So Now, Run

I was in my room packing up the last of my clothes, trying to consolidate all of my new clothing into one bag, and was zipping up my backpack when I heard a light knock on my open bedroom door. I turned around to see Garrett leaning casually against the door frame, messing with the molding around the door, avoiding any and all eye contact with me.

“What’s up Gare?”

“Well uh, hm. I just uh, shit.”

I chuckled. “Spit it out. What do you want?”

“I just, you’re really happy with Nick aren’t you?”

I stood there contemplating momentarily. “For the time being, yes. He’s a sweet guy and has been nothing short of respectful to me.”

“Ya know, Pat’s that way too…”

I rolled my eyes. “You don’t think I know that?”

“I just don’t want you stringing Pat along if you don’t think you’ll ever get back together with him. Char, he’s the happiest I’ve seen him since you’ve left. Don’t tell me for a second you don’t share some of that same happiness…”

“I do. I just…don’t want to rush into things with Pat. We have a history—”

“That’s exactly my point! You have a history. You know each other. You both have always had this weird understanding of each other that no one else can fathom explaining. Hell, most of the time he’s more in tune with you than I am, and that’s saying something.”

He definitely had a point. However, I didn’t want to go back to Pat just because he was a safe and reliable choice. I didn’t want to go back to Pat because it was comfortable. I wanted to go back to Pat when I was absolutely sure that I had feelings for him. Right now I just wanted to focus on getting my friends back and finishing up my senior year of college.

“Look, I see your point Garrett, and you know I would never intentionally hurt Pat. I love the kid to death. We’ve been friends about as long as you two have. I just….I’m not going to string him along if I think we won’t get back together. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Gare, I’m not going to stop talking to you guys again like last time. I’m really going to put an effort into all my relationships with you guys. I want to regain the amazing friendships I once had. That includes Pat. That also includes me trying my dead-level best not to hurt him again. I could never live with myself if I did that again to any of you, and I hope you can understand and forgive me for that.”

He just walked across the room and engulfed me in a huge hug before pulling away. “Drive safe sis, and don’t be a stranger. Love you.” He kissed the top of my head and went to his room.

I put on my backpack and grabbed my bag of clothes and made my way out to my car.

***

A couple hours later I was back to my shared apartment with my best friend Jenay. She and I had been friends since my freshman year of high school. She was a couple years older, so she had already finished undergrad. I actually met her through Garrett. Her and Garrett used to be best friends back in high school. Hell, she used to be close to all of the guys, particularly John, but we don’t talk about it. It’s become a taboo subject and as much as I’m glad to be re-establishing my relationships with the guys, I don’t think she’d be too fond of hearing about it.

I climbed the four flights of stairs to our small two bedroom apartment and fished my keys out of my bag before unlocking the door. I sat the keys on the credenza just inside the door, before calling out to Jenay.

“Hey Jenay! You here?”

I heard some shuffling coming from somewhere in the apartment before I saw her peak out from around the wall in the kitchen.

“Hey girl! Where the hell have you been? I figured you’d probably stay the night Thursday, but going M.I.A. since then is kinda unheard of for you. Everything alright?”

She motioned for me to come into the kitchen, as she was in the middle of cooking and couldn’t really leave the food on the stove unattended.

I set my bags on the floor, out of the way of the door, and walked into the kitchen, taking a seat on the empty counter space by the stove so we could still talk.

“Actually Jen, I’m pretty great…I sort of um, met someone…”

It was as if the world stopped.

“SHUT-UP! I WANT TO HEAR EVERYTHING!”

I rolled my eyes and laughed at her. She was always over exuberant when it came to my love life or any guy I was interested in.

“Let’s just say, I got more than I paid for at the show Thursday night…” I said with a mischievous smirk on my face.

“You whore! Haha. I didn’t realize you’d hook up with a band guy! Get it girl!”

Despite our, and especially her, past relationship fails with band guys, we couldn’t deny they were our weakness.

