Break Me Down

by Tasha Gwartney

  “Well, don’t you look nice?” Jennifer said as she sat on the bed in Shay’s room as she walked out of her bathroom.

  “Oh, hi Mom,” she said, startled.

  “You look beautiful. You look – dare I say it? – happy,” her mother commented as she stood to walk to her.

  “I am happy,” Shay confirmed with a smile. And it was true. She owed every ounce of her happiness to Brice.

  “That’s all I’ve wanted since we moved here; your happiness,” Jennifer told her daughter as she placed her hands on her bare shoulders.

  “Mom, I know I haven’t been the easiest person to be around, and I’m sorry for that.”

  “I just want to know that you’re okay,” Jennifer commented as she looked at her daughter. “So you really like this boy?”

  “I more than like him mom. I can’t explain my feelings for him. He’s just Brice, and he makes me happy,” Shay told her mother, butterflies appearing in her stomach.

  “And from what Chris tells me, he likes you just as much.”

  “I can’t figure out why. He could have any girl he wants and yet he chose me,” Shay mentioned as she fixed her hair and let her curls fall.

  “Honey, you’re beautiful, and any guy that doesn’t see that is missing out. Brice chose you because you’re not one in a million, you’re a once in a lifetime kind of girl,” her mother said in a soft tone.

  “Mom, I’m so sorry,” Shay said. While she was going through all the pain, darkness and the depression state of the secret that she was keeping, she never once stopped to think about everyone else’s pain. She never once thought about the effect that her behavior had on the people she loved and cared about, especially her mother.

  “For what, sweetheart,” she asked as they took a seat across from each other, Shay in her chair, and her mother on her bed.

  “Everything. I’ve changed so much, but I just want you to know that it had nothing to do with you or Daddy. I love you both, and I’ve never once thought you failed as my parents because the truth is, I wouldn’t have made it through life without either of you. I just want you guys to know that. I love you so much and no matter what, you’ll always be my heroes,” Shay said as she remembered that not everyone was lucky enough to have two loving parents the way that she did.

  “Shay, we love you too and that’ll never change. Come here,” Jennifer said as she wrapped her arms around her daughter in a hug.

  And for the first time in months, Shay didn’t hesitate.

  “I love you so much,” Shay repeated once again.

  “I know. I love you too. Now how about we get you ready for that date? Is that what you’re wearing?” Jennifer asked.

  “Yes.” She knew her mother was going to encourage her to wear one of the many dresses that her parents bought for her.

  “Why not a dress,” she asked, right on cue.

  “I’m freezing; I don’t want to wear a dress,” Shay lied. It was the furthest thing from the truth. There was no way she’d ever tell her mother the real reason why she didn’t want to wear a dress.

  ***

  “You look beautiful,” Brice greeted Shay when she opened the door an hour later. He was wearing a black leather jacket, a black T-Shirt underneath and a pair of expensive looking blue jeans.

  “You don’t look so bad yourself. In fact, you look handsome.” Shay winked.

  “For you,” Brice said as he kissed her on the cheek and handed her a dozen roses, six white, six red.

  “You didn’t have to,” she said as he handed her the flowers. Brice didn’t strike her as the flower type.

  “You’re right, I didn’t. I wanted to,” he whispered in her ear as she leaned in for a kiss.

  “Would you like to come inside,” she asked, in hopes that he’d say no. The last thing they needed right now was her father to over question him.

  “Sure,” he said, grabbing her hand as she led him to the kitchen.

  “You must be Brice,” Nicholas said as he stood at the top of the stairs.

  “I am. Hello, Mr. Lawson, I’ve heard so much about you,” Brice replied, a bit nervous. This was the first time he really dated someone, and more than that, it was the first time he met the father of the person he had feelings for.

  “Now let’s just get down to the point,” Nicholas said as Jennifer and Chris came into the room. “What are your intentions with my daughter?”

