Bluff

Nervous. Nervous, nervous, nervous. Come on, tell him or you won't go at all. Do it before it's too late, come on. Do it!

"Kory, you're kind of cutting off my circulation," Brian said, interrupting her inner-babble. He had noticed something different the second she arrived. She was a lot colder, she kissed a lot deeper, cuddled a lot closer, and she said a lot less. But, knowing Kory, it was best not to ask her to talk about something. She'd open up when she was ready.

"What? Oh, oh my god, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she said, immediately removing her hand from his and sitting up. She spent a second re-situating herself in the dark, as best as she could anyways, without touching Brian too much.

Brian sighed, but still said nothing. He ran his hand through his hair, before finally surrendering. He sat up, turned the side-lamp on, and stared at Kory. "Go on," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "What's wrong?"

Oh no. No, no, no! What if he hates me? No, he can't. Right? Oh god. Shit, shit shit! "Brian," she breathed, closing her eyes. Her voice was shaky and her hands were freezing. "I-I'm leaving."

Brian sighed. "You're going to have to be a bit more specific," he said, more confused than he was before. Was she leaving him? Yeah, maybe he didn't bring her flowers or hold her hand all of the time. Kory didn't like those things, and she knew that Brian loved her. He hadn't done anything wrong that he could remember. Well, since the cabin anyways. And she wouldn't leave her dad, or Marrissa, or the band, would she?

Kory figured that it was now or never. And if she wasn't staying here, Brian at least deserved an explanation. She took a second to steady her breathing, before saying, "New York. I'm going to New York with my mom. Not forever, but for a while."

It took him a second to process everything. At first, he was confused, and then he was upset, and then he was angry. "What the hell? You hate her! Why're you going there? There's nothing there for you Kory! You belong here! What logic could that possi-?"

"I'll explain it if you shut up for a second! God damn it, Brian. I'm leaving because I know too many people here. I want to be published for my abilities, not because of my dad or because I know seventeen bajillion people in California. It's not forever, like I said," she explained, upset with how he reacted. Then again, that's how she would've reacted as well. He had every right to react like that.

Brian stood up, walking out of the room and skipping down the stairs quickly. He could hear Kory's delicate footsteps right behind him, but she wasn't saying anything. Maybe she didn't have anything to say, or maybe she wasn't interested in explaining any further. Brian wasn't sure. All he knew was that he couldn't let her leave. That wasn't fair.

She sighed. "So you're ignoring me? Say something, or I'll leave right this second."

He chuckled. "You wouldn't," he said, shaking his head and searching through her coat pockets, looking for her cell phone.

Kory only scoffed. "And you really think I won't?"

Brian shrugged. "No, I don't. Where's your phone?" Just then, he remembered her sitting it on the counter to make popcorn once she had finally settled on a movie to watch earlier. He walked into the kitchen quickly, and unlocked it. "Call her. Tell Melody you're leaving your dad."

"She already knows," was all Kory said, before ripping her phone from his hands and running back upstairs. She didn't even care if he was following her or not. She pulled on her jeans quickly, and shoved her phone in her back pocket as she quickly walked back downstairs.

Brian threw his hands up in the air out of frustration. "Am I the only one who didn't know? Really, Kory? Are you that selfish?"

She shook her head, lacing up her boots as fast as she could with her shaking fingers. "If I knew you were going to react like this, I wouldn't have told you at all," she retorted, "I'm not selfish. I'm doing something for myself for once. Take it or leave it, I don't give a shit at this point in time." She pulled her jacket over her arms, and went to walk outside, but he stopped her.

"Kory, stop," he said, grabbing her wrist and pulling her away from the door. He carefully took her jacket off, lying it across the back of the sofa. Maybe she was right. Maybe moving would be good for her. But, being upset with each other wasn't going to help anything. And, if she was leaving soon, he didn't want to spend the last few days without her. "Stay."

She closed her eyes, and sighed, attempting to compose herself. "Then stop yelling," she said, "And listen to me. Let me explain."

He nodded. "I will. Just, don't scare me like that," he replied, pulling her into a tight embrace.

"I have to confess one more thing." She bit her lip as hard as she could, refusing to let her eyes tear up. She used the comfort of his arms around her, his neck against her cheek, as something to remind her that he deserved to know how she truly felt. "I think we shouldn't try until I'm back to be...together. I love you, and you know that, but I just don't like that idea. I won't have any time for you. You deserve someone who can give you more than I'll be able to." Trying not to cry was hopeless at this point.

He was quiet at first. And that scared her. But then he sighed. "I get it. I'll wa-"

"No. Don't say that. When I come back, maybe we could pick things back up. But do not wait for me. I'll never forgive you if you do."

Brian supposed that that was a very Kory thing to say, so he accepted it. But he would. He would wait for her. "Fine."

She sighed, and pulled away to look at him. "No, Brian. I'm serious. I'm gonna leave and you're going to find some hot girl who's really sweet and caring and makes you breakfast in the morning. I'll still talk to you. I promise I will. But do not wait," she said, completely serious. "Promise me you won't."

He groaned, but obliged anyways. "I promise," he said, shaking his head.

"No crosses count either," she teased, poking his ribs. She was suddenly concerned about where she was going. Technically, they weren't together anymore. So she couldn't spend the night here, could she?

He laughed, even though the joke wasn't very funny, and shook his head. "I know, I know."

She sighed, and pulled away completely. "I suppose I should go now," she said, running her hand through her hair carefully. She reached for her jacket, pulling it on, and giving him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry."

Brian didn't say anything. What was he supposed to say? That it was fine, that it was okay? Because it wasn't. It was the most selfish thing she could have ever done. It wasn't fair to him, or to Marrissa or Melody or Mason. None of it was. But she'd do it anyways. Because she didn't care.