by Kent, Julia
“Chelsea…” Arion warns with a level of malice in his tone I’ve only ever heard when someone is being a serious asshat in game.
“What?” She bats her eyes, and I can’t help laughing.
“It’s fine. We’re fine.” I smile at Arion, then angle toward Chelsea.
She looks up after fastening her seatbelt and nods. “Yup. Just fine. Me and Heartbreaker here are going to be BFFs, right?” She winks at me.
“Exactly. I think I like Bartender Barbie just fine.”
Arion goes a shade of pale I’d expect to see on a cancer patient or someone dressed up like a sparkly vampire for Halloween.
Chelsea’s nodding and laughing. “Oh, my God! I think I need to put that on my name tag at work!”
I don’t think it’s going to be very hard to like her, but if things don’t work out here for me, she’ll be just another friend I have to leave behind. I remind myself not to get attached.
Arion puts the truck in drive and squeals out of the parking lot as if he can leave our insanity behind. He takes a deep breath then glances in his rear-view mirror at Chelsea. “You know that’s going to have to be your new ring tone, now, right?”
“What?”
“I’m a Barbie Girl.” He looks to me. “I used to have it set to the theme song from Clueless for her, but she finally begged me to change it so she’s been lumped in on the default ringer.”
I can’t help wondering what ring tone he’ll set for me or if he had one for my texts. I’d probably rather not know, so I don’t ask.
As we head out of the city, I forget all about ring tones and nicknames. Tucson is a sizable city, but the majority of its size is built outward, creeping over the desert like tumbleweed. In contrast, Philadelphia has apparently abandoned all notions of outward, and they have instead begun to build up. Way up.
The network of web-like overpasses and underpasses create a multi-layered city that looks like it has expanded in waves. The old mixes with the new, creating a blend of fascinating architecture that I can’t help but be in awe of. Beautiful stone buildings, white spires, and the obligatory signs of urban unease.
One of the things I like the most is the lack of cookie-cutter facades. For the most part, in Tucson you have two choices for building materials on the outside of your house: new stucco or old stucco. There’s some brick here and there, but almost everything is some shade of brown, red, or orange, with the occasional white.
Not in Philly. Philly looks like someone tossed a bunch of colors and materials into a can, gave it a good shake, then sprayed it over the city. It’s organic instead of planned, and it leaves me lots to look at.
It only takes us about fifteen minutes to reach the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, heading toward Camden, and I wish I had a camera to take a picture of the stone columns that guard the two sides of the bridge’s impressive girth like towers on a medieval fortress. I’m still gaping out the window when we pull into a gas station.
I have a momentary heart attack when a teenager in a grease-smeared uniform approaches the driver’s window before Arion even has the truck off. Did we do something wrong? I suck in a breath, trying to control my nerves.
Arion calmly pulls out his wallet as if he’s expecting the kid to ask for license and registration, but that doesn’t make any sense. The kid is obviously not a cop. My eyes feel like they are about to pop right out of my head when Arion plucks his Visa out and casually tosses it to the kid. Are we being robbed? Is he trying to be calm because he doesn’t want to scare me?
I risk a furtive glance over my shoulder at Chelsea, who’s busy picking at her nails without a care in the world.
“Fill it?” The kid says, sounding completely uninterested and not at all like a mugger.
“Yeah. Thanks.” Arion turns to me and quirks an eyebrow. “What’s wrong?”
I hear gas start to flow near the back of the truck. “Is that guy pumping your gas for you?” I didn’t know being rich meant being that lazy. Wow. My heart starts to return to its normal level of activity. So, only slightly erratic and spazzed-out instead of completely.
“Yup. It’s actually illegal to pump your own gas in New Jersey.”
“Whatever, I’m not falling for that.” He must think I’m as ditzy as Chelsea looked when she was tending bar.
“It’s true.” Chelsea leans forward from the back seat. “I don’t really mind though.”
“Once he’s done, I’ll pull up to the store and we can run in.”
“Oh! Will you get me a pack of Airheads?” Chelsea asks.
