“Well I think that sounds accurate. It’s what I said about you, as well.”
We were both quiet for a bit as we ate. I smiled when he held a cassette tape in his hand and popped into the tape deck. Depeche Mode began to play and I had to chuckle.
“So that’s what was playing in my car that day, wasn’t it?” I realized.
He nodded. “Yep, but I’ve got the ancient version on tape.”
“You ever think of putting a CD player in here?”
“Nah, I’ll sell this thing before I go back to California. I have a few things I want to do to it and I can probably make a few bucks off of it.”
“So how will you get back home? Nate and his taxi gonna come pick you up again?”
“Actually, yeah. Hey, maybe you’d like to hang out with him for a bit while he’s here?” he teased.
“Uh, as long as you’re around to keep me safe,” I chuckled seriously.
He gave me a look of surprise. “You’d really spend time with him?”
“Yeah, but like I said…only if you were around, too. So why does he come all the way up here? Why didn’t you just drive your own car from California? Or, uh, buy one there before you came here…”
He shrugged. “I have a truck at home but I just chose to catch a ride with Nate. He’s got friends and family up in Seattle that he decided to visit, so after he dumped me off here, he headed up north for the summer. Him and his buddy Quinn are giving the Caddy a makeover,” he smiled. “He’ll head back down in a couple of weeks when I’m done here, and then we’ll head home.”
“Doesn’t Nate have a job?”
“Yeah, he rebuilds cars.”
“Legally?”
He gave me a funny look and I felt really embarrassed. But he chuckled good-naturedly and said, “Yeah, legally. He doesn’t jack cars, if that’s what you mean.”
“Maybe that’s what I meant. I’m not sure.”
He shrugged. “Nate’s kind of a different guy. I don’t blame you for feeling nervous about him. After all, he did try to run you over.”
“He tried to, huh?” I smiled.
“Yep. He said, ‘I haven’t hit anyone in a parking lot this week; I think I’m due. Oh, there’s a pretty girl; let’s see what vicious names she’ll call me.’ ”
With a laugh I said, “So I was the lucky victim?”
“Yep. Easily accessible because you were just…standing there.” I rolled my eyes at him and he laughed. “Right, so he was going a little fast,” he seemed to agree.
“With, what, Death Metal screaming in the background? Actually that was probably how I avoided getting run over. I heard the music first.”
He sighed and said, “I really am sorry about that, though. Truly. It scared the crap out of me and I thought for sure he was gonna nail you.”
“He did.”
“Yeah, I know. And you wouldn’t let me help you. I wanted to make sure you were okay but you just took off.”
“I kind of just wanted to get away from you guys.”
“Yeah, that was pretty obvious. And I saw the team jacket you grabbed from the truck; I knew I should probably just avoid you. I knew you had to be associated with someone from the team, and I was afraid that would be bad news for me.”
“What do you mean? Because you thought I’d get you in trouble?”
“Yeah, I was kind of worried. But after a while I realized you didn’t even recognize me,” he laughed.
“I didn’t. Not until I saw you at the house that day. You look so different in a baseball uniform.”
“Yeah, the uniforms make you resemble everyone else. That’s probably a good thing in my case.”
I smiled and said, “It’s just a different side of you. It’s not any better or worse.”
He didn’t say anything for a few seconds, but I was surprised when he said, “You never told Gage it was me in the car. How come?”
I looked at him for a few seconds before I shrugged and said, “It wasn’t necessary. By the time I realized who you were, the incident was long over with. There was no need to mention it again.”
“And what if it ever comes up again?”
“Tyse, it wasn’t even your fault, so there’s no point in bringing your name into it.”
“What if I were to tell him what really happened?”
“What? He already knows what happened.”
“That some ass clown hit you with his car, swore at you for being in his way, and barely cared to see if you were okay?”
“That ass clown was not you,” I chuckled. “You were very nice about it, even if I didn’t let you come near me.”
“But he doesn’t know I was there when it happened. What would he say if he knew?”
“It doesn’t matter. I’d rather he not have any problems with his teammates if it’s not necessary. I don’t think there would be anything for him to be upset over, but it’s all in the past.”
I wasn’t really sure what the issue was, but it was nice of him to be concerned about it. No, I hadn’t told Gage that Tyse was in the car that hit me. I truly did think it would have mattered, but I liked how everyone got along and I didn’t want there to be a reason for that to change.
I had a great lunch break with Tyse that day. Having the distraction from my work stresses was exactly what I needed, and I was very grateful. When I returned to work I felt pretty happy, rejuvenated, and ready to get a load of work done. I dismissed thoughts of Belinda Martin, and held on to happier feelings instead.
My sister needed some more help moving her things after I got off work, so I spent some time over at her old place, even cleaning a little bit while she made two trips to Wyatt’s. Apparently Tyse and Wyatt had moved some of the furniture that morning, even though Tyse made no mention to me that he’d been helping out. I think that may have been where he came from when he met me at the radio station.
