“And how is he?”
“There’s been no change, baby. They’re trying to convince the Barnes’ to pull him off life support.”
“Oh! That’s terrible.” My heart aches for the Barnes’. Mrs. Barnes was always nice to me. I can’t imagine what she’s going through. What he is going through. I shove that thought to the back of my mind. What he feels is no longer my concern. He and I had something once, I believed with all my soul it was real, but I’d been young and naive.
“So . . .” My mom’s voice trails off. “Wyatt’s back home.”
“Oh really?” I school my emotions even though my heart is thudding in my chest. Those were the last words I expected to hear.
“He’s staying next door with his mom.” She turns toward me, spatula in hand.
“Oh, Mom! That ship sailed a long time ago. He doesn’t impact me anymore,” I insist. I hate how defensive I sound. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t snap at you. I just don’t know what to think about it.” My answer is curt.
My mother nods and concentrates on the pancakes while I am left to wonder what on earth I’m going to do. I should just go back to Seattle; I have a fiancé waiting there for me, one who loves me and gives a shit about me. He’s there for me, while Wyatt has barely written to me in the last few years.
Wyatt. After all these years. He’s been like a distant pipe dream, and now he’s here, a couple of walls and a pathway between us. I want to shout at him, demand he explain why he went AWOL on me. He left with no promise, but I thought I meant more than that. We were friends above all else.
I knew with his dad falling ill there was a possibility he’d show up, but I wasn’t quite ready for it.
