Page 34 of The Alternate Captain
I’m reeling. Overwhelmed with thoughts and emotions, and I have no idea what to do.
“Kelly—”
“It’s for the best, right? Besides, I don’t even know who you are.” She cocks her head to look at me.
“You know who I am.”
“No, I don’t. I was talking to John. But from what I’ve seen, you’re nothing like John. You’re controlling, bossy, and emotionally unavailable.”
She winces, muttering something else under her breath.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I ask, aware that my pulse is skyrocketing. “Emotionally unavailable?”
“Forget it,” she says, stepping forwards but stopping before she moves away.
“That’s not fair,” I say, but she’s already cutting across me.
“Let’s just forget this whole thing ever happened, please. You don’t have to keep pretending to be someone you’re not.”
“Kelly—”
I step forward, but she takes a step back, raising her arm slightly.
“Please. Leave me alone.”
“What did I do wrong?” I ask.
“Please, leave me alone and we’ll pretend this never happened. I won’t mention it to Mike or anyone. Honestly, forget it.”
She pleads with me, her eyes full of tears, and I have no choice but to back down as footsteps fill the corridor.
“Kelly, love. I wondered where you’d got to. Is everything okay?” Bettsy’s dad comes into view, and I acknowledge him with a nod.
“Coming, Dad,” she says, then she looks at me. “It was nice to meet you, Johnny.”
A statement that sounds so final.
Then she’s gone.
I take a breath. Count to ten. I give myself a moment, but I’m too frustrated. Then I’m angry. Turning around, I kick a chair across the corridor; the noise echoing through the empty space. What the fuck just happened?
That wasn’t how I envisioned my evening turning out.
Setting my hands on the back of my head, I stretch out, willing myself to think about my next step. Gently does it.
I think what pissed me off the most was getting called ‘emotionally unavailable’ by one of the few people I’ve let my barriers down for.
I pace the corridor a few times before the vibrating of my phone in my pocket interrupts me. I pull it out and check the screen before answering, carefully considering if I’m able to speak to my sister right now.
I let it dial off, but when it vibrates for a second time, I answer and shove my phone against my ear.
“What?” I snap.
“How’s Bettsy?” Vicky asks.
“Fine. He’ll be home tomorrow. They’re keeping him in tonight as a precaution as he came round all confused,” I say.
“That’s great news,” she chirps. “Are you going to be around tomorrow morning? I wondered if you could give me a ride to the airport.”