“You are an Airhead. And yeah.” The way Arion rolls his eyes clashes with his lopsided smile.
Chelsea laughs and sticks out her tongue. Seeing the two of them together almost makes me wish I had a brother. Maybe if I had, it wouldn’t have been so hard to leave Nick. I would have had someone to protect me.
The attendant gives Arion a receipt along with his card, and we head into the store together with the promise of bringing candy back for Chelsea. She said she’d rather wait in the truck than go into some dinky little convenience store.
Behind the counter, a teenage girl pops her gum and keeps her eyes on us. Do they not hire anyone over the age of eighteen here? I may only be twenty-one, but I feel miles beyond who I was when I was that girl’s age. I can’t help thinking she should be in school or out with her friends or something equally carefree. Then again, so should I. Plus it’s summer break.
Once we’re back in the truck, my new phone, complete with over a thousand pre-paid minutes, is burning a hole in my hand. It’s a way forward and a way back. It means I can call my mom, but it is also something that can tie my past and future together. I can’t help but worry it’s going to tie a noose around my neck.
Twenty One
Angel
The phone is still clutched tight in my hand when we arrive at the hospital. I have to do this before I lose my nerve. “Do you mind if I catch up to you two? I want to make a call real fast.”
Arion eyes me with concern. “I can wait with you while you call, if you want?”
“No, it’s fine. I’d actually rather have a minute on my own. Just tell me what room Vince is in, unless you think I should wait here since he doesn’t even know me.”
“433A. Fourth floor.” Chelsea climbs out and heads for the elevator, weaving through the aisles of cars growing in the concrete jungle they call a parking garage. A few are parked almost haphazardly, like someone was in a hurry, which makes sense since we’re at a hospital.
His eyes are still dark with worry, but Arion tosses me his keys. “You can lock the truck when you’re done.”
“Thanks,” I say as relief floods through me. I lived with Nick for nearly a year, and never once did he trust me with the keys to his car. The fact that Arion is so comfortable with me after less than two days is immensely gratifying. I’m sure part of it is because we feel like we’ve know each other forever from the game, but whatever. It still feels awesome.
“Let me see your phone for a minute.”
I hand it over, and Arion punches a few buttons then hands it back. “There, now my number’s programmed in. It’s speed dial number two. If you need me to come back down, just call me.”
I doubt he’d have much reception in the hospital room, but I don’t say anything. I don’t deserve the level of compassion he consistently shows me. If he only knew the truth about me, he’d probably send me packing.
He hops out of the truck with a lingering glance over his broad shoulder. When he strolls away, it almost seems like his feet are protesting, wanting to carry him back toward me. The way his jeans hug his ass, though, I’m not exactly minding watching him from this perspective.
Once he’s out of sight, I dial my mom’s number with shaking hands and a lump in my throat.
After the third ring, my heart is sinking. If she doesn’t pick up, I can’t risk leaving a voicemail. Just when I’m about to hang up, her familiar voice comes through. “Hello?” She sounds skept
ical, like she wasn’t sure she wanted to answer the unfamiliar number.
I try to infuse my voice with cheer, and I’m so relieved to be talking to her it isn’t that hard. “Hi, Mom!”
“Tess, I was wondering when you’d call. How’s the vacation going?”
I falter for a minute. “Um, great I guess.” Vacation? I didn’t tell my mom anything before I left, not even that I was leaving. And I certainly didn’t tell her I was taking a vacation.
“Oh, good. Nick stopped by last night and told me you’d gone on a little vacation now that school’s out. Really, though, I don’t know why you didn’t tell me.” She sounds hurt, like she feels left out.
My heart beats faster just hearing Nick has been to my mom’s, even though I was sure he would. It’s exactly why I didn’t tell her anything. “Sorry, Mom. It was sort of last-minute and then I forgot my phone on the plane, so I didn’t have a chance to call.”
“Oh, so that’s why you’re calling from this number. I don’t recognize it.”
