Page 122 of Damaged Prince
“I don’t say it to be mean, it’s the truth!” Logan shouts.
“Just tell us what’s going on. Why are you doing this?” Elijah begs. “We can help you. Is it school? I can help you with whatever you need.”
“Nothing is wrong,” Owen snarls. “Just because I’m not the same guy I was before, doesn’t mean there’s something wrong. This is who I am now.” He throws out his arms. “If you don’t like it, well fuck you. I don’t owe any of you anything.”
My eyes widen as he speaks. This isn’t Owen. Not the man I got to know.
“This is the life you want to live?” James asks. “To lose yourself in drugs and drink yourself away? Why? Why would you want that? You could have anything you want, be anything you want. Why would you choose this life?”
“Because it’s my life!” Owen screams. “I can do whatever the fuck I want with it!”
“You need to go to rehab,” James demands, getting angry himself. “I already called one of the best ones in the country, andthey have a spot for you. We can go today. You don’t have to keep living like this.”
“I want to!” Lies. I saw the broken boy in that locker room. He doesn’t want any of this. So why is he pushing so hard for it? “Don’t you see that? I don’t want your help. I don’t need it. I’m fine the way I am.”
“No, you are not!” James shouts, getting in his son’s face. “I don’t know what’s going on with you, Owen.” He shakes his head. “But I’m not giving up on you.”
“Well fuck you!” Owen seethes back. “I don’t need you! I don’t need any of you!”
Owen takes off upstairs, slamming his bedroom door shut.
“What was that?” I whisper to no one in particular.
James, Logan, and Eli argue with one another, all of them looking lost and frustrated about what to do with their brother.
“Where are you going?” Kai asks, pulling me back as I start to move.
“I’m going to talk to him.”
“No.” Kai shakes his head. “Not while he’s like this. He’s not in a good headspace right now, and if he says or does something to you, I’m going to be adding another charge to the list.”
“He’s clearly full of shit!” I hiss out. “There’s something so much deeper going on. I need to find out what.”
“And we will.” Kai holds my stare. “We will find out and do what we can to help him. But do not go up there right now.”
“Where are you going?” James asks, getting my attention.
Turning around, I see Owen storming down the stairs, bags in his arms.
“I’m moving out.” Owen spits. “Then I won’t be your problem anymore.”
“Owen!” James calls after him, following him outside.
“Let him go.” Kai holds me back as tears spill down my cheeks. “Give him time to cool off.”
“What if he doesn’t come back?” I ask, my voice breaking with fear.
“We will find him, Sweetheart. I have my ways.”
It kills me to let Kai hold me still when all I want to do is run after him.
As I watch my mom comfort James, and Logan and Eli looking wrecked, I vow I will find out what’s going on with Owen and fix it.
It might not be my job, but I can’t watch my loved ones be hurt. I need to try. And I can’t do that until I know why Owen is acting this way.
It’s not just his addictions. Something has been eating at him slowly over the past year. And something tells me, it’s not going to be good.
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