His hands went up in a defensive move, knowing I’d kick his ass if Becca found out.
“Here’s your meals, guys.” The sugary sweet voice of our waitress interrupted our conversation. She placed our platters down and both our eyes went wide.
“Hey, man, listen,” Ty said. “I’m sorry I don’t have some great words of wisdom for you. I’m happy you’re not turning to beer, though.” His smile made me feel good about myself.
I was proud of that, too.
“You still talking to your therapist?”
I nodded.
“I guess she’s your best bet, then. Either that or maybe Ava will eventually want to talk about it, but I’m sorry you’re going through this. Wish I could help.”
“It’s OK, man, I feel better just telling you. It sucked keeping it all in, ya know?”
We started picking at our meals, unsure if either of us had anything else to say on the matter.
“So, you had rugby practice today, right?”
And just like that, with the change of subject, we morphed into our old selves. Telling him about the team and the upcoming games lifted my mood.
“There’s a game next week?” Ty asked.
“Yeah, the season is starting already, and I don’t really think I understand the game completely. But they’re convinced I’ll do fine.”
We continued talking about all the things we needed to catch up on while we ate.
He did exactly what he was good at. He didn’t give me advice about Ava.
He helped me forget about her. A little.
CHAPTER 30
Ava
This was possibly the most challenging week of my life. Even worse than the week after finding my best friend Casey in bed with my boyfriend Cole and having to go to school every day and see the two of them together. And much worse than the week my mother took us out of the house with my father and we went to live with our grandparents.
Being in the same room as Logan was torture.
My body longed to touch him.
My heart yearned to speak to him.
My soul ached to be near him.
But I made it through the entire week without uttering one word to him. I ate most of my meals in my room, unless I knew he wouldn’t be home. The start of his rugby season helped as it kept him out of the house more often.
My new partner for Marketing was a pain in the ass, but I had to deal with it. She insisted on us solely working over Facetime, refusing to work in person. Which was fine, except most of the times we set up to meet, her boyfriend was there with her while we worked. I feared my grade would take a hit because of her, and I worked overtime on my end to ensure it wouldn’t. Again, which was fine. What else was I spending my time on?
I wondered repeatedly if I was doing the right thing or not. If staying away from him was better for his mental health even though it was worse for mine. But I’d kept away from him successfully enough that I had no insight on the matter.
Tonight he had practice, so I could safely cook and eat in the kitchen.
“Hey, girl, haven’t seen much of you this week. You doing OK?” Macie asked as she came up behind me. “I’ve been wanting to come by your room, maybe do a movie night, but I’ve been swamped with exams this week, I’m sorry.”
“It’s OK.”
She turned me to face her, gripping my hands.
