Page 22 of Forever Yours
I work my jaw back and forth and the pain stabs me. Damn, Brian got me good. I hold the ice pack up against my face and sit there silently while Brian paces.
“Liam, you can have almost any girl you want. Why the hell would you pick my sister?” His fists clench again at his side. I sink further back into the couch. I let him have one good hit, but if he hits me again, I’m hitting back.
“Brian, she’s a grown woman. She knew what she wanted. And I, uh…” I know I sound like a whiny kid, but I can’t help it. How was I supposed to resist Sophie? From the first moment I met her, I always gave into her. All she had to do was widen those big blue eyes of hers and I was mush. Brian should know. He’s always been the same way.
“So, you’re tellin’ me that this was all Sophie’s idea? She jumped you and you just stood there and let her maul you?” He leans down and gets in my face. “I’m not buyin’ it bud.”
“Yeah, I guess it didn’t exactly happen like that.”
He snorts. “Yeah, I’m thinkin’ it didn’t happen like that. I’m thinking you were a pretty willing participant.”
I scrub my face with my hands. “I was, man. I can’t deny that. I just… I just.” I trail off and rake my free hand through my hair. Brian is pacing again and doesn’t look at me. I feel like the biggest screwup ever.
“You just what? You thought she had a hot body, and she was willing so who gives a fuck if she’s my sister? You didn’t care that she’s your friend? She became just another woman to screw, uh?”
I stand up at that comment. “I never treated Sophie like that. Sophie is not just any other girl to me, you know that!”
He stops and points his finger in my chest. “I don’t know any such thing. I know you, man. You get physical, but you don’t let any girl in.” He pokes me hard again and I raise my fists up. “You can try to hit me, but you know I’m right. You were using my sister for a quick lay.”
I do raise my fist and punch him in the jaw at that. He barely moves and grins in response. “You punched harder when we were ten and playing on the playground. All that science stuff rattlin’ around in your brain has made you weak, brother.”
I wave my hand in the air. “Yeah, and apparently time has made your jaw harder. Damn, what’s it made of now, granite?”
He laughs and slaps me on the back. “I’m still mad as hell, but that punch you threw at me tells me there’s more to this. Talk to me. Clue me in on what’s been happening. Maybe I’ll be able to understand.” He shrugs. “I doubt it, but you’ve been my friend most of my life. I would really hate to kill you, so I’ll listen.”
He sits down on the couch and waives me over. I hesitate and look at the door. “I should really go talk to your sister.”
“Nah, get your ass over here. I know my sister, and I heard a little bit of what she said there at the end. She needs time to cool off. You won’t get anywhere with her right now.”
“Okay, well I’m at least gonna get us a beer before we talk about this.”
I grab two beers from the fridge and Brian, and I settle in on the couch. He eyes me expectedly, waiting for me to spill my guts.
I clear my throat. “I don’t know how to start, Bri. I mean, Soph has always been like a little sister to me.”
He rolls his eyes. “The way you had her backed up against the door didn’t look at all like a brother-sister type of relationship to me. Try again.”
I shake my head. “You’re right. It’s hard to explain when things changed.” I can’t help the smile that crosses my face when I think of Soph over the years, first with her blonde ringlet pigtails, and then all the way up until she showed up with her pink hair and new attitude. God, there’s something about that girl.
“Soph’s always been the best, you know? She was always there to listen when things were shitty at my house. She always made me feel important.” I think back to the talks on the swing sets back at the neighborhood park. I think of her sparkling blue eyes watching me so close, and the innocent hero worship in her eyes. I think of her tears for me when my dad beat the shit out of me, yet again.
I stare off for a moment until Brian interrupts. “And…”
I look over at him. “I don’t know the exact moment I stopped thinking of her as your little sister. I don’t know when she wormed her way in. She can be annoying as hell. She’s socially awkward, a little clumsy, definitely unsure of herself most of the time…and those damn physics facts she spits out when she’s nervous.” I chuckle. “Who the hell does that? Soph, that’s who. She’s unique as hell. And her heart is too big. She sees the good in everyone and can’t help but want to reach out to everyone. She even tries to make me feel better when I’m acting like a grouchy old bear.” I shake my head. “Which is most of the time.”
I stop talking and take a deep breath. Brian is laughing so hard that I think beer is going to come out of his nose. I glance over at him skeptically. “What?”
“You’re a freakin’ idiot, man. You’re so deep in love you’re drowning in that shit.” He puts his beer can down on the coffee table and sits back, hands behind his head. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
I shake my head in denial. “That’s…that’s impossible. You know I can’t love like that. I don’t have the capability to. You know what I grew up in. I won’t pull another person into that kind of shit, and who knows what I’ll turn out like one day?” I rap my knuckle against my knee. “My parents were addicts, so I could turn into an addict one day too. I come from shit. That’s probably where I’ll end up.”
Brian leans forward again and punches my upper arm. “Don’t make me punch you again. For such a smart guy, you sure are an idiot.”
I look over at him. “What do you mean?”
“Do you love me, Liam?”
I rear back in shock. “I... I mean…”
