by Unknown
“CPK it is! Let’s go before something else happens in our lame lives.” Halley mutters.
I lock up and make a beeline for her truck. I don’t know about them, but I’m starving. Even popcorn wasn’t enough to curb my hunger.
It takes us about 45 minutes to get where we’re going. It’s been a long time since we’ve been here, and I can’t wait to dig into their BBQ chicken salad. It’s one of my favorites.
“Guys suck.” Halley pouts a bit later over a slice of pizza.
“Tell me about it,” I mumble in agreement around a bite of salad.
“What’s going on with you two? You’re acting like it’s the end of the world. The boys have a life, too. It’s not like they have to dedicate all of their free time to see us. So everyone’s busy with work? It’s okay to take a break from people sometimes.” Naomi arches a brow at us.
“Stop making a case for them,” Halley demands.
“Besides, it’s not like they don’t check in with us. Don’t forget, we have spent time with them. In fact, it wasn’t that long ago.” Naomi point outs.
Ignoring Naomi, Halley asks me, “Do you think the Stooges have even clued in that they’re breaking our hearts?”
“What?” Now I’m confused. “I don’t feel like my heart is being broken. What’s gotten into you, Halley?” Though, I do feel a sense of loss when it comes to Nathan which is something I’m not in the mood to talk to my best friends about.
“It’s not like they don’t have time to hang out with us, come on!” Halley practically leans across the table, looking between me and Naomi. Though, she gives Naomi more of her sour faced look. “I know we’re all busy, I get it. But we’ve found time before to be together. Now, what? Holt’s too busy to even call most days?” frustration runs deep in her voice. “Give me a break.” She sinks back into her chair, folding her arms across her chest.
“Wait,” I tilt my confused face towards Naomi. “I thought you said they at least called to check in?”
“Tucker does. We’ve gone out a few times.” Naomi tells me, and then looks at Halley. “Seriously, Halley, you’re making a big deal out of nothing. I think you’re searching for something to hold against Holt, since the relationship you semi have— by the way, isn’t going the way you want it to.” Narrowing her eyes at Halley, “Why are you asking for borrowed trouble?”
Halley shrugs one shoulder in reply, refusing to voice anything further. I can tell that her irritation has a new target in the form of our best friend, Naomi.
“I admit that I miss the guys, too. Especially Nate.”
“Are you two forgetting how much fun we had before they showed up?” Naomi arches her brows.
“Point taken.” I smile at her, trying to appease everyone so the conversation doesn’t get any more depressing. Also so they can’t question me about why I’m missing Nate.
“We’re just being silly, and it’s probably for no reason at all. Right, Halley? I look at Halley and in return, she scrunches her disappointed face at me.
“Fine. I’m probably being ridiculous for no reason,” she concedes, though it’s not convincing in the slightest.
“How about this, next weekend, we’ll plan to meet the guys at T. J’s. Agreed?” Naomi, the cool level-headed friend of our group, compromises. “Until then, we’re not talking about them. We’re having fun like we used to.” She sternly looks at both Halley and me. “I mean it!”
My phone buzzes right when dessert arrives. Looking down, I see it’s from Nate. I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face when I look up at the girls. “It’s Nate,” I share with them before accepting the call. No way am I letting this go to voicemail. They shake their heads at me, Naomi with a smile on her face. Halley on the other hand doesn’t look thrilled.
I decide to take the call outside for privacy, so I motion towards the doors, to them to let them know as I speak into the phone.
“Hey, cowboy!” I answer, stepping out into the warm breezy night air. I find a small curb to sit on while I take the call. It’s silent for a minute, and I wonder if maybe Nate accidentally hung up on me.
“Nate?” I call into the phone.
“Hey, this is Charlie, right?” A woman asks. Furrowing my brow, I pull the phone away from my ear, and double check the number. Nope, it’s not a wrong number. It’s definitely his phone.
“Uhh, yes.” I hesitantly reply. “Is something wrong with Nate?” I still can’t place who this woman is, and I’m trying not to jump to conclusions as to why she’s calling me from his phone.
