Page 86 of Run For Me
When he doesn’t answer after a few seconds, I put my phone down and grab the remote to look for something to watch.
After the last few weeks of going nonstop, I’m not used to having nothing to do. I don’t remember the last time I sat down and watched TV. Reign of Fire is playing, so I select that. I get lost in it until my phone dings and pulls me away. When I check it, I see it’s been over an hour since I texted him first.
JT:Hey
Me:What are you doing?
I keep my breathing even as I stare at my phone and wait for a response.
JT:Nothing. You?
He’s being weird. He must have noticed I’ve been distant, but he goes to college, so he had midterms too. Wasn’t he busy with them?
Me:Same. Thankfully. Midterms made me crazy.
JT:Are you feeling better now?
Me:Much.
JT:When can I see you then?
I knew this would come up, and I don’t know what to say. Part of me still wants to see him, but… he lied to me. If that hadn’t happened, maybe I could have talked to him about easing things off so I can focus on me and school. This is nothing serious anyway, so it could have worked. But it’s the lie that’s ruining this.
Except… maybe he isn’t the liar here. Maybe that girl is. It’s been in the back of my head, and I’ve yet to give it attention. But it could be true. Even if he is the Jaxon she mentioned, it’s possible they aren’t together at all. It’s possible she’s just a jealous ex.
The mature thing to do would be to ask him—to talk to him about this.
Before texting him, I’d had a plan, but now that I am talking to him and see the difference in him, I don’t like it. I don’t like him distant, and I don’t like him uninterested. I like the attention he gives me.
Sighing, I put my phone down, chewing on my lip as one of the dragons spits fire everywhere. My gaze keeps flicking to my cell, until I finally pick it up and send another text.
Me:We need to talk before we see each other again.
Two seconds pass before my phone rings, his name flashing on the screen. If I don’t answer, he’ll call back. And if I don’t answer that, he’ll show up.
I don’t know this for sure, I’m just assuming by what I know of him.
Still, none of this scares me.
My annoyance with him lies in where the trust has been broken.
I swipe the bar and bring the phone to my ear.
“Hi,” I say softly.
“What do we need to talk about, little dove?”
I swallow hard. “Just stuff.”
“What kind of stuff?”
He doesn’t sound angry, just curious. A little cold, though. I don’t miss that.
Just be honest, Sailor. No need to be nervous.
“I…” I snap my mouth shut, taking a breath. “Do you have a girlfriend?”
It’s silent on the other end for a while. Well, it feels like a while. Could be only a few seconds, I guess. My heart is pounding so loud I wouldn’t be surprised if he heard it—or if I didn’t hear him because of it.
