up on her doorstep like I had Asher, I also knew that Bridget had a point.

Katie was hurting right now and not in the right frame of mind. There was a fifty-fifty chance of her walking out when she saw me and never giving me a chance to explain myself. At least catching her at home with everyone she loved close by, she may not flip out on me.

We only had two more days until we would drive back to the Hanover’s, the fate of my heart on the line. Saying I was on edge was an understatement. I was forcing myself to eat every day. Sleep was nearly impossible. My mother had reluctantly gone back home without me, despite telling me she would stay to drive back with me. I knew she had probably taken a lot of time off work already and I didn’t want her risking her position just to watch over me.

The sound of Asher’s phone ringing grabbed my attention. As he brought it to his ear, he turned away from me, lowering his voice.

“What do you mean? Tell her no. Just, seriously, mom? I’ll deal with it, okay? Don’t worry.”

Huffing, he looked down at his phone scrolling. I wanted to ask him what was going on, but the moment I opened my mouth, he held his hand up to tell me to shut up.

“Hey, can you talk?”

His pacing around the apartment was making me uneasy.

“Good. Thanks. So, did she invite herself, or did you invite her?” He paused. “Okay, well, she has to go home, so figure out how to tell her she can’t come home with you this year.”

I could hear someone talking but couldn’t piece together what was going on.

“Ryder, listen. She needs to be home when I get there. I can’t tell you exactly why. The less you know, the better. Yes, it has to do with, wait, how did you know?” His eyes shot up to me. “Never mind, it doesn't matter. Tell her your parents changed their minds and she could come the week after or something.”

Hanging up his brow was noticeably wrinkling as he cracked his knuckles.

“What was that about?”

I tried to not add to his stress right now, but it didn’t sound good. Turning back toward me, he took another gulp of beer.

“How does Ryder know you’re okay?”

Thinking back, I could swear I told him I saw her, but maybe I left that out. Now I couldn’t be certain.