“I was actually hoping you could come down to the house.” She sounds apprehensive. “He’s in a bad way tonight, and I think he needs someone other than me to take care of him.” Whoa. Who is this woman, and what’s going on here?
“Not to sound rude, but I’m not sure who I’m speaking with.”
“Oh! Sorry. This is Nate’s sister, Carianna.” Well, colored me shocked. I’ve never spoken to her before. Of course, I’ve heard of her name in passing and a little tid-bit about her. Though, I had yet to meet her.
“Would you mind coming over as soon as possible? I’m a bit worried about him.” Now I’m worried even more because of this weird conversation.
“Carianna, what’s going on? Is he hurt? What happened?” I’m such a worrier and this cryptic conversation is doing nothing to ease my nerves.
“I'm sorry. I'm not at liberty to say what's going on. It's his story to tell. All I can say is that he's not okay, and he's needs more than I can give to him. The guys called me over, but I think he would want you here more than me. Do you think you can come over? I can leave the spare key under the mat for you.”
Okay, what does she expect me to say, no? Not going to happen? Find someone else to take care of my man? Wait, is he my man? It sure feels like it, although we haven’t officially declared ourselves to each other.
“Carianna, I’m pretty sure Nate wouldn’t want me there.” I quietly admit to her.
“He would. Trust me. He may act like he wouldn’t want you here, but deep down he knows he needs you. He’s too scared to admit it. This will be good for him.” She tries to reassure me.
“I’m not sure you have the right of it.” I try again.
“Then make it the right way.” She quietly demands. “Charlie, trust me on this one. Nathan needs you.”
“I hope you’re right.” I sigh. I know he’s going to be so mad when he finds out his sister called me. “Alright, I’m on my way. I’m up in Walnut Creek at the moment, so it’ll take some time to get there.”
“I’ll stay with him for an hour then head out.”
“By the way, where are Holt and Tucker?” I ask, realizing that they hadn’t called me with worry over their friend.
“They took off to play pool, and to give Nate some space for a bit,” she tells me. “I’m sorry we haven’t officially met. Nathan doesn’t bring anyone home to meet the family.”
“Can you give me any clues as to what’s going on?”
“I think it would be best if he told you why he gets like this once a year.”
“That’s not really helping.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. It’s the best I can do. I’m already meddling enough, and if he finds out you know, before he shares it with you, he will blow his lid. I’m already on shaky ground here as is, with phoning you.”
“Alright. Like I said, I’m not in town, so I need to get my friends and head back that way. And—Carianna, thank you for calling me. I wish we had met under better circumstances, even if it is over the phone.”
“Me too,” she quietly replies. “Thank you.”
“I wish I could say you’re welcome but to be honest, I’m scared here. If he won’t even tell me about his family, and with whatever is going on, he’s going to be ticked when he sees me.”
“I know. I’m sorry, but thank you anyway. I truly believe it will all work out.”
We say our goodbyes and hang up. I’m not sure this is a great plan
, as I stand here, in the parking lot feeling at a loss for words. Eventually I get my thoughts collected, and return to the restaurant.
I get inside and head to the table where the other two give me questioning looks.
“So—what’s up? Did he want to see you?” Halley inquires.
“It wasn’t Nate.”
“What?” They ask in unison.
“It was his sister, Carianna.” I shake my head, still trying to make sense of what just happened.
“Uhh— okay?” A perplexed Naomi questions.
“I just had the strangest conversation with his sister. I can’t make sense of it, but I do know that I need to leave so I can see what's going on with Nate. The others are at Texas Jacks. I bet if we leave right now, you can catch up with them."
"What do you mean it was strange?" Naomi asks.
“I don’t know for sure. She said he was feeling really sick, and she felt like he needed me.”
“Sick? I’m still not connecting the dots here. Also, why are you telling us we could meet up with the guys?” a very confused Halley asks.
