Greyson was visibly livid. He glanced to the house. “Stay here, Karla.”
“What? No, Dad! You can’t—”
“I said stay here,” he ordered, marching straight for the house where the party was currently taking place. He pounded his fist on the front door. When a boy answered it, he had a smug look on his face.
“Uh, yeah?” he said, looking at Greyson.
“Are you Colton?” Greyson asked. “This your house?”
“Yeah?”
Greyson pointed to Karla. “Did you do this to my daughter?”
Colton looked down at Karla and then chuckled a little. “No, I think the tree did that to her when she got fucked up last year.”
Greyson tensed up and his hand formed a fist. The moment I saw this, I hurried up to the porch and stepped between the two.
“Greyson. Breathe.”
“Yeah, old man. You might have a heart attack,” Colton remarked, looking smug as ever. I wanted to hit him, too. “Hey, look everyone. Hunch called her daddy to come save the day. He smells just as bad as she does,” he joked, looking back into his house and making his friends laugh.
“Listen, you little shit,” Greyson hissed, his hands gripped tighter than ever before. “If you ever come near my daughter again, or say some bullshit about her, I’m going to—”
“Going to what? Kick my ass? Newsflash, old-timer, I’m seventeen. If you lay a hand on me, I will call the cops. You can’t hit a minor. I’m not stupid.”
“Let’s find out,” Greyson said, pulling his fist back, but I caught it midair.
“Greyson, you don’t want to do this,” I whispered.
“Trust me, I do,” he argued, his eyes piercing into Colton as if he was seconds away from murder.
“Greyson, look at me,” I ordered.
“No.”
“Greyson, look at me,” I demanded once more.
“No.” He tightened his arm even more, and I could feel the intensity coursing through his veins.
“Grey!” I placed my hand on his cheek and forced him to look my way. We locked eyes and I lowered my voice, feeling chills race over me as I stared into his fiery eyes. “This isn’t you. This isn’t you,” I softly spoke. The force of his arm began to relax and he began to lower it right as Colton decided to speak again.
“Yeah, and how about you get off my porch and go take a shower? You smell like your disgusting daughter,” Colton huffed.
For goodness’ sake, it was as if this little prick wanted to get his butt kicked.
Greyson’s strength resurfaced as Colton’s words hit his ears, instant anger rising once more throughout every inch of his body. He was so tense that I wasn’t certain I could hold his arm down much longer, but luckily I didn’t have to.
Lorelai came marching pass me, with butterfly wings on her back, and she kicked her leg up in the air, right between Colton’s legs. “You leave my sister alone, you little bitch!” Lorelai shouted, kicking Colton straight in his privates.
Greyson’s arm dropped as both of our jaws practically hit the ground in shock.
Oh, my gosh, Lorelai just kicked a seventeen-year-old’s ass.
I’d never been so proud in my life.
Colton tumbled over, howling as he placed his hands over his junk. “Oh, my God!” he cried, whimpering in pain. “What the hell?!”
“Dude! Colton just got his ass kicked by a kid!” a guy hollered, and everyone started laughing their heads off.
Greyson bent down to the crying boy and nudged him with a shoe. “Like I said. Leave my daughter alone. Or my other daughter will do that again. Only harder.” He turned to Lorelai and me. “Come on, girls. Let’s go.”
We headed back to the car and all climbed inside. Before putting the car in drive, Greyson pulled out his cell phone.
“What are you doing?” Karla asked him, wearingly.
“I’m calling the police station to report a noise complaint,” he said matter-of-factly. When the call was picked up, Greyson cleared his throat. “Hello? Hi. I’m calling to report a noise complaint at 1143 W Shore Street. There seems to be a party taking place, and I’m pretty sure there is underage drinking going on. Thank you.”
He hung up the phone, and when I glanced back at the girls, I noticed there was a small smile on Karla’s face.
“Thanks, Dad,” she whispered.
“Always, Karla,” he replied. He turned around to face her, put a hand on her knee, and gently squeezed. “Always.”
