Page 92 of Dessert Flirt Repeat
“You think this is funny?”
He leans up, smiling through a wince. “Yeah, kinda. You’re a dickhead, you know that?”
I move to shove his shoulder, but he blocks my arm. “I’m not going to ask Becca out, you dipshit. I’m not interested in her.”
Relief washes through me.
“I only said all that to prove a point.”
“What point?” I bark.
“That there’s more going on than you’re letting on. You’re not fine, Gage. You’re in agony. I can see it. Will you, for once in your life, quit acting like a stubborn bastard and just talk to me? I’m your brother. I just want to help. I just want to be there for you.”
He grips my shoulder. Something inside of me softens. I can’t remember the last time he’s ever outright asked about my emotions.
I plop down on the dingy garage floor and rest my elbows on my knees. Tyler lowers himself next to me and assumes the same position.
“We broke up just over a week ago,” I finally say, staring straight ahead at my mom’s bright red Honda.
“What happened?” Tyler asks for the millionth time.
A heavy sigh rattles my body. “It’s a long story.”
“I got nothing but time, little brother.”
A few seconds pass. “It all started after Millie’s baby shower. After we all left, while Becca was closing up her ice cream shop, Dad showed up and cornered her.”
Tyler whips his head to me, his eyes wide. “He did what?”
I explain how Dad introduced himself to Becca, how he fed her a sob story about our falling out, then guilt-tripped her into telling me that I should reach out to him and give our relationship another chance.
“We fought about it.” I close my eyes and lean my head back against the wall. “She thought I was being too harsh on him. She thought that I had punished him enough for the way he treated me when he found out about my TikTok. She thought I should consider forgiving him and work on our relationship.”
“And then what happened?”
“I was pissed. I couldn’t believe that she’d think I should do that. She was so supportive of me when I first told her about my falling out with Dad, and then she pulls a complete one-eighty.” I shake my head. “She texted me the other day to say she wants to talk things out. But I can’t. Not if we can’t see eye to eye on this.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Tyler shaking his head. “Look, I know you think I’m just giving you shit when I give you a hard time about being stubborn all the time. But I’m not. That’s one-hundred-percent you, Gage.”
I twist my head to look at him. “What’s your point?”
“You’ve always been stubborn. It’s a good thing and a bad thing. When you’re standing up for what’s right or defending someone, your stubbornness is admirable. You don’t back down, and that’s fucking awesome. But when you’re wrong, it’s infuriating.”
“When I’m wrong?” I repeat, irritated.
“Gage, you can’t honestly tell me that you don’t think you’ve never been wrong about anything,” he says.
“Of course I know that I’ve been wrong. Lots of times. But do you honestly think I’m wrong for being angry at Dad for how he treated me?”
“Being angry? Of course not. You have every right to be mad at him. He was an asshole to you. But to cut him out of your life forever? Yeah, I think you’re wrong to do that. I think you’re making a mistake.”
I roll my eyes. “No surprise there. You’ve always given him more credit than he deserves.”
“Jesus, Gage. The reason I have a relationship with our dad is because family is important to me.” There’s a bite to his tone that I’m not sure I’ve heard before. My brother sounds so serious and impassioned right now, not like his usual joking self. “Look, I don’t live in a fantasy land. I know our dad is flawed as fuck. He’s a workaholic who cared more about running a fine dining empire than being a present father to us when we were little. That’s messed up. I’ll always be hurt by that, and I’ll always hold that against him. Always. But he’s changed. He knows he messed up with us big time when we were kids. And he knows that we’re all adults now and can see him for the flawed person he is. What he said to Becca about regretting how he treated you and wanting a better relationship with you? He’s said that to me too. And Maya.”
I’m sputtering. I had no idea.
“When you cut him out of your life, it scared him shitless, Gage. Right after that happened, he apologized to me for being an absent father growing up. And Maya told me he did the same to her. He makes time for me now. We try to see each other a couple times a month. It’s not perfect, but I can tell he’s trying his hardest to be a better father. Maya said that he calls her every week to catch up too when she’s traveling. She and I had lunch with him the other day too.”
