Page 71 of Beneath Cherry Blossom Memories

“Two sips of a beer at that party doesn’t count.”

I’m about to tell her it washalfthe bottle when I hear my bedroom door open. Helios darts out of there and immediately rubs on my legs. Eli freezes when he sees us. His pretty blue eyes are wide and bloodshot. “Morning,” Kelly chirps and slurps her coffee.

“Uh…good morning,” he says and all butscreamswith his eyes that he needs me.

In a flash, I’m out of my seat, ignoring my baby meowing for breakfast. He’s a chubby cat. He can wait a minute. Crowding him back into the short hallway out of sight, I search his face. “Are you okay?”

“You weren’t in the bed.”

“Just making coffee.” I rub his arms, sliding my hands up to his shoulders to rub them.

He nods slightly, then glances behind me. “Is she mad? You know…that I’m here?”

“No. It’s fine. Do you want to come sit with us?”

I watch him debate the offer momentarily before he bites his lip. “Yeah.” Leaning to kiss him, I briefly press my lips to his before he pulls away. “My breath.”

Chuckling, I cup his face and spear my tongue in his mouth. He gasps, clinging to me, eyes bugging out of his skull. “Don’t care. Come on.”

What can I say? My spirits are sky-high for once, and nothing will bring them down. He holds my hand in a death grip, hiding in his messy hair. I can’t say I blame him for being nervous. My friends know everything that happened between us. But one thing he never got to experience is their forgiveness. We’re a fucking family. If I accept him, they will do so by default. It’s just how we are.

Eli lowers into a chair while I get another cup of coffee for him. I make sure to add extra creamer and some cinnamon for him. His eyes water when I place it in front of him. They tell me that he’s surprised that I remember. Of course, I do. I remember everything about him. Kelly eyes us both before breaking the ice.

“How you been, Eli?”

He freezes, coffee cup at his lips. “Um.” I give him a gentle nod, reassuring him. “Well,” he breathes, takes a sip, and sets it down carefully. “It’s been pretty bad, actually.”

The coffee must be helping my friend out because she perks up. Kelly has this motherly nature about her that makes everyone feel at home—at ease. “I’m sorry it’s been bad. If you need a shoulder to cry on, I got two.” She points at them like a nerd.

Eli shoots her a careful smile and looks at me again. God, it’s like he’s seeking my approval. “Thanks, but it’s okay.”

“You wouldn’t have said things were bad if it wasokay,” she drawls. “This is a safe place, babe. I know buttface over there can be dense as a rock sometimes, but that’s why he has us. You can have us, too.”

I scowl at her for calling me a buttface…and dense.But I say nothing because this is good for Eli. He needs to know people give a fuck. Whereas I want to be the focal point of his support, a few others couldn’t hurt. He sips his coffee, a frown working over his features. I reach out and stroke his back, making him lean into it.

“I set my aunt’s house on fire,” he whispers out in a rush.

Kelly and I both blink in surprise. He wilts in on himself, tucking his chin to his chest.

“What?” she asks while I say, “Onfire?”

He winces at my voice, shaking. I glance at Kelly and she gives me a look that saysdo something.

“I thought it would get rid of the shit in my head,” he says, seeming to fall apart at the seams. “She ruined my life, you know? Just completelydestroyedit. I wanted to do ballet. I could’ve been a dancer.” I’m wide-eyed. Holy fuck. “All I wanted was to do ballet. Just dance.Dance.” He cups his face and sobs.

We both move at the same time. I grab one side of him while Kelly holds the other, locking him firmly in our embrace. I’m waiting for him to clam up, to tell us to fuck off, but he doesn’t. God, he keeps spilling like a dam. “She’d ash her cigarettes in my food on purpose. And then Tom? FuckingTom.The amount of porn he’d watch. Always roaches in stuff. In the cereal. In mybed.Tracy always smelled like vodka so I hate it. Can’t stomach it.”

“Eli,” I croak, kissing his shoulder.

“You know what she told me? That I should’ve been a swallowed cumshot.” He laughs hysterically while he cries. “I hate her. I’m twenty-eight years old, and I want her todie.”

“Good god, babe. Me too,” Kelly growls, finding my hand on Eli’s back and squeezing it.

“So yeah. I set her fucking house on fire. And now she lives in mine. I can’t go home. I don’t have a home. I don’t belonganywhere.”

“That’s enough,” I order him, feeling my entire body tremble with rage. “That’s enough, sweetheart.”

“There’s more,” he whimpers.

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