“Why does it smell like farts in here?” Lorelai shouted, making us all laugh a little.
“Let’s get home to shower,” Greyson said. “But first, Lorelai, I’m very proud of you for standing up for your sister, but in the future, let’s not kick people. And we can’t call people those names, okay?”
“But Daddy, he was a little bitch,” she insisted.
“Where did you even learn that word?” he asked, baffled.
Don’t say me, don’t say me.
“Eleanor said it to Caroline’s mom, but she said don’t tell you because you might fire her,” she said.
What a traitor.
I had to turn my head to keep her from seeing me laughing. Greyson glanced my way with a smirk before putting his grown-up voice back on.
“Yes, but it’s not kind or appropriate. Especially for a girl your age.”
“Which part isn’t kind? Little or bitch?” she asked, seeming truly confused.
“The second part,” he told her.
“So bitch?” she asked.
Karla started snickering. “Yeah, Lorelai. Don’t say that. But thank you for having my back.”
“I’ll always have your back, Karla. You’re my best friend.”
I noticed Karla smiling from Lorelai’s comment and she whispered, “You’re my best friend, too, kiddo.”
We drove home in silence, other than Lorelai mentioning the smell, and when we pulled up to the house we all climbed out of the car. I was planning on putting Lorelai back to bed while Greyson and Karla took their showers. As we were walking, all of our footsteps stopped as Greyson spoke from behind us.
“I owe you an apology,” he said, making us all turn to look his way.
His shoulders were rounded forward as he rubbed his hand over his mouth, and his eyes were locked on Karla.
“What?” Karla asked.
“I let you down, and for that, I owe you an apology.”
“Dad…I’m the one who snuck out without telling you.” Karla rubbed her shoulder, nervously swaying. “If anyone’s sorry, it should be me.”
Greyson shook his head. “No, I haven’t been here for you this past year. I checked out, and fell into work, just to keep from facing the fact of what I took away from you. What I took away from us all. And I am sorry, Karla. If I would’ve been around, maybe tonight wouldn’t have happened. Maybe you wouldn’t have felt abandoned or lonely… I, um, I know you won’t forgive me right away. Truth is, I don’t deserve your forgiveness. But, I want you to know that I’m here now. Okay? I screwed up, and I abandoned you, I abandoned this family, and I am sorry, but I’m here. So, even when you feel lonely, I just want you to know that you aren’t alone. I’m here, Karla. I’m back, and I won’t leave you again.”
Karla appeared as if she didn’t know how to react. She bit her bottom lip and wrapped her arms around her body. “I hated you, you know. For leaving.” She sniffled and wiped the back of her hand against her eyes. “I needed you and you weren’t here.”
He walked toward her, nodding. “I know. I can’t change the mistakes I made, but I promise you from this point on I will spend each day trying to make it up to you.”
She still seemed unsure as she looked down at the ground, her figure slightly shaking. “You promise, promise?” she asked, glancing back toward her father. “You won’t keep working all the time?”
He held his pinky finger out toward her. “Pinky promise,” he whispered.
My heart about exploded when Karla walked over to he
r father and linked her pinky with his.
Greyson nodded over to Lorelai and held his other pinky out toward her. “You, too, Lorelai.”
She hurried over to him and locked pinkies with her father and with her sister, making a small circle. “What about Eleanor, Daddy?” she asked, glancing my way.
Everyone turned to me, and I stepped back, feeling fully out of place. That was their family moment, and in a way, I was intruding just by being there. “Oh, no, Lorelai. I think it’s just a family pinky promise.”
Karla gave me a halfway grin and slightly shrugged as she dropped her hand from Lorelai’s and held her pinky out toward me. My emotions began building up from the small gesture, and Karla sighed. “I swear to God, Eleanor, if you start crying, I’m taking my pinky back,” she warned.
“Sorry,” I laughed, wiping at my eyes and hurrying over to the circle. I linked my pinkies with Lorelai and Karla, and we all held on as Greyson spoke.