“Something’s going on with Nate. Apparently he gets like this once a year. What does that even mean?” I ask my friends, like they have a clue.
“What does that even mean?” Halley repeats.
“I don’t know. She told me she wasn’t at liberty to say. Apparently, he would be upset if she told me, rather than hearing it straight from him.”
“It sounds like we need to get our check and clear out. We’ll swing by your place to get your car, after we drop you off at Nate’s on the way.” Halley says, as she waves over the waitress.
After paying, we make a hasty retreat and Halley heads straight for the guys’ place. Fifty minutes later, we’re taking the exit that will lead us to his place.
“I’m sorry to leave you both in the middle of our girl time.” I tell them apologetically as we wind our way through the neighborhoods.
“Don’t even worry about it.” Naomi assures me. “But please, let us know if you need anything while you’re there,” she offers.
“We’ll reschedule our girls’ night for another time, don’t worry.” Halley reassures me. “For now, we’ll go check in with the guys, to make sure all is well with them. Maybe they can shed some light on the matter.”
“Thanks. I’ll text you when I know more.” I say goodbye and hop out of the truck that’s idling in front of Nate’s house.
His truck is in the drive and the porch light is on. I head up to the door, lifting up the mat to find the key Carianna had promised to leave. Upon opening the front door, I realize she left on the front entry-way light for me. I make my way to the kitchen, flipping on the light when I enter the room, setting my purse on the kitchen counter with my coat on top of it, before taking in my surroundings. It doesn’t seem like anything is out of the ordinary. I didn’t even see Nathan when I came into the house. I take in a deep breath and call out to Nate. The last thing I want to do is scare the day lights out of him. When I don’t get a response, I decide to take action by heading down the hall towards Nate’s room, and get to the bottom of the mystery of what’s going on with him.
I flip the hall light on, slightly pausing at his closed bedroom door, listening for any noises to give me any signs that he’s even in there. It’s silent so I reach out my hand and twist the door knob, not knowing what I will be walking into.
I step inside, but leave the door open so I can see what’s going on from the hall light. Walking in as quietly as I can, I make my way over to his bed to find him resting. From what I can tell, everything seems fine. I don’t see wadded up tissues, a barf bucket, or even a bottle of medication on his night stand by his bed. I’m not sure what his sister was worried about. He’s lightly snoring, lying on his side. Though, he’s not covered up. I start searching his room for a blanket, so I can go wait in the front room until he wakes up, or someone comes home, and that’s when I see it. It’s a bottle of Jack Daniels sitting on his side table by his alarm clock, that’s on the opposite side of his bed.
I’m shocked, frozen like a deer in headlights, not sure what to do next. From what I know of Nate, he’s not one to drink hard liquor or to get drunk. What’s going on?
I slowly ease myself onto his bed, trying not to ruffle it, or startle him. Turns out that wouldn’t have matter as he’s out for the count. I take him all in, realizing he’s lying in his pajamas on top of his covers. I slowly rise from the bed to go out to the hall linen closet to find him a blanket. Searching his room was a fruitless endeavor—though I didn’t really look too hard, then head back into his room and lay the blanket over him. There’s nothing I can do at this point, except get him items that will help when he wakes up. Deciding on my next plan of action, I go back into the kitchen to look for pain relievers. While I’m there— I get him a glass of water, and grab the garbage can, too. It may come in handy. I can already tell this is going to be a long night.
Before I head back into his room, I shoot a text to my friends to let them know that I don’t know what’s going on, but I will keep them in the loop when I get to the bottom of the matter. I wish them a good night with the guys, and then turn my attention back to the objects I need.
I gather up all the items from the kitchen and head back down the hall. I grab a towel from the closet, before returning to his room. I lay everything out where he can easily get to them, wondering if I should sit on his bed and wait this out, in-case he needs me? Or, should I just wing it, and crawl into bed so I can hold him? I’m not good at this, and I don’t want to freak Nate out if I climb into his bed. Or is it myself I don’t freak out? Though, we had a trial run at this the night he came over to watch over me. So, I guess the nervousness I’m feeling can take a flying leap.