She accepts my story easily, and I remind myself not to feel guilty; it’s for her own good. “Yeah, it’s a friend’s phone. A couple of the girls and I from one of my classes came together, and I borrowed one of their phones. Don’t call it unless it’s an emergency and don’t give it out to anyone, okay?” I wonder if I should be surprised at how easily lies roll off my tongue. Mom doesn’t know I got kicked out of school any more than she knows I got fired from the cafe.
“I’m almost glad you’re on vacation instead of here. Last night one of the waitresses at the cafe was attacked. I’m just so glad it wasn’t you.” She never liked me working at the cafe, and judgment oozes from her tone.
“No worries, Mom, I’m safe.” Enough, anyway. For now. I should feel worse for whoever got attacked, because the other servers there used to be my friends. But they haven’t talked to me since I was fired, and even before that they were pulling away because most of them couldn’t stand Nick. I’ve just got too much else to worry about, and so while I hope they’re okay, that’s as far as my concern can go. Not like I can call to check up on them. The less people who have this number the better.
“Are you going to be replacing your own phone soon?”
I know what she’s really saying is that I was irresponsible for losing another phone, and a little bit of leftover attitude from my days as a rebellious teenager tries to rise up in revolt. Keeping my voice as light as possible, I say, “Of course, Mom. Soon.”
“Okay. If I need to get word to you, I’ll just send it through Nick, since I’m sure you’ll be talking to him. He’s so sweet, Tess. Maybe I was wrong about him. When he stopped by last night he told me not to worry, he’d keep an eye on me while you’re gone, and he’ll come visit a few times a week until you get home to see if I need anything. He said since we’ll both miss you so much, we just have to stick together until you’re home.”
Fear for my mom’s safety is choking me, but I manage to force out an answer while terror burns in my chest. “That’s great.”
I know his words are really a message to me, and I’ve gotten it loud and clear.
“Where are you visiting anyway?”
“We flew to Myrtle Beach, and now we’re just driving from here to there, seeing the country as we work our way back West. I’ll be gone a few weeks at least. But hey, speaking of beaches: why don’t you go see Aunt Edith in Florida. Maybe we could meet up there.”
“I don’t know…”
“Mom, please. You don’t take nearly enough time for yourself.” I’ll say anything to get her out of town, away from Nick.
“Well, I am off for the summer. I guess I could.” My mom works as a secretary for the high school where I went.
I find myself nodding into the phone as if she can see me. “Go tonight, mom, before you can change your mind. Promise me you’ll do this for me.”
“Oh, fine, don’t be so melodramatic about it.” I don’t even have to be able to see her to know she rolled her eyes as she says that.
Hearing her agree, I’m already breathing a bit easier and the tension in my chest is loosening. “Just think, tomorrow you might be sunbathing on the Gulf.”
“That does sound nice. I guess I’ll call Nick and ask him to pick up the mail.” Her tone of voice suggests she’s already checked out of our conversation, and her thoughts are occupied with the details she needs to arrange for a sudden trip.
“Don’t worry about it; I’ll mention it to him when I talk to him again.” That isn’t technically a lie, since I don’t have any intention of talking to him again.
“Thanks, Tess. Well I guess I need to pack. Hopefully I’ll see you in Florida.”
“All right, Mom. I’ll talk to you soon. Love you.” I choke back tears, not knowing when I’ll actually be able to talk to her again. I wish I could tell her the truth. I’m not sure if she could handle it, but I know I can’t. I can’t face the sound of her disappointment, and I can’t face knowing that the more I tell her, the more danger I put her in.
“Love you, too.”
We hang up, and I lean back against the seat. I hope my mom goes right away, and I think she will. She sounded excited about the prospect. But I also can’t guarantee she won’t mention to Nick I was planning to meet her there. Which means Florida and my aunt’s, is the one place I definitely cannot go. If things don’t work out at Arion’s farm, I’m even more screwed than I was before.
Twenty Two
Arion
I’m walking through the halls of the hospital with Chelsea and Dougie, but my mind is down in the parking garage with Angel.