“From this point on, we work as a unit, okay? We’re a team, and we are there for each other all the time. Through thick and thin. If we fall, we fall together. If we break, we shatter as one. That’s who we are. That’s our promise. Promise?” he asked.
“Promise,” Lorelai replied.
“Promise,” Karla echoed.
Greyson looked toward me with those eyes that healed me, and I released a quiet sigh. “Promise.”
That night after I put Lorelai back to bed, I stopped by Karla’s room, just to check in on her. She was sitting on the edge of her bed, scrubbing her hair dry with such a somber look on her face.
“Hey, you okay?” I asked, knocking lightly on her door and making her look up.
“You’d be surprised at how hard it is to get the smell of fish out of your hair,” she grumbled.
“Karla, what those kids did to you was beyond disturbing. I know your father is going to speak to the principal come morning, but is there anything I can do right now? Anything I can do for you?”
She hesitated a minute before shaking her head. “No. I’m fine.”
“Okay, well, if you need anything just let me know. You have my number, and you can wake me up at any time. I’m here for you.”
Her bottom lip twitched a little. “Thanks, Eleanor.”
“Always.”
“You’re not just faking it because it’s your job, are you? You actually really care about us, huh?”
I laughed. “More than you know. Try to get some sleep.”
“Will do. And Eleanor?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you,” she said, running her hand through her hair. “You know, for bringing my dad with you to pick me up. I really needed him there. I needed you both.”
My eyes welled up. “Can I give you a hug?”
“No, probably not,” she flatly replied.
Oh, well, then.
That seemed about right.
“Hey, how are you doing?” I asked, checking in on the final member of the family.
Greyson was sitting on his bed with his hands wrapped tightly around the edge of his mattress. His foot was tapping repeatedly as he stared at the carpeted floor.
He looked up to me with so much emotion in his eyes. “She’s lonely,” he whispered before looking back down at the floor. “She’s lonely, Ellie.”
I sighed walking into his room, closing the bedroom door behind me. His thoughts were probably spinning with everything that happened that night. How could they not be? His daughter was attacked, abused, belittled. All because she was lonely.
I sat beside him and noticed his shoulders were rounded forward.
I knew his looks so well. I knew when he was beating himself up. I knew when the world was too heavy on his shoulders. I knew when he was thinking the worst thoughts. “It’s not your fault, Grey,” I promised, but he tensed up as if he didn’t believe me.
“If I was here, she wouldn’t have been alone. If I hadn’t abandon her, this wouldn’t have happened. If my eyes would’ve stayed on the road…”
He couldn’t slow down his mind. He couldn’t hear anything except his rapid flawed beliefs, so I wasn’t certain any words would help him.
“What do you need from me?” I asked placing a hand of comfort on his leg. “What do you need me to do?”
He turned his head toward me as tears streamed down his face. His lips parted slowly. His voice was so low and broken, I wasn’t certain that I even heard him. “Stay,” he breathed out. “I just need you to stay.”
So, I did exactly that.
We lay down in the bed, facing each other. We weren’t touching, but I swore I felt him. I felt his heartbeats. When he hurt, my heart cried. When he was in pain, my eyes were the ones to weep. That’s how close the two of us were. Our love story was so much more than a romantic tale. Our story was about friendship. About family. About looking out for those who always looked out for you.
His soul was born to be loved by mine.
We fell asleep that night, and whenever he awakened from night terrors, I would be there to soothe him. I held him tightly as he hurt with empathy for his daughter.
I needed him to know it was okay to break. To fall apart. To crash and burn. Then when it came time for him to stand again, if he ever needed a hand, I’d always give him mine.
“Still here, Grey,” I whispered as his head lay against the curve of my neck.
Still here.
52
Greyson
“Daddy, wake up! It’s morning and Grandma always makes us chocolate pancakes on Sunday mornings.” Lorelai walked into my bedroom, yawning. I was exhausted, and could’ve easily slept for a few more hours. But, Lorelai kept talking, and her next words forced me to open my eyes. “Why is Eleanor in your bed, Daddy?”
