Page 17 of Doyle

"Do you want to use my phone again?" Doyle asked.

"Yeah, if that's okay," I said, sitting up.

He handed me his phone, and I took a deep breath before dialing the familiar number.

It rang several times before a gruff voice answered. "Hello?"

"Dad?" I said, my voice trembling.

There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

"Michael? Is that really you?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's me," I said, feeling tears prick at the corners of my eyes. "I'm...I'm okay, Dad."

"Oh my God," he breathed, and I could hear the emotion in his voice. “I thought…I thought you were gone."

"I know," I said, my voice breaking. "But I'm safe now. I'm with some people who helped me."

"Where are you? I'll come get you," he said urgently.

I glanced at Doyle, who gave me an encouraging nod.

"I'm at Sky Stead," I said. "It's a bit of a drive, but I can give you the address."

After giving him the details, I hung up the phone, feeling a mixture of relief and anxiety.

To be honest, I wasn’t ready to leave Sky Stead or Doyle but I told myself this was the right decision. My dad probably wanted to see I was okay.

Doyle reached out and squeezed my hand.

"He'll be here soon," he said. "You did the right thing."

"I know," I said, taking a deep breath. "It's just...a lot to process."

"One step at a time," Doyle said gently. "We'll get through this together."

Feeling comforted by his words, I nodded. It didn’t escape me that he said ‘we’ not ‘you’.

That meant Doyle still wanted to be part of my life, didn’t it?

“Thank you, Doyle. For everything,” I said.

"You're welcome," he said, his eyes full of warmth. “Hey, you want to use the shower first?”

I wished I had the courage to ask him if he wanted to shower together and save water, but when I opened my mouth to answer, no words came out, so I only nodded.

"I forgot. You need clothes," Doyle said. "Mine would probably be too big on you, but you're about Otis' size. Hop right in the shower. I'll go ask him."

"Thanks," I said, feeling a mix of gratitude and shyness.

I headed to the bathroom and took my time in the shower, enjoying the feeling of the warm water cascading over me.

It felt like washing away years of grime and pain. I let the steam envelop me, trying to relax and shake off the lingering unease from the sleepless night.

Eventually, I heard Doyle reentering the room.

"I'll leave it on the bed," Doyle said. "Unless you want me to hand it to you?"

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