“Oh my God Jen, it wasn’t like that. We didn’t hook up necessarily…”

“How the hell do you not ‘necessarily’ hook up with someone?!?”

“Well, I met him after the show and he was super sweet. Not to mention super attractive…”

“And?...You gotta quit being so vague and give me more details dammit!”

I forgot her impatience with these things.

“Haha ok. So, we were talking after the show and he was telling me how he would look for me at their next home show and that I better be there. I totally figured it was a line he fed to every fan he met, but I don’t know. Something about it was so…different ya know? God I sound ridiculous…”

By this point, Jen had neglected her food and had her chin perched on her clasped hands while she eagerly awaited to hear the rest of my story.

“No, you don’t sound ridiculous. Please continue! This is great.”

Now came the point where I had to decide; do I tell her that I met up with the rest of the guys or just say I went to a party? I mean, surely she wouldn’t be upset if I told her about my brothers. I mean, they are my family after all. She shouldn’t be too alarmed that I was being reacquainted with Garrett. I know they used to be close, but it was never like she was actually mad at him for what happened with her and John. I mean, it had to do with Garrett, but it in no way was his fault. John was just being a douche. I decided I would tell her about what happened, but I would leave out John. She didn’t need me to tell her that he was still a douche.

“Well, after the show, I made the difficult decision to stay at home, because it was super late and I didn’t wanna drive the two hours back after 1am.”

“Woah, wait. You mean you actually went home?!?”

“I did yeah…”

“And how was that? How was…uh…”

“Garrett?” I answered for her, figuring she was still too afraid to bring him up, as she now was avoiding eye contact.

She meekly nodded in response.

“From what I can tell, he’s doing great Jen. He uh, actually has his own place now. Though he’s too much of a home-nester to ever actually leave.”

This caused her to chuckle and nod a bit, not the least surprised at this information.

“Yeah, he always was a bit of a home body huh Char?” She smiled in nostalgia at her past friendship.
I could tell she missed him more than she let on. She was Garrett’s rock in high school and he had her to thank for his happiness and new sense of self-confidence; a trait he never possessed until their friendship.

I just smiled back at her, and patted her shoulder before hopping off the counter. I began to walk out of the kitchen when she was snapped out of her thoughts.

“Woah, woah, woah there! And where in the hell do you think you’re going? Huh? You still have to tell me about this mysterious band boy! What’s his name?”

“Nick.”

“Oooooh! What instrument does he play?”

“Uh…bass.”

She just laughed and nodded. “Of course. You always were one for the rhythm section. Must be something about their varying sense of time…they can go fast…slow…”

I punched her in the arm to stop her less than subtle innuendos.

“It’s not like that…Ugh. Ok. So I went home, and Gare and Trey were great about me being back. I was surprised they weren’t pissed at the sight of me honestly. Gare was insistent that I went to party with them later that night. I was reluctant, but they eventually convinced me. It was some party Halvo was hosting and he invited a couple local bands that he met and was into.”

“Let me guess, your boy Nick was in one of those bands?”

“Bingo. Unbeknownst to me of course until Garrett told me the bands that would be there. I ran into Nick, rather he ran into me. We danced to ‘Wild Horses’…”

“You’re shitting me…”

I shook my head, still in a blissful state just remembering the night.

“That’s like your favorite fucking song. How the hell did he pull that shit off?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “I have no idea. All he told me was that he pegged me as a classic rock girl, changing the playlist from whatever top 40 shit was on, to more of a classic rock ballad playlist.”

“Wow, he really hit the nail on the head for only knowing you a few minutes prior to that night…and there was no way he could know you’d be there…how’d he rig up that playlist?”

“Who knows. It was perfect to say the least. The next night he took me to this quaint little fairground not far from home. It’s a permanent fairground, so the rides don’t travel around like the state or county fairs.”

“Did you actually ride anything?”

“Yeah….only one ride though. And we rode it many, many times.” I replied, slightly embarrassed, remembering how many times I made Nick ride The Himalaya with me.

