by EJ Everette
The guys are all waiting outside of the room when Charlie, Petra, and I exit. They all make quick work of assessing me, obvious in their efforts to look me over for any further physical issues. While the ease of walking is far from my norm, I seem to be able to function in slow motion without too much pain. Still, a nurse approaches me with a wheelchair and despite my usual tendency to appear strong at all times, I graciously take it. Just because I can walk doesn’t mean it doesn’t take a great deal out of me to do so. Reid and Dean push each other around playfully as they argue over who will push me until Rip comes up behind me, rolling me towards the elevator where Petra, Mitch, Chance, and Charlie are all waiting. I am both impressed and a bit irritated that the guys haven’t tried to say much else to me yet. Maybe they are being kind and allowing me time to adjust. Something tells me otherwise, however, and I wonder if they are as hesitant to discuss what happened that night as I am.
Once we make it down to the parking garage (we had to go in two groups because the guys are massive and couldn’t all fit on the elevator at once, go figure), Petra signals a car waiting just a few spots down from the elevator drop off. A simple dark blue sedan rolls over to us, and Petra motions for Charlie and I to get in the back. Immediately, the guys start to speak at once to protest.
“No way.”
“They can ride with us. We have room.”
“She isn’t leaving our sight, lady. You can follow us there if you want.”
“I’m not comfortable with this arrangement.”
Petra, much to my surprise, seems far from intimidated by my large friends and their grumbling. She walks over to Mitch, placing her hand on his shoulder while looking into his eyes. It is a weird as fuck moment, to be honest, but something seems to register with Mitch and he nods, exhaling loudly as she steps away.
“Petra is going to take Gray and Char over to Leanne’s. Gray needs some rest and we all need a damn shower,” he says to the group, looks of anger, confusion, and surprise apparent on the faces around us. “We will be by a little later after you are settled, doll. Get some rest.” He smiles at me, winking like he did the first time we met, and my heart flutters a bit. Oof. Hormones are not welcome right now. Damn Mitch. The guys look like they are going to argue but Rip clears his throat, shaking his head in dismissal.
“Mitch is right. We can come by later. Drive safely, please.” He then walks over to me, hesitates just for a moment, before placing his right hand on my face, gently stroking my cheek while avoiding the burns that mar my skin. “I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to see you up and moving, beautiful. But, your body still needs to heal more. Let it. We will see you soon.” He leans in, my breath catching in anticipation of what is about to happen, before he catches himself and pulls away. He turns from me, walking out into the parking garage to his car.
“I don’t like it,” Chance says, but he too walks over to me, taking me in. He doesn’t move to touch or embrace me, and he stops farther away from me than Rip had been. Still, my mind replays him grabbing me before I ran back into the house that night. Whispering that he had me, his little dark beauty, and wouldn’t let anything happen to me. He just stares at me a moment before walking off the same way Rip had gone, ever the puzzle.
“Can I hug you?” Reid asks, approaching me as if moving too quickly will cause me to break into pieces. “I mean, like would it hurt or whatever if I, you know, hugged you?” When he looks at me like I am the most precious thing he has seen, I suddenly give zero fucks about what will or will not cause me physical pain. Right now I need this hug just as much as he seems to.
“Come here,” I tell him quietly, reaching my hand out to take his, taking the lead for once and seeing a little bit of shock cross his face at my contact. That is all the invitation he needs. Suddenly, he is pulling me towards him and embracing me the best he can without squeezing too hard. It hurts, for sure, but it also helps. I let myself relax in his arms a bit, allowing him to support me for a moment. He leans his mouth down right next to my ear, his breath is hot against my cheek, warming my gut in a flurry of feelings.
“If you think for one moment I would let anything happen to you,” he whispers, “you’re in for a surprise. After all, we are engaged, and I take that very very seriously.” His voice deepens toward the end, sending chills up and down my spine. That’s when I notice the weird sensations from before the accident, the lightning zaps whenever they touched me, are gone. I can feel their presence as if it were my own, but their touch no longer shocks me. Weird.