  “Dad!” Shay gasped as she finished putting the roses into a vase.

  “What,” he asked, as if it was nothing.

  “Nicholas, knock this nonsense off. The boy makes our daughter happy. Can’t you just let them go?”

  “Not until I find out what he wants from her,” he argued.

  “Is it so absurd for you to believe that he actually cares about Shay? Dad, you weren’t here, I was. Brice cares about her very deeply. I know that for a fact,” Chris said, coming to their rescue.

  “Sir, I just want to say that I care about your daughter. A lot. She’s made me happier than I’ve been in such a long time, and I want to make her just as happy as she’s made me. I’d never do anything to hurt her,” Brice spoke up as he felt Shay lock their fingers together.

  “I’m not sure I believe you,” Nicholas stated, not bothering to deny the fact at all. “I was a teenage boy myself. I know how you all think.”

  “With all due respect, Mr. Lawson, I’m not most teenage boys. I’m far from perfect. I’ve made mistakes, but I don’t in anyway act like any of those guys in town. And as I said before, I care about your daughter very much. There’s something about her that I just can’t walk away from, and by some miracle she feels the same way,” Brice said in a brave voice. He’d do this for Shay, even though he couldn’t feel more uncomfortable if he tried.

  “I still am unsure of your intentions.”

  “Please, just stop Dad. You know nothing about him. You haven’t even given him a chance. You’ve been home, what, a few days? And yet you’re trying to bring us down already. He’s made me happier than I’ve been in such a long time and you don’t even care. Well, you know what, you can go to Hell. Let’s go, Brice.”

  “Don’t you step one foot out that door!”

  “I’m eighteen years old, not five. You can’t continue to treat me like a child. I thought this was what you wanted; I thought you wanted me to make friends. And now that I’ve made one you can’t even accept it.”

  “He doesn’t want to be your friend, Shay. He wants one thing, what all teenage boys want. I’m trying to protect you. Don’t you see that?”

  “You’re wrong, Daddy. You’re so wrong. Brice has never once pressured me into having sex. You wouldn’t know that though, because you haven’t asked. You’re so dead set on him being the bad guy, you can’t even see how happy he really makes me,” Shay told him as she felt the tears prick her eyes. Out of everyone, she thought her father would be the happiest and yet he was the one tearing her down.

  “I do want you to be happy, just not with him.”

  “Right, so it’s your way or no way?” Shay challenged.

  “That’s not what I meant!”

  “Dad, will you stop? Let her be happy. For months you’ve called and told me you just wanted your little girl back, and here she is, standing right in front of you. Only, you’re pushing her further and further away from us,” Chris chided his father. He couldn’t understand how he could be acting this way when Shay was slowly becoming herself again, and if they were all being honest, Brice had so much to do with it.

  “I’m not saying I don’t want her to be happy, but how could this guy possibly make her happy? He’ll only end up hurting her.”

  “I would never hurt her,” Brice disagreed. Under any other circumstance, he would have given this man a piece of his mind, then fled from the scene, but this was Shay’s father, and he cared about her. He wouldn’t do that to her. So instead, he stood there and listened to every word Nicholas said.

  “Nicholas, knock it off right now. You’re a
cting like an ass. The last thing our daughter needs is you ruining the first good thing that’s happened to her in so long. I won’t have you treating Brice this way,” Jennifer said as she turned to Brice. “I’m really sorry for my husband’s adolescent behavior tonight. I sure do hope it won’t stop you from coming around again. I’d really love to know more about you. You make my daughter happy. You make her smile and that’s something I’ll be grateful for. You two should go.”

  “You can’t let them go,” Nicholas said.

  “Daddy, I’ve never been more disappointed in you than I am right now. I thought you cared about my feelings, but I guess you don’t. I’m leaving and at this point, I don’t care if I ever come back,” Shay told him, then led Brice outside.