“If you say it was him, he doesn’t count as a ride. Though I’d love to see what he looks like so I can make that judgment for myself.”

I just stared incredulously at her. She never used to be this crude. I blamed John. All of the guys were crude, but he was definitely the worst out of them. She used to be this sweet innocent girl that blushed at the word “sex” and here she now was making crude remarks worthy of one John would make. I don’t care how much she denies it, but she was more influenced by him than she believes. She’s lying to herself if she genuinely thinks he didn’t rub off on her. Though their break-up was nothing short of disastrous, she picked up more from him in the few years she was around him then I did from the seven odd years I had been friends with them all. Hell, she picked up more from John than I did from Pat.

I brushed away those thoughts and just rolled my eyes at her and replied, “No. It wasn’t him. I told you it wasn’t like that.”

“Well then how was it? At this rate, I may find out about him by breakfast…If I’m lucky.”

I was beginning to get annoyed with her. She was definitely acting like John right now.

I brushed her comment aside. “Look, he was a real gentleman. We went to the fair, played a couple games, and rode the one ride until we had to leave so the park could close. He drove me back home, asked to see me again, and gave me a small kiss on the cheek. So he’s totally adorable and sweet and ugh, I really like him.”

“Awwwww! That’s so sweet! Ok, sorry for bein kinda bitchy and a little crude about it…”

I just glared at her.

She huffed. “Fine, maybe more than a bit, but I just get excited and I don’t know, something about you and another guy other than Pat kinda brings out the worst in me.”

“Yeah, you’re not the only one.” I mumbled to myself.

“Did you say something?”

“Uh, no. Sorry. Just talking to myself,” I lied.

“Oh ok. Well, go unpack and wash up. I made enough for the both of us and it should be ready soon.” She then turned back to the stove and finished making whatever dish she had been working on.

I walked back to the living room, grabbed my bags, and made my way towards my room. I dropped my backpack and shopping bag on my bed while I reached in my pocket to grab my phone. I looked at it and saw I had a few notifications. I had a couple missed calls and a voicemail, all from Garrett, and a couple text messages which I figured were also from him. I quick checked the voicemail and it was Garrett wanting to make sure I got in all right. I could tell he must have called during a short break during band practice because I could hear the guys cutting up in the background as well as random instruments and chords being played. I found his concern endearing, and decided to call him back to let him know I got back safely.

“Hello?”

“Garrett?”

“Yeah…”

“It’s Char…”

“Hey! Sorry, I don’t have your new number programmed in my phone yet.”

“I thought you just called me from your phone and left me a voicemail…”

“I did, but I hadn’t saved your number yet, and I haven’t exactly memorized your new number in the couple hours I’ve had it.”

He made a valid point.

“Oh, yeah that makes sense…”

“Are uh, you okay Char?”

“Oh! Yeah, sorry. Just a bit jet-lagged.”

“Char.”

“Yeah…”

“You live two hours away. We’re in the same time zone. How the fuck are you jet-lagged?...”

He wasn’t having any of my shit. Then again, he never did.

“Did I say jet-lagged? I meant tired. Sorry! Haha.”

Yeah, I didn’t sound that convincing to myself.

“Well…okay…I’m uh, gonna get back to practice if you’re alright…”

“I am. I just wanted to call and let you know that I made it back home okay.”

“Are you sure everything’s okay? You seem a bit off…and not just from exhaustion…”

Yeah. It’s in the form of my roommate acting like her douche of an ex-boyfriend that hates my guts for no reason, and favorite brother that doesn’t trust my taste in guys.

“Oh, I’m fine. Honest. I just need sleep. Jen is almost done with dinner and I plan on getting some sleep after.”

“Jen…how uh, how is she?”

I could sense the hesitance in his voice, much like Jen when she asked me about Garrett.

“She’s doing fine Gare. She asked about you…”

“Really?” I could hear him perk up in his reply.

“Yup. Maybe she should come visit you next time I’m home. What would you think of that?”