“Enough already, you’re hurting her,” Dean says. He and Mitch pull Reid off of me playfully, fully aware that their friend was not actually hurting me. Reid smiles at me before joining his brother in their car. Mitch and Dean approach me as one, each reaching for one of my hands. “We will be close if you need us. I mean it. You’ll know.” Dean finishes, pain in his eyes. This will be our first time apart since that night. Something that also causes me some discomfort. He squeezes my hand before leaning in to place a brief chaste kiss on my cheek. Unlike Rip who avoided my scarring skin completely, Dean’s kiss is directed to the largest portion of my face with fire damage. The moment is so intimate I am forced to close my eyes to keep from crying. Shit. What the hell?
All too soon the moment is gone and when I open my eyes, Dean has already walked away. Mitch leans in for a gentle hug before placing his own sweet kiss on the top of my head. “Take care of yourself, doll. He is right. We will be close if you need anything. Just… just call for us.” And with that, he walks away too. Call for them? Did he mean to call them? Probably. The guys all holler goodbyes to Charlie who raises his hand in acknowledgement before climbing into the back seat of Petra’s car. Before I join him I catch Petra looking at me with a curious expression on her face. I blush, because apparently nearly dying means nothing to my blood vessels and rosy coloring fills the exposed skin on my face. No telling what she thinks about all of that, though right now I could care less. I just want to get out of here. I settle in next to Charlie with help from Petra’s driver, and lean back in the seat in preparation for a long quiet drive to Leanne’s.
Petra obviously has other plans, and moments after we pull out onto the highway, she turns in her seat at the front of the vehicle to face Charlie and I.
“Gianna and I had been friends for as long as I can remember,” she starts. “We met as young girls, both new to our…” Her pause seems strange, like she is looking for a word to replace what she wants to say. Is she about to lie to us? Is this all a joke? What if she works for the state and she is taking us away? Separating us again? Before I can dive further into my trauma-fueled paranoia, she finishes her thought, seemingly content with her choice of wording. “We were both new to our lifestyles, eager to find someone to bond with. Much like you and your friends Leanne and Tanner, from what she told me.” Her smile looks sincere and I want to believe her. I do. Easy, Gray. Let her talk.
“Your Grandmother,”
“Grams,” Charlie speaks, quietly but loud enough we both hear him. He says nothing else but I can see the water lining his swollen eyes. He misses her.
“Yes,” Petra continues, even more gently than before with a look of pity in Charlie’s direction. “Your Grams was my best friend. We spent years trying to find a way to get you two to her. It took your Grandfather’s passing to finally get the judge to sign off on our request. Ass that the man is.”
“You helped Grams get custody of us?” Okay so maybe she isn’t evil. Coming to live with Grams had literally saved my life and Charlie’s too.
“Yes, dear. I wish I could have made it happen sooner. Protected you both. I am deeply sorry it took so long.” Her face stays kind but her eyes tell me she knows so many things, some of which have her boiling with rage inside. Smiling to cover her thoughts, she continues. “Anyway, your Grams and I have quite the history. Gray, I would love to tell you more about it soon. In fact, there is a great deal we will need to discuss before long. I want you to be rea
dy, so take some time to settle in at your friend’s, but we need to talk in private soon.”
After that, she tells us some of the things her and Grams did as young women. She looks a great deal younger than Grams did which makes me wonder how the two of them were so close, but the joy in her eyes when she shares her memories with us is evident. In some ways, hearing these private moments between two friends makes Grams more present than before. I feel as if she is still around in the laughter of her friend. She must have known eventually something would happen to her. Sending Petra to us was her way of reminding us she is still here, even if we can’t see her.