Vince was pretty out of it from pain meds, and he obviously needed to rest, so Dougie asked if we wanted to step out with him and snag a late lunch. I wanted to say no, because I want to take the girls and go home so Angel and I can be alone, but I agree for Chelsea’s sake. I don’t know how much time her and Dougie will have together since he’ll be occupied with Vince.
Chelsea and Dougie started dating a few months ago, and they’re great together. Chelsea is all heart and no brains, but Dougie somehow thinks everything she says is brilliant. He’s not at all the type of guy my step-mother wants her to be dating, but he’s exactly the type of guy she should be dating, so I’m thrilled for them. And I’m not just saying that because he’s my best friend. Dougie’s a good guy.
“I can’t believe the game girl is real. I figured you were making her up or something so you wouldn’t seem so lame.” Dougie slaps me on the back of my shoulder. “You hit it yet?”
If he isn’t careful, I’ll hit him. “It isn’t like that. She’s…fragile.”
“You two will get on great then, huh. Cause you were pretty fragile when she disappeared.” He grins beneath his surfer-style, bedraggled hair. We don’t have a beach for miles, yet he always looks like he just rode an enormous wave. The girls at the bar eat it up. Fortunately for him, Chelsea doesn’t seem to mind.
“Shut the fuck up.” I shove him back. I’ll show him fragile.
“Seriously, though, she just showed up with no warning? And she won’t tell you why?” Dougie’s eyes are wide saucers, looking for a juicy bone to run with.
“She’s told me enough.” Enough that I know her ex better hope he and I never meet.
“Yeah, just enough to get you to take her under the cloak of all-powerful Chadwell money. What’d your dad say when you told him about this new help you’ve gotten him for the barn?”
“I haven’t talked to him yet.” I turn to Chelsea. “And don’t you dare breathe a word of it to him or your mom, got it?” I’m going to tell him, and he’ll be cool with it. I just need to figure out what to say first.
Chelsea shrugs. “Whatever. Not like Mother and I are speaking much anyway.”
Dougie is shaking his head behind Chelsea’s back, so I suspect that is a sore subject. “Have you heard back from Kevin?”
“Nothing yet. But I’m sure he’ll find something.” Kevin isn’t something I really want to
talk about in front of Chelsea, so I change the topic. “Where we going?”
“How about the pizza place down the street from my place? You remember how to get there?” Dougie asks.
He refreshes me on directions while we head out toward the parking garage. They have good pizza there but also good salads. I’ve eaten way too much junk food since Angel showed up. Generally, I just do a shake and a granola bar for breakfast, then salads and sandwiches from the bar for lunch and dinner. Vince gave me crap when I first started working out and eating healthy, begging him to cook me something other than our standard bar fare, but as I toned up and slimmed down, I think he took pride in his part in it. He definitely took pride in it once we added his new dishes to the menu.
“I’m gonna ride with Dougie, and we’ll meet you there,” Chelsea says.
“Sounds good.” That way I don’t have to listen to them paw each other in the back seat of my truck. Plus that means Angel and I will be alone, and I can ask her how her phone call went.
When I get to the truck, Angel’s still sitting in the passenger seat. She’s got her knees hugged to her chest, and she manages to force out a smile that can only be described as brave. It isn’t really a smile, more like a diversion. It says ‘I’m dying inside, but I’ll try to pretend I’m happy.’ It says, ‘I need you, but I’m too afraid or proud to ask.’
She watches me through the windshield as I walk to the passenger side and open the door, climbing into the seat without a word. Her hips scoot over a bit to give me room, and she leans into me as my arms wrap around her.
“Nick’s been at my mom’s. If I don’t come home, he’ll keep harassing her,” she mumbles against my chest. I can feel the warmth of her breath through my shirt.
There’s no way in hell I’m letting her go home to him. None. “Can you call the police? Get them to warn him to leave her alone?”
She lets out a short, acerbic laugh. “Half the police force is in his pocket. All it would do is help him find me.”