“Just talk to me. I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean for this?—”
Something inside of me snaps and a coldness I’ve never felt before settles into my bones.
I grab her by both arms and press her against the side wall of the church.
A startled gasp slips free from her lips.
“You told me once to back off. That I couldn’t save you. Remember that?” She flinches before offering me a barely perceptible nod. I’m being a dick and I know I need to stop. I need to rein myself in, but I can’t seem to stop myself from voicing my next words. The ones I know will finally be enough to get her to leave me the hell alone. To push her away.
“Then stop trying to save me. I don’t want or need your help. Got it? You’re making shit worse.”
“But—”
“All I need is to be left the fuck alone, Cecilia. Get that through your head.”
“You don’t mean that.”
I laugh, the sound dark and brittle before I crowd into her space. “Yeah, I fucking do. And in case there is any confusion about where we stand, it’s over. I’m done.” I tear my gaze away from her. “I don’t want to be your fucking friend.”
My chest heaves with the effort it takes to move away from her. I don’t want to see the hurt on her face.
What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I doing this?
I can’t even answer the questions for myself.
“Gabe, please—” There’s a plea in her voice.
“You were right to let me go,” I tell her. “To push me away. I never would’ve had the strength to walk away from you on my own before.” Shaking my head, I let out a harsh laugh. “But it looks like today, I am.”
CHAPTER 68
CECILIA
Idon’t know what’s happening. How did we go from working things out between us, to being friends, and then to it all falling apart in less than a day?
Gabriel’s words slice through my heart like a blade, and I feel my world shatter into a thousand tiny pieces.
"What?" I manage to whisper, my voice shaking.
Gabriel's confession leaves me breathless, and I'm drowning in a sea of confusion and pain. What does he mean? He can’t really mean that, can he? He doesn’t even want us to be friends?
He’s just upset, right?
Everything is going to be okay.
Desperation climbs up my throat. He can’t walk away. Not like this.
“I know I messed up,” I tell him. “I made a mistake.” I close the distance between us again. Gabriel’s angry and hurt. He’s not thinking straight. If I can just get through to him. Show him that I’m not going anywhere. He has me. I’m right here and I’m not letting go. Not in his time of need.
I reach for his face and turn it toward me. His eyes refuse to meet mine, but that’s okay.
I trace his jawline with my fingers, caress the stubble on his skin. “Today is really shitty,” I whisper. His mouth hovers only a few inches away from mine. “But it’s going to be okay. I’m right here. I’m not leaving you?—”
Gabriel's eye finally lock on mine, offering me a window into the turmoil inside of him. His touch is agonizingly tender as he reaches up to thumb away a tear from my cheek.
“You were right before” he says, his voice thick with emotion.
Relief sweeps through me. He’s listening. We’re going to be okay. “We're just two broken people, and broken people can’t fix anyone else. They need to fix themselves.”