It isn’t long before we are pulling up to Leanne’s home, the girl of note standing in the driveway waving her arms around like a crazy person. Leanne’s family is not what I would consider exceptionally well-off, but they have plenty of room and live just fine. Her home is in a gated community full of multi-level family homes. Unlike Grams’ house that had seen better decades, Leanne’s house is newer and well-kept. Her mother and father both work good jobs and Leanne’s only sibling graduated high school before I even met her, leaving her to live as an only child throughout her highschool years. The house before us is an off-white two-story home with arched windows along the roof. Leanne’s mom says her favorite part of the house is the front porch which takes up the majority of the left side as well as the front of the home. To the right is the attached 2 car garage with Le’s little light blue mini-coupe parked in front of it. Inside there are four decent size bedrooms and a small loft space above the garage area is set up for when Le’s sister comes to visit. While her home has always felt like a second home to me, I wonder how she convinced her folks to let us live with them indefinitely. That’s a huge commitment, especially since I still have eight months before I turn eighteen and can move Charlie and I out. Assuming the state lets me take custody of him. He will be thirteen in a few weeks, but there are a great many details that have to align perfectly for siblings to get custody. That, I tell myself, is a problem for future Gray to stress about, though. Right now, I need to get settled in while we find our new norm.
Leanne comes running over the second the car is in park, yanking the door on my side open, squealing with glee. She obviously isn’t thinking straight as she grabs for me to yank me out of the car. Pain surges up my arm at her grip making it impossible for me to withhold the yelp I squeak out. Instantly she drops my arm in alarm, wincing at whatever glorious look I must have on my face. Yeah, Le, remember me? Your old friend burnt and crispy?
“Shit Gray, I am so sorry. I’m just...I can’t believe this! When Mom told me last night I almost passed the fuck out!” She is yelling in all of her excitement but seems to catch herself afterwards, glancing over at Petra to make sure she doesn’t get upset with her language. Petra just smiles at her as she helps the driver (I never got his name) unload some bags from the trunk. I am not sure what in the world could be in those bags, but with Le wrapped around me within seconds of helping me out of the vehicle, this time with more care to my condition at least, I don’t have much time to ponder on it.
“Wait, what do you mean when your Mom told you? Didn’t you ask them if we could come live with you?” Now I am confused. If Leanne hadn’t asked, how did this arrangement end up happening?
“No. I wish I would have thought about it but honestly, I was so emotional I didn’t even think about where you were going to stay. I just wanted you to be ok.” Leanne’s voice wavers the tiniest bit but, ever the cheery bestie, she quickly recovers with more smiles and squeals. “Truthfully, I have no idea where they got the idea, I’m just glad they did!” She grabs a bag from the driver guy, skipping up the driveway stopping only to holler at me to get my burned ass inside. Well, leave it to Leanne to turn trauma into a playful insult.
“Actually,” Petra says from behind me as I make my way up the driveway. I stop and turn to see her still standing by the car door with a box of sorts in her hands. “It was I who made the arrangement for you two to stay here. The young men you are acquainted with all seemed happy to accommodate you, but after discussing some details with the young gentleman, Rupert, we decided it was best you stay somewhere else for now. I know you probably have a great many questions to ask me as I have a great deal of things to share with you, but now is not the time. Here,” she steps forward and hands the box to me. It is heavier than I anticipated so I have to readjust how I am standing to hold its weight. “This was left for you by your grandm… by your Grams. She asked me to give it to you when she finally left this plane. When you are ready, you should go through it. Here is my card with my direct line. I will be here once you are prepared to talk. Take your time. Many things are not as you believe them, and this will be a rough road for you.” Her voice is deep as she slowly delivers her message with great emphasis to her words. “I will be here for whatever you need as long as you want me.” With that she reaches out to squeeze my forearm as it holds the box up, turns to get in the car, and leaves.
I wonder what the hell could be in a box that would require an old lady I don’t even know to explain it all? Oh, Grams, I really wish you were here right now to tell me just what in the world is going on.