Since Dawn had made dinner that night, she insisted that I stay to eat. I was kind of impressed that she was getting a lot better at cooking, and I could really tell that she enjoyed it. Wyatt even seemed to compliment her a lot, and he even helped clean up afterwards. That really meant a lot to me.
Around eight I was gradually trying to work my way out of the house so I could head home, but Dawn kept trying to keep me there for some reason. First it was just conversation she kept me busy with, then she wanted me to help her decide which things she could get rid of—the house had become a little crowded when she’d added her things to Wyatt’s. I’d already told her she needed to sort through things as she packed them up, but she wanted to decide once everything was together.
“I really need to get home, Dawn. I’m tired and I just want to go to bed.”
“I’m sorry we didn’t get your things moved into the other house,” she frowned. “But you can stay here tonight. How about you just take up Gage’s old room for the night. It’s kind of filled with boxes and stuff, but the bed is available.”
It was really appealing to me because I didn’t look forward to the drive home. But I said, “Nah, that’s okay.”
“Well why do you need to stay at mom and dad’s? Do you have anything there that you need for work tomorrow?”
“Uh, no, I don’t think so.”
“Then just stay here, silly. No need to waste the gas.”
“You already have a house full, Dawn.”
“Oh, pssh. Those guys are clear on the other end of the house and they don’t even make a peep. I think you should just—”
The front door opened just then, and the face that appeared was not a face I was expecting. Gage smiled at me and said, “Surprise.”
I glanced at my sister and she looked really pleased she was able to keep a secret. Then I made my way to Gage and nestled myself against him. It felt so good to be in his arms again, even though it’d only been a couple of days since I last saw him.
“What are you doing here?” I asked him. “I’m so happy to see you.”
I looked up at him and he gave me
a long, affectionate kiss. “My aunt is staying with my mom for the week, so I figured I’d come up here for a few days.”
“For a few days? Really?”
He nodded as he led me to the back of the house where we sat down on the couch together in the family room. That’s when I noticed Wyatt and Dawn had discreetly disappeared to their bedroom.
“I might even be up here for a few days next week, too. I’ll just have to see how this business sale works out.”
“So you are selling the company?”
“I don’t really have a choice, Ellie. I’d have to drop out of school to take care of it right now, and I don’t want to do that.”
“I don’t blame you. What about your mom? She’s finally okay with it?”
He frowned, and I knew the answer was no.
“Gage, why would she expect you to quit school?”
“I don’t know if that’s what she expects, but I think she was just hoping I could handle it all. I just can’t. I can’t do both the business and school right now. But anyways…what about you? I hear you’re moving into Dawn’s old place. Are you?”
“Yeah, I am. I really don’t want to pay the extra money each month, but I’ll save time and other money without the commute. Plus I found a roommate to split the cost with.”
“A girl or a guy?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.
“A girl,” I smiled. “You’ve met Kailey, right? I went to school with her?”
“Oh, yeah. So…when is she moving in? Right away?”
“Actually no, not until the end of August.”
“Hmm,” he replied, cuddling closer to me.
I was a pretty happy girl that night. Moving was exciting to me, and I was so thankful I had Gage back—at least for a couple of days.
Chapter Seventeen
Sometimes I don’t understand what my life is trying to tell me. When I think everything is going great and it’s finally smooth sailing, there always seems to be something that tries to knock me in the water. I hate being knocked in the water. I panic and don’t know what to do. Why can’t I be knocked into something else, like a snow bank? –At least something that I’m familiar with. Not the water. I hate water, and I don’t know what to do in it.
The week that Gage was in Portland was sort of a baffling one, and it kind of started off the run of bad luck I seemed to be having. I didn’t understand how there could be so many great little moments in my life countered by a couple of big not-so-great moments. Such is the balance of life I suppose, but why couldn’t I struggle with things I was capable of managing? Disagreements with parents I could handle; arguments with my siblings were all right. I’d even take on another injury.
Instead I was knocked for a loop unexpectedly in the two areas I put the most effort into: my job and my love life.
Gage helped me move into my new house. He even stayed with me for the week until he went back to Medford that Saturday. I pretty much chose to put aside my job for the time being, just so I could spend the maximum amount of time with him that I could. I didn’t get the sports bar review finished and chose to throw something else together for that Friday morning’s show. It turned out okay, but I was disappointed with myself for slacking off on it.
Gage and I had a huge fight that Wednesday about Tyse. I still wanted to go to the game, but because Gage was in town, I felt I shouldn’t even bring it up. It did come up, however, when Gage had asked what I’d originally had planned for that day when he saw “BB@Vancouver” on my calendar. When I told him, at first he didn’t really say anything about it. I knew he didn’t want to go to the game because it was hard for him to watch his old team when he wasn’t able to play with them anymore.
