“PEI?” I ask.
He nods, and I arch an eyebrow at him.
“Toronto to PEI…” I say slowly with a shake of my head. “Quite the change. You sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?”
He laughs. “Well… I grew up there. So…” His smile falters, and I swear I see a bit of a wince. “I’m moving home.”
“You sound happy about that.”
He huffs. “No, I am. I just…” he pulls in a breath, absentmindedly patting the dog as he stares out at the water. “It might not be the warmest homecoming.” He bites the inside of his cheek, then shrugs. “So, I figured taking a small detour before the bridge to watch the tide for six hours was a good way to avoid the inevitable.”
I shift my eyes back to the water, watching as it slowly covers the jagged rocks.
Same.
But I know I can’t avoid my inevitable any longer.
I reach down and pat the dog's head as he nudges into me and starts his full-body wiggles again.
“Well,” I say, glancing back at the guy, “good luck.”
I start walking, but don’t get far before I hear him call out.
“Have a good one.”
I lift a hand in acknowledgment, though I don’t look back.
Not so sure about that.
I pull in a long breath and start towards my car. And once I’m in and driving to my parents’ house, I just about pull off and head the opposite direction a few times. But I need to do this. Iwantto do this… It’s just scary as fuck.
When I pull into the driveway and see Darren’s car, my anxiety spikes. I texted him yesterday after talking to Omar, and asked him to be here… and he said yes. But I wouldn’t have blamed him if he’d said no, or didn’t show.
And the fact that he’s here makes this feel so much more… real.
With a shaky breath, I get out of my car and start up the walkway towards the house. Just as I reach the bottom step, the door opens, and Darren stares down at me. And I can’t quite decipher the look he’s giving me. It’s familiar and uncertain all at once… like he’s happy to see me, but is also bracing for impact.
Fair.
“Hey,” I say as I reach the top step and stop before him.
“Hey,” he says as his eyes roam over me, and a faint crease forms between his brows.
And I know it’s because I look like shit. I saw the dark bags under my eyes, the overgrown stubble, and the mess of my hair in the mirror this morning. But I quickly looked away so I wouldn’t use it as an excuse to stay home.
But he doesn’t say a word. He just shifts aside, leaving space for me to pass him and enter the house.
The smell of coffee drifts from the kitchen as I make my way down the hall, and my chest tightens more with each step.
When I round the corner, Mom looks up from the counter, and Dad steps into the doorway from the living room. They both just look at me with worry etched into their features, and we all just stand here like no one knows what to do.
“Hi,” I manage, glancing between them.
Mom’s mouth tilts in a small, sad smile. “Hi, honey. Coffee?”
I shake my head and glance at the table. “Um… can we…” My hand makes a vague motion toward the chairs, andfuck, I’m not even able to get the words out to ask if we can sit. This isn’t going to go well…
“Yeah,” Dad says, moving towards the table and sharing a glance with Mom that’s loaded with concern.
