Page 88 of The Breakaway

Why had I done it? Why had I read the letter early? How was I going to look Rob in the eye and pretend I didn’t know . . . everything?

"Sharla, you good?" Rob's voice filtered through the door. I could picture him standing there, leaning against the doorframe in the T-shirt I forced him to wear. My stomach did a somersault, and I had a sudden urge to throw the door open and confess everything.

But I couldn't.

We were still going to be alone together for another week and a half. My mind raced, grasping for an excuse. "Uh, yeah,I'm fine!" I croaked, making my voice sound as weak as possible. "Just not feeling well."

"Not feeling well?" Rob sounded concerned. Of course he did.Because he loved me.

"Yeah, I think I caught something." I coughed for good measure, hoping it didn't sound too forced. "I don't want you to get sick. You should probably stay away."

The floorboards creaked as he shifted his weight. "Do you need anything? I can run to the store or?—"

"No, no! I'm good." I bit my lip, trying to think of something to make my excuse more convincing. "I just need to rest."

There was a pause. "You sure you don't want me to bring you something? I make a mean cup of tea."

I pressed the heels of my hands against my eyes. What was I going to do, sit in here all day and starve? My stomach was already grumbling. "As tempting as that sounds, I don't want to be responsible for your untimely demise if this is something contagious."

Rob chuckled, and I felt a pang of guilt. I was lying to him. I was lying to Logan. "Alright, well, if you change your mind, let me know. I have a conditioning practice this morning, then I'm heading to work later."

I exhaled with relief. All I had to do was wait until he left, then I could eat and get cleaned up. Probably change my sheets. Ugh, what a mess!

Wait, what day was it?

I scrambled up from the bed and checked my desktop calendar. The eighteenth. That meant Crystal was home from her ski trip. Not home, home, but with her family in Calgary. I searched for my address book.

Yes.I had her home number.

I sat next to the door, listening to Rob move around the house. When I heard the front door close, I exhaled. I had a fewhours to figure out my next move. I waited five minutes, then peeked out into the hall. I crept forward, scanning for his hockey bag.

Gone.

I ran to the kitchen and ate a banana and yogurt, then showered and put on my robe. The sheets could wait until later when I sequestered myself away again.

With my hair still damp, I picked up the phone and dialled. After briefly talking with Crystal’s dad, her voice came on the line. "Hey! I’m so glad you called! How are you?"

“Umm, good?”

Crystal paused. “Here, just a sec.” She set down the receiver, and I heard her yell, “Dad, when I get downstairs, can you hang this one up?” A few moments later she came back on the line and yelled upstairs. There was an audible click. “Okay. Spill.”

I couldn’t hold back the tide of verbal diarrhea. I told her everything. About the water bottles, the pancakes, about Logan’s disappointing emails and phone calls. I told her about my mom and my cousin, and the fact that I was still here on campus.

Then I told her about my email to Logan, how I still hadn’t heard back, and lastly I dropped the bomb.

The letter from Rob.

When I finished, Crystal was silent.

“I know,” I groaned. “What do I do?”

She exhaled. “I mean, I’m not surprised.”

“By which part?”

I could practically hear her eyes roll. “Did you not see how he looked at you when you were dancing at that party? Or the way he’s always performing for you at Ranchmans?”

I blinked. “What?”

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