“Don’t make me fuck you up,” he threatens.
“Stop acting like a pansy ass punk!”
He clutches my shoulders, shaking me so violently I begin to feel dizzy as my teeth clank together.
“I swear to God, I’ll break your fucking fingers.”
“Will that make you feel better?” I shout.
“Yes!” he snarls.
“Show Cole you love him. Show him you haven’t forgotten about him.” I caress his face.
“I can’t,” he chokes.
“I know everything inside of you is rebelling against taking this leap, but Art, you need to do this.”
He remains silent for a few minutes before speaking, but still it’s a small victory for me.
“I’ll go, but I want something in return.”
I should’ve known there would be a catch.
“Name it.”
“No, I’m not going to tell you, but when the time comes for you to pay your debt, no questions asked.”
“How can I agree when you won’t tell me what the condition is?”
“Take it or leave it.”
“I’ll take it.”
It really doesn’t matter what he wants, I guess. I’d do anything to get him to go.
“I have to buy you a helmet.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“Yes, it is. I’ll risk my life, but not yours.”
“It’s not necessary because I’m not getting on that death trap. We can take my car.”
“That old piece of crap won’t make it past Pennsylvania.”
“Hey, respect the car. It may be old, but it’s very reliable.”
“Okay, but it’ll be your fault it we end up stuck on the side of the road.”
Maybe I shouldn’t have let Cin talk me into doing this. I descend further into panic-attack mode the closer we get to Boston.
Suck it the fuck up, pussy.
This visit is long overdue.
“Why are you so quiet? You’ve barely spoken two words since you got into the car.”
I turn my gaze from the scenery I’ve watched for the last several hours to peer at Cin. “Just thinking.”