“Yeah! We’d uh, just have to keep her from, ya know…”

“Yeah I know. She’s not his biggest fan right now either.”

Neither am I but I don’t get to avoid him. Double standards.

“Cool. She can just chill out at our house and we’ll get Pat over. He misses her too. She was part of our little trio. He misses our third musketeer.”

“Hey! What about me? I was there before she was!”

“Haha yeah, but she was actually our age…”

“I’m only a year younger…” I mumbled.

“Age-wise, yes. Grade wise, we’re two years your senior baby sis.”

“Ugh, you know I hate it when you call me that…”

“Nah, you love me. Now go eat!”

“I will. You keep those idiots in line. And uh, tell Pat I said hi.”

“Will do. Now get your ass off the phone and go eat!”

“I will. Hanging up now. Love you Gare.”

“Love you too.”

Well, for a first phone call back home, that wasn’t nearly as awkward and painful as I initially anticipated, though I didn’t understand why I was so damn awkward on the phone. Gare and I were cool when I left, I don’t know why I had to fuck things up. Well, it’s not that bad, but God. Would I ever learn to talk normally on the phone? And people wonder why I hate talking on the phone…

I looked around at my bags sitting on my bed, deciding to unpack what little I had after dinner because I could hear Jenay setting the table in the make-shift dining room by the kitchen. I made my way out of my room and joined her in the kitchen to finish setting the table and get stuff to make our drinks.

We sat and ate, not really talking much. I was still a tad pissed at her from earlier though I’m not completely sure why. I just felt super irritable and defensive towards Nick because for whatever reason, no one seemed to fully accept him. Usually most people would consider that a warning sign when none of their friends approved of the guy you’re kind of dating. Yet, they also say to have different friends than the person you’re dating. I mean, I understand that point from what happened between me and Pat. He and I are friends, but that didn’t mean that shit didn’t get awkward as hell when we split. It still is. Hello, lest we forget sir douche himself, John. Snide remarks aside, I was pissed at Jen for whatever reason still.

She seemed to sense my mood because she ate dinner quicker than usual, and cleared her spot just as promptly. Without another word, she put up the extra food and shut off all the lights in the kitchen and living room, leaving the sole light above our makeshift dining room on, before going to her room and shutting her door.

Well then, luckily I really didn’t need in the kitchen or living room. I mean, it’s not like I can’t turn the lights back on but damn. Not really sure why she would have a reason to be mad at me. She’s the one that was shitting on my story earlier. Whatever. We’ll be fine tomorrow. We always are once we get some sleep.

I cleared my spot and put my dishes in the dishwasher before retreating to bed for some much needed rest.

***

I woke up begrudgingly the next morning to my alarm. It was only 8:30 am, which was about an hour and a half too early. I rolled out of bed, and dragged myself into the shower to get cleaned up and get ready for the day. After getting ready and slumping my way into the living room, I look over my shoulder from the couch in the living room to see Jen just as lively as ever in the kitchen.

“How the hell are you this chipper this early in the morning?” I grumble, still struggling to stay awake.

She just laughed it off. “Girl, it’s not that early. C’mon. Let’s go grab some coffee before you have class. What time is your first class today?”

I look down at the time on my phone, seeing the display read the time as 9:13 am.

“11:00. I have time to get coffee. Praise! I am in dire need of caffeine this morning. Like, hook me up with an IV drip of caffeine and I think I’ll be golden.”

Once again, Jen just laughed it off while shaking her head in disbelief at me. She walked out of the kitchen, lunch in hand, grabbed her purse from by the door as well as her keys, and motioned for me to follow her.

I slowly got up and flopped over to grab my backpack and purse from off the floor. Thank God our coffee shop of choice was three doors down from our apartment. Pretty sure I wouldn’t have been able to make it much further than that this morning.

We walk through the doors only to hear the voice that has done nothing but send chills up my spine since I heard it this weekend.

“So Charlie. We run into each other again.”