3
Gray
Leanne’s folks may be nice enough to let Charlie and I move in for the next few months, but there are some limits to their generosity. First, Leanne and I will be sharing a room. Apparently Mr. Sweeten (yes, that’s really my tinkerbell bestie’s last name, go figure) is unwilling to give up his “man cave” room. It’s completely understandable so when Mrs. Sweeten apologizes for the fourth time I kindly tell her it really is no big deal and I prefer not to be alone at night anyway. She looks at me with sad eyes, the pity I have seen too many times in the last few days poorly masked behind her gentle smile, before nodding and showing Charlie to his room. I am grateful they have Charlie on the opposite end of the house from where their room sits. His night terrors can be hard to handle but generally he isn’t loud enough to be heard clear across the house through multiple closed doors. Le and I are right across the hall from him, but she is already more than aware of his situation. Many sleepovers took place at Grams with the three of us, Le, Tan, and I. They know more of our secrets than we share with anyone.
Speaking of Tanner, it’s been about an hour since we finished unpacking (Petra had purchased a few things for Charlie and me to get us by until we can go shopping), and Leanne and I are laying across the massive bean bag in her room when Mrs. Sweeten knocks on the door quietly.
“Girls, Tanner is here. He is waiting downstairs for you.”
Tanner! In my insanely self-absorbed sobfest life since waking up a few days ago, I had thought very little about my other bestie. He had suffered a horrific beating by some incredibly homophobic assholes shortly before the fire and was still in the hospital when that night happened. I had no idea he was out! I rush down the stairs, okay maybe more like a speedy sloth rush but still, excited to see my dear friend up and moving. When I get to the bottom of the staircase I am greeted with not one but two very big smiles. Finn. Finn is standing behind Tanner’s wheelchair looking at me like he just won the damn lottery. Butterflies are on high alert fluttering around my insides at the look on my handsome boyfriend’s face. I have missed him. I smile back at him, probably for far too long, since Tanner makes a noise as if he is choking on his own saliva. Snapping out of it I hurry to reach down and assist him because, well I don’t know if that’s a thing he is dealing with these days or not, only to find him laughing at me.
“I am f-f-f-fine, Gray. Just couldn’t stand all the t-t-t-twitterpation in the room for a m-m-minute. I swear everything w-w-was moving in slow motion around us.” Still recovering from Aiden and his pals nearly killing him, his speech is far less slurred than it was a few weeks ago. I remember how adamantly Finn had been working with Tanner to help him recover and my heart swells again.
“That was great, Tan! You sound, and look, so much better than when I saw you last! Li
ke literally I am about to cry. I am so happy to see you!” I bend down to hug my bestie as tightly as we can both manage before we are both squeezed a smidge too tight by a third person. Ah, Leanne. The third corner of our triangle. She has always been the one to embrace the hardest.
“Uh, L-l-lee. Can’t-t-t- breathe.” Tanner and I are both choking out the same thing though our laughter is far more counterproductive to our breathing than the tiny arms currently wrapped around us. Leanne releases her hold, guiding us over to the living room area. Her mom has laid out some drinks to which I am immensely grateful. Who knew just walking around could be so exhausting, let alone dehydrating. Finn helps Tanner get situated on the recliner and then moves his chair over by the window, out of the way. The two of them barely speak through the process, leading me to believe they must have done this a few times now. Huh. Speaking of Finn, my sweet and sexy boyfriend wastes no time slipping past Leanne to grab the spot next to me on the couch.
“Hey baby,” he says to me, his eyes roaming over my face, clothing, and hair. It’s casual. Sweet. Not at all reflective of a crisis having interrupted our lives recently. Just like something he says every day. I like it. A lot. Returning the favor, I let my eyes take in his purposely disheveled look. He is wearing khaki cargo shorts and a deep blue tee that definitely makes his gorgeous crystal blue eyes pop. His messy golden-brown hair looks longer, falling down across the sides he usually keeps closely trimmed. My golly he is handsome.