Page 113 of Puck with Karma
“What’s her deal?” Van asks, but Bran is confused.
“What do you mean?”
“She’s acting like a nervous squirrel,” Van explains to my brother, and I have to admit that he is right. “I get she’s worried about you, but why this worried?”
“Fuck if I know,” Bran mumbles under his breath. He doesn’t sound happy with me at all.
“Maybe it’s because seeing you fight like that scared her,” Chloe tries to come to my aid.
Van is not impressed.
“Bah, worried! She and her family spent a shitload of years not caring about my boy here, and now she is worried about a friendly fist fight in a parking lot?”
I try to hold back a whimper at hearing that. Bran thinks no one cared about him for all these years? What about him just leaving?
“He had his bloody head plastered against the boards before,” Van continues. “And he was fine.”
I stop listening to them and turn around to look through the refrigerator for a bottle of water. When I can’t find it, I slam the door closed. I grab a glass and fill it with tap water instead before focusing again on opening the bottle of pills. It feels oddly satisfying when the cap finally comes off and I am able to take two pills out.
My entire body is shaking in distress when I head back to the living area, focusing on not dropping anything. I find Van and Chloe bickering back and forth while Bran is just sitting on the couch, eyes closed and head resting back.
“Here you go,” I whisper to him once I got close enough. His eyes open, and it takes him a second to focus on me.
“Thanks, sis,” he smiles.
The kindness in his voice gets to me. I clench my hands together and stare at him, unable to move from my spot by the couch. When he notices my distress, he looks at me in surprise but doesn’t say a word, just waiting me out.
“I’m so sorry, Bran.” My eyes fill with tears that I refuse to let fall.
Bran shrugs and gives me a toothless grin. “Shit happens.”
It is the tone of his voice that gets to me, like he is comforting me even though he is the one who is hurt. A sob erupts from my chest, and I finally allow myself to cry.
“What the fuck,” I hear echoing through the room.
Chloe rushes to my side. She pats me on the back before putting her arm around my shoulders and dropping her head on mine. I want to turn away from the guys, but she’s pretty much blocking me with the baby in her large belly.
“I’m so sorry.” I seem to have that on repeat, and I can’t focus to say more.
With Chloe by my side, I move away from the couch until we are both standing in the kitchen.
“I can tell you’re not okay,” she starts, “so I won’t even ask. But so you know,” she chuckles softly, “the guys are freaking out, especially Van. He is a drama queen on a good day. And very nosey, too.”
As if he knows what Chloe just said, Van calls from the other room.
“Louder! I can’t hear what this is about!”
I look at Chloe and she shrugs. We both break into a light chuckle, although, it’s a bit more forced on my end. Van is not happy either.
“Well, that’s some shit,” he mumbles from the other room. “What’s the point of throwing a fit if she doesn’t tell us, too, what it’s all about. Am I right?”
Chloe shakes her head and rolls her eyes toward the ceiling, but it is obvious she loves Van’s goofy side. All the time I spent with Bran and Mallory, and now witnessing Van with Chloe, it all just makes me miss Xander even more. I want to have a real relationship with him. I want everything with him.
“All this is my fault,” I whisper to her through the tears. “I…” I hesitate, unsure of how much I should share with her. She is a stranger after all. Then again, why shouldn’t I announce my relationship to Xander? We did nothing wrong as far as that goes.
“How is it your fault?” Chloe sounds confused right before squinting her eyes at me with suspicion. “Did you pay Xander to get into a fight with Bran? For publicity?”
“What? No!”