As I’m lost in my musings, I feel movement on the bed, when I see Nate blindly reaching for the covers. I take over in his struggles, pulling the blanket higher up over his chest. He accidentally hits my hand with his hand, causing his eyes to fly open. At first, his eyes rapidly blink, and then go to squinting at me, trying to piece together who I am. When he finally recognizes me — he gives me a lazy smile. Does he realize I’m actually here?
He reaches out again, this time to grab my hand with his, and entwines our fingers together. “What are you doing here, little one? Please tell me I’m not dreaming, and you’re really here in my room.” He sounds so out of it. How much did he drink?
I smile back at him, trying to tease him. “Maybe this isn’t a dream, and you’re stuck in a nightmare.”
He drunkenly laughs. “Heaven, I hope not.” He looks up at me, then orders, “Stay with me.”
I hesitate, “I’m not sure if this is a good idea, Nate.”
“I don’t know what I need, or how you came to be here. What I do know is that I need to feel you in my arms. I can't even describe it. I just have this sudden urge to hold you, Charlie. I need your arms around me.” He says while tugging on my hand, causing me to fall onto the bed and slightly onto him at the same time. I quickly right myself, and then slide in to place beside Nate on his queen size bed. We lay there silently for a few moments just taking in the silence, wrapped in each other’s arms.
Eventually he rolls us both onto our sides, then sighs out in contentment.
“Waking up to your pretty face could never be a bad thing. If I could wake up every day to your gorgeous face, I would die happy.” His words warm my cheeks and cause my insides to get all funny. “Did she call you?”
“Carianna?”
“You know, it doesn’t even matter that she did. It’s enough that you’re even here.”
“Are you sure this is okay? You won’t be mad at me tomorrow?”
“She would have loved you, you know.” He suddenly, but quietly states into the darkness, ignoring my questions.
“Who?” I don’t have the foggiest idea as to who he’s referring to. It’s not like he’s given me many clues about his family, or past girlfriends.
�
��She was full of life, love, and just pure happiness.” He continues, as if I didn’t just ask him another question. “I wish you could have met her.” He twines his fingers through mine again, resting them at my belly. “She was always there, cheering us on, you know? No matter what we were doing—winning, or failing— she was the biggest cheerleader you could ever wish to have.”
I’m at a loss, as to who he’s reminiscing about, but I realize that it’s best to just let him continue on without speaking in return. I wonder if he will remember any of this by day light. Will he be mad that he told me these personal thoughts? Or will he feel relieved, maybe even freer of the ghost that haunts him?
“She was always making us laugh, or volunteering for whatever school function she could. We were that house that everyone loved to come over to, and never go home from. She became like a second mom to Holt, and Tucker. Boy did we ever try her patience with our pranks. We were a bunch of teenage troublemakers, that’s for sure. Staying out way passed curfew, dating too many girls, and not finding that one good girl to hang on to, stirring up trouble with our friends. Though, she was the one who taught us how to toilet paper houses.” He chuckles. “You should have seen her with the three of us, and my sister. It was a riot.
“We used to tell her that there was no way we would settle with one woman. Where was the fun in that? Though, we knew it was more just to tease her, and that we didn’t really believe we would be serial daters. She used to lecture our ears off about settling down with a good girl when we were older. She would remind us about how her, and dad, had such a strong love. ‘Once you find the one, you will know it’, she would say. She really believed in the theory of — ‘The one’. They’re marriage really was a great example for us to learn from. It wasn’t perfect, by any means. They just learned how to deal with their issues, and when to let go of a losing battle.
“She was so pretty, too. She wasn’t much taller than you, with her shoulder length, black hair. I remember she would always pin her bangs up to the side, to keep them out of her eyes. And she always knew when you were up to no good. I don’t know how she did it, and she never did get the chance to reveal her secrets to us. She was still full of life when she passed. Though, you could see the strain and exhaustion in her frail body, as it was ravished by cancer.