  Shay didn’t know what to make of anything, all she knew was that the man she looked up to her entire life was trying to end the best thing that ever happened to her. The light that was beginning to form at the end of the tunnel was slowly beginning to fade.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “You’re really quiet,” Brice observed as Shay sat in his car and stared out the window. She hadn’t said a word since they got in the car, which worried Brice. He thought she may have been having doubts about everything.

  “Sorry,” she said without looking at him.

  That was enough for Brice. Pulling over to the side of the road, he turned off the car and stared at her.

  “Hey, will you talk to me?” Brice asked, shifting in the driver’s seat. He pulled her chin towards him, so she was forced to look at him.

  “What do you want me to say,” she asked. What was there to say? Her father used to support her and now he was trying to pull her away from the one thing that meant the most to her.

  “I want you to stop suffering in silence the way you always do. I want you to open up to me about how you’re feeling. You’re not alone, baby, and I don’t want you to keep your feelings inside that pretty little head of yours,” Brice told her as he cupped her face between his hands.

  “Why doesn’t he want me to be happy?” Shay questioned out loud.

  “He does, Shay, he loves you. That is a given. Listen, with my past, I don’t blame him for being so anti-us. I mean, I slept around with girls I didn’t care about. He’s your dad, and while he may not know me personally, he knows my type. He just wants to protect you,” Brice tried to reason with her.

  “So you think it was right for him to say all those horrible things to you?” Shay asked in shock. How could he possibly be taking her father’s side?

  “God, no. I don’t believe the way he handled the situation was right at all, but Shay, I understand it,” Brice explained as he wiped away her tears gently.

  “I just thought that he’d be happy that I was finally happy. For months I’ve seen the pity in his eyes; the way he looked at me was just like someone died. And now that I’m happier, he’s so against it,” Shay told him.

  “Baby, this is our first date, and while what happened was something important, can’t we just enjoy our date? We can talk about that later. I promised you a night you’d never forget and I always keep my promises,” Brice smirked.

  Letting out a sigh, Shay decided to put all of the trouble behind her for a few hours. She had been looking forward to her date with Brice all day, and she wasn’t going to let her father ruin that for her.

  “So where are we going?” Shay asked, as Brice started the car back up and continued to drive.

  “First we’re going to go to the restaurant where we met. Afterwards, it’s a surprise.” Brice said with a smile.

  “Why won’t you tell me?” Shay whined.

  “Because it’s a surprise.”

  “Brice, I know we agreed not to talk about it, but I’m really sorry about my dad, he’s usually not like that,” Shay explained after a beat of silence. Her father was usually the rational one out of her parents, but her mother had taken over that role tonight.

  “You don’t need to apologize for something that wasn’t your fault,” Brice told her. ”Your dad just doesn’t understand. He’ll come around.”

  “I sure hope so. Right now though, I don’t think I can even stand to face him,” Shay admitted, dreading the fact that when the date was over, she’d have to go home.

  “You still have that key? I told you, you’re always welcome at my house. Shay, just say the word and you don’t have to go back there tonight.”

  “I’ll let you know,” she said, knowing exactly which answer she was leaning towards.

  “Now stay right there,” Brice said as he shut off the car and got out. Deciding to be a complete gentleman for her tonight, he opened her door and held out a hand, which she took.

  They sat at the table that Shay had been sitting at the first night that she met Brice. If you’d told her then that she’d now be dating him, she would have told you that you were crazy. It was amazing how much she’d changed since Brice walked into her life. Here she was sitting across from someone she cared deeply for, and more than that, she was wearing a tank top.

  “What are you thinking about?” Brice asked her as he watched a smile appear on her face.

  “Nothing,” she lied.

  “You’re lying. You were thinking about me, weren’t you,” he joked.

  “And if I was,” she challenged.

  “So you were... Just can’t resist me, can you?” Brice asked playfully, reaching over to touch her hand.

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself, rock star,” Shay said, giving him a new nickname.