But Gage’s main issue was that I’d become friends with Tyse. I’d told him about my lunches with Tyse, and the night we went out with Wyatt and Dawn. But apparently he already knew all about it because of Wyatt, and I later found out that’s why Gage had come up to Portland for the week. Wyatt had given him reasons to be concerned.
At first we only discussed the issue, and Gage expressed that he didn’t like me hanging out with Tyse, even if he was just a friend. I could understand his reasoning, but I also countered with my own, even going as far as to say that Tyse needed me as a friend and I thought I was good for him.
“Not if he’s trying to shag you, Ellie,” Gage had said to me. “Those kind of motives aren’t acceptable, and I’m not gonna stand for it.”
“Shag me?” I laughed. “Gage, we are friends. The guy barely let me hug him.”
Of course that initiated another sort of argument, and Gage was even more insecure about my friendship with Tyse. I was very frustrated because I couldn’t make him see my point of view.
So after that I seemed to completely shift my focus. I worried that Gage didn’t trust me, and I worried that he was going to start pulling away from me. I spent more time on being his girlfriend that week than I did on the rest of my life. I even took a personal day from work on Thursday, just so I could spend the entire day with him. Things were good again after that, and I was happy.
He stayed a bit longer on Saturday than he had planned, but it was nice to know he had a hard time leaving me. It made me feel loved, and I was glad that he felt the same way that I did. There were a few things he finished with the sale of his dad’s business, and then he returned to Portland on Tuesday again to stay with me for a few more days.
That Friday I found out that Belinda would be filling in on the morning show for Gina’s maternity leave. I was pretty crushed, and because Gage had gone back to Medford, I felt even worse. My roommate had also moved in earlier than I’d expected, so when I came home that Friday after work, I was surprised that Kailey was already moved in. It was also her birthday, and she’d decided to throw herself an impromptu birthday celebration at our house. It was only six o’clock, but she already had about five friends over. They’d apparently helped her move in and were enjoying a few beers when I got there.
Over the next two hours another five people showed up, and even though it wasn’t a huge party or anything, I was kind of annoyed. However, I guess the idea of blowing off some steam was kind of appealing, so when the girls started mixing drinks in the blender, I found myself joining them. For me that was really bad. I never drank alcohol for two reasons: 1) because I didn’t believe that it was healthy—for your mind or body—and 2) because it just didn’t seem to agree with me in the first place.
That night I was okay after a couple of drinks, but during the third, and a few shots of other miscellaneous things, I could feel myself drifting away…
When I woke up the next morning, Tyse was sitting in a chair in my room. I had one massive headache, and I wasn’t even sure if I really saw him there, but after rubbing my eyes a few times, I partially sat up on the bed.
“Why are you here?” I barely mumbled.
He didn’t reply at first, and then he leaned forward in the chair and put his elbows on his knees. “You called me last night.”
“What? I did?”
He slightly nodded. “Uh, you were pretty out of it.”
“Oh my gosh, I drunk dialed you?” I asked. I was completely horrified. How could I let myself go like that? What was wrong with me?
“The party was kind of out of hand,” he said. “Your roommate is pissed at me because I sent everyone home.”
I was almost tempted to head out to the front room to see the evidence of a wild party, but I felt like garbage and just stayed put. I tried to picture the scene and what Tyse might have witnessed when he first arrived.
“Tyse, please tell me the truth. Was I completely humiliating?”
With a smirk he replied, “The truth?”
“Yes,” I said firmly. “Don’t hold back.”
“Not a problem. The truth is that you really weren’t too out of control. You were kind of funny, though. Maybe you’ve been working on that outrageously funny list or something. But the good times didn’t last when you couldn’t hold yo
ur liquor anymore. And I was really lucky I got to be the one that held your hair while you barfed in the toilet a half-dozen times.”
“Oh my gosh,” I murmured.
“And what was cooler was that you threw up all over my pants, too. These are Gage’s shorts I believe,” he added, glancing down at his legs. My clothes are in the laundry, along with yours.”
“Oh, no…” But that caused me to look under the covers at what I was wearing. At least I was dressed, but not in the clothes I was wearing the night before.
“You decided to take your clothes off because you puked on yourself, too,” Tyse told me.
I looked at him with wide eyes.
“Don’t worry, it was only me that you stripped in front of,” he partially smiled.
“Oh my gosh,” I groaned, covering my face with my hands. “What in the world was I thinking?”
“Uh, I don’t believe you were.”
I looked at him and let out a huge breath of air. “I am so sorry. I’m sorry I called you… I don’t even know why I did…”
“Well I’m glad you called me,” he said, standing up from the chair. “I don’t really want to think about what the rest of the night might have been like for you.”
I was really embarrassed, and I even wanted to cry. Why would I ever drink like that?
“I’m gonna see if my clothes are dry,” he stated, leaving the room.
I pulled the covers over my head and moaned, and that’s when I remembered what Gage had told me before he left. That’s why I really wanted to drown my sorrows; that was the real reason behind my reckless behavior.
Summer Swing Page 18