“Why?” Cooper yells, throwing his hands out.
I press my lips together, and he takes a step toward me, reaching for my hand.
“I’m here, Mae. I’m not going anywhere. I wantyou.No one else. I wouldn’t be begging you to stay if I wasn’t serious about us. If you feel even a little bit of what I feel for you, then prove it. Prove to me that you care enough and stay,please.” Cooper begs, his voice cracking.
“I’m not what you want,” I mumble.
Cooper huffs a frustrated laugh and lifts his hat off his head, running his fingers through his hair. “I hate to disappoint you, but that will never be the case.” He holds up his hands. “I know they say never say never, but Mae, baby. I’m saying never. You’re everything I want, and more than I deserve. You’re theone, and have been since our first date, since our first kiss.”
The tears are in free fall now. I can’t stop them. I don’t want to. I don’t have the strength. “How could you possibly know that? We barely knew each other!” I yelled.
Cooper slides his hands into his pockets even though I desperately want him to touch me one more time.
“I feel it, Mae. You’re that missing puzzle piece. But maybe the better question is, am I what you want?” Cooper asks.
“How could you ask me that?” I ask him.
“Because I don’t think you know the answer,” he says, almost as if he’s given up trying to convince me.
I shake my head, scrambling for an answer, a reason to push him away. “I can’t do this.”
“Mae, please!” Cooper yells. “What do I need to do? Tell me and I’ll do it.”
I ignore him, leaving him standing in the parking lot. My heart continues to rip as I walk home. It’s miles, but what else am I going to do?
Wait, I have friends here.
I call June.
“Hey girly,” she says.
“Can you uh — can you come pick me up? I’m a block from the Wooden Cowboy and —” I sob.
“Sure, what’s going on?” June asks.
“I just need you to get me, please.”
“Stay where you are, be there soon,” she says gently.
“Thank you,” I whisper and hang up.
I’m on the edge of town, not close enough to the flower shop, and even if I wanted to keep walking, I can’t because my feet feel like they’re cemented in lead blocks.
Am I what you want because I don’t think you know.
Cooper’s words roll around and around in my head. Seeing him with that woman brought everything I ignored from my past flooding back. My fear of constantly being left behind is stronger than me. My insecurities, my issues of never being someone’s person, are always going to be there.
I huff to myself. Cooper made me forget all of them. The way he looked at me, talked to me, touched me, kissed me,caredfor me. No one has ever done that for me.
June pulls up in her truck, and I climb in silently.
She types something into her phone and turns around, heading to my house.
The cab is silent, and I wipe my tears as I stare out into the black night.
This time it’s no one’s fault, but my own. Everything in me shut down when I saw them together. All I wanted to do was run, protect myself.
June pulls up next to the house and puts the truck into park.