  “Oh, come on, you know it’s true.”

  “Okay, fine, I was thinking about you. I was thinking about the first time we met,” she commented as she stared at him.

  Brice flinched. “God, I was such a douche,” he said.

  “You were, but you’re not anymore. In fact, I think you’re a pretty wonderful guy,” Shay admitted.

  “I try,” he told her with a smile.

  A waitress interrupted them then. “Hi, I’m Kelly. I’ll be your waitress for tonight. What can I get you,” she asked.

  “Trust me?” Brice asked, as he looked to Shay.

  “I do.”

  “We’ll have two cheeseburgers with one big side of chili fries. She’ll have a coke, I’ll have a tea.”

  “Will that be all?”

  “Yes,” Brice told her and then she was gone.

  “So now you’re ordering for me too?” Shay joked.

  “Did you not want me to?” Brice asked, worried that she was serious.

  “I was kidding. Brice, thank you for tonight. Thank you for everything.”

  “Thank me when the night is over,” Brice told her as he leaned in to kiss her.

  “Brice!” A female voice gasped near their table. When he turned his head, Marissa was standing beside his table with her friends.

  “God, just the way to ruin a perfect night,” Brice said out loud.

  “Go away, I have nothing to say.”

  “Who are you?” Marissa asked, turning her attention to Shay.

  “That’s none of your goddamn business,” Brice dismissed her. ”Leave me the hell alone.”

  “So you must be the next girl on his long list of girls to hook up with,” Marissa said.

  “You know what Marissa, she’s nothing like those girls, or like you. She’s not just someone I want to fuck. She’s my girlfriend, someone I genuinely care about. In fact, the only girl I have ever cared about. Now if you’ll excuse us, we have a date to continue,” Brice said. Shay sat in silence, surprised by his statement.

  “Honey, you should get out while you can. He’ll only break your heart and then you’ll be nobody. Just like he did to me.”

  “Was that before or after you lied about being pregnant?” Shay challenged. She always despised girls like Marissa. In a way she reminded her of Heather, except Heather could never be as cruel as Marissa. And Heather certainly didn’t pine over a guy that didn’t want her, she’d just move on to the next.

  “You told
her?” Marissa asked. “I made a mistake but that doesn’t negate the fact that I love you.”

  “I told her, yes. I told her because we’re starting a relationship, a real one, and secrets aren’t a way to start that. I don’t know who you’re trying to fool, but I don’t love you and we all know Marissa only loves herself,” Brice said as he stood. “Get away from Shay, get away from me, and stay the hell out of my life. If you don’t, I swear to God, I’ll make your life a living hell.”

  “When did you become so cruel?” Marissa asked.

  “About the time that you were screwing Josh behind my back.”

  “That’s not fair,” Marissa protested, noting that she knew how big of a mistake it was that she made.

  “It’s not? Excuse me; I’m the one who had to endure the pain. Don’t play the victim; the fact is you’re nothing but a tramp. I told you when we first started hooking up that I didn’t do the whole screwing other people. You know what? I think we’ll take our order to go. Come on, baby,” Brice said, grabbing Shay’s hand. They got their order and left.

  “Are we going to talk about that?” Shay asked, holding their food in her lap while Brice drove.

  “No. There’s nothing to talk about,” Brice said.

  “Yes there is, Brice. You said we weren’t going to let anything ruin our date, so don’t let her.”

  “You’re right, I’m sorry, pretty girl,” he said. “We’ll just enjoy our food on our next adventure.” Brice smiled.

  “Where are we going?” Shay asked with an excitement in her eyes.

  “Well, someone close to you told me you’ve always wanted to go to the beach for a candlelight dinner with someone you cared about. Here we are,” Brice said as they pulled up to the beach.

  When they arrived at their destination, they were near the ocean. Brice had set up a table with two chairs. There was an unlit candle in the middle, and picnic basket underneath. The moon shone right down onto the table. It was beautiful.