My eyes shot open and I looked to my left where Eleanor was still sound asleep. My arm was wrapped beneath her body, and when I sat up a bit, she stirred.
“Lorelai, what did I tell you? Just let Dad sl— What the hell?” was muttered, and I knew it wasn’t from Lorelai’s mouth. Karla stood in the doorway behind her little sister, but they both held such different expressions.
Lorelai stood there with wonderment while Karla wore the strongest look of betrayal.
“You and Eleanor?” she breathed out quietly, stunned.
“No, it’s not what it looks like,” I bellowed, yanking my arm from beneath Eleanor’s body. “Eleanor, get up,” I said, nudging her arm.
She stirred a bit more before waking up, and the moment she collected her whereabouts, the moment she saw the girls, panic filled her eyes.
Tears welled in Karla’s eyes and she repeated herself. “Oh, my God! You and Eleanor?!” she hissed, this time pissed. “How could you?” she pressed me. “How could you do that to Mom?” she cried before hurrying off toward her bedroom.
“Shit,” I muttered, standing up from the bed.
Lorelai looked at me with such bewilderment. “What did you do to Mommy, Daddy?” she asked me, scratching her head.
“Nothing, I’ll explain later. Stay here.”
I darted toward Karla’s door, which was already closed, and being blocked by her body. Every time I tried to shove it open, she’d shove it shut. “Go away!” she shouted, and I could hear the heartbreak in her voice.
I laid my fists against the doorframe. “Karla…it’s not what you think,” I tried to promise.
“Oh, so you weren’t just cuddled up in bed with the freaking nanny?!” she hollered.
Well, okay.
It was what she thought.
Eleanor walked up, combing her hair behind her ears. She looked at me with a frown, and then lightly knocked on Karla’s door.
“Karla? It’s me, Eleanor.”
“Go away, whore!” she barked.
I parted my lips to discipline Karla’s words, but Eleanor held up her hand, stopping me in my tracks.
She went back to speaking. “Karla, I know what you’re thinking, but—”
“You’re a liar! All you do is
lie! You said you really cared about me, but you were just trying to get to my dad. You don’t care about me or Lorelai at all.”
“That’s not true.” Eleanor sighed.
The door swung open and Karla’s face was covered in rolling tears. She crossed her arms and huffed heavily. “Look me in the eyes, then. If you’re not a liar, look me in the eye and tell me that you two haven’t hooked up at all since you started working here.”
Both of our mouths opened, and Karla began shaking more as she pushed her door closed. “Just go away! I hate you both. I hate you. I hate you…”
We both stopped trying to push her door open, because we were guilty. Me more so than Eleanor.
I’d fucked up.
“Maybe you should go for a little bit,” I told Eleanor, unable to look at her, but I could already imagine the hurt that was in her eyes. “We should just give her time to cool off.”
“If it’s okay, I’ll like to wait in the guesthouse for a few hours—just to see if I can talk to her later and explain.”
“Yes, of course.”
Eleanor nodded slowly, and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, but I still couldn’t turn to see her. “Come get me if you need anything, Grey,” she whispered before walking away.
I lay my hands against the door as my forehead fell against it and I closed my eyes. “I’m sorry, Karla,” I softly spoke. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”
Deep breaths.
Erratic heartbeats.
I’m sorry.
53
Greyson
“She’s gone,” I breathed out after pounding my fist against the guesthouse front door. Eleanor stood there with a look of concern. My mind was spinning and I hadn’t any tools to slow down the speed at which my thoughts were shooting through my mind. “I just went to check on her, to see if she was ready to talk, and she was gone.”
Eleanor’s eyes widened with worry, which only made me more scared. Her hand landed on my forearm and she released a breath. “Okay, okay. Don’t worry, we’ll find her. So, where would she go? We can go looking for her. What are some of her favorite places?” I asked.
Eleanor & Grey Page 28