Page 32 of Broken

“..plus she’ll never make a good wife.” George continues on whatever rant he’s carrying on.

“Can we just not talk about her? I don’t want to hear any more.” I state, gritting my teeth, trying so fucking hard not to punch the wall, or him.

The days turn to weeks, which just seem to keep going by. I’m officially settled in at college, taking classes and doing the work. Going through the motions. I had to change my number, she kept texting me, asking me how I was, if I wanted to talk. But just seeing her name on my phone hurts. So now, no one texts me. I haven’t given the number to anyone aside from my parents and George, not that anyone outside of them would even bother to talk to me.

George’s phone starts ringing and he answers it, pulling my attention away from the book I’m supposed to be reading for class.

“Hello, this is George.” He answers so formally. He stands up and begins pacing the room as he listens to whoever is on the phone with him. He doesn’t say anything, just makes sounds like, “Mmhmm.” and “Hmm.” not really giving me a clue as I try to eavesdrop. “Okay.” he nods his head as I turn to look at him.

Trying to get his attention I wave a hand, but he just puts up a finger signaling that I don't need to be part of the conversation. Which I suppose is fine. It's really none of my business. I turn my head back to my book and reread the same three words like twelve times while he continues to not talk to the person. "I can." he replies. "But, I won't." he adds. This is getting more and more intriguing and I really need to know who he's secretly talking to. Who is on the other line? "Bye." He says sharply and then hangs the phone up and I hear it land on his bed.

Who was that?" I ask.

“No one important." He replies as he drops into his chair at his desk next to me. "I've got too much work to do to be involved in the drama."

"What drama?" I press him. Now I need to fucking know.

"It's none of our business. They'll figure it out. We're at Yale, Westley. Let's focus on that." He turns away from me, pulling out a book and slams it on his desk.

I guess we're studying, he has a way of being a dick. For a nerdy guy who only had one friend, he really is an asshole.

Five Years later

It's been five years since I left home. I'm officially a college graduate, on my way to getting my law degree. I've passed everything and I'm ready to start law school in the fall after taking time off. But first, I must go home for our five-year reunion. George and I have plans to travel together back home, only this time, I'll have a plus one. I met Hilary a year ago, and we hit it off. We have so many things in common and our goals for life line up. Everything with her is easy and there are no complications.

But fucking boring.

I hadn't been with anyone since Katherine, until Hilary walked into my life. She fits into my lifestyle, so I'll sacrifice the mind-blowing sex for vanilla thrusting. When I'm with her, I don't have to worry about what she'll do if the wrong thing is said. She's going to law school with me in the fall, and the tongue on her is sharper than the knives in my mother's drawer. When I met Hilary, she asked me to get a real man's haircut so I look less like Ragnar and more like Brad Pitt now. I guess it's fine for the life I have imagined myself leading now.

"Are you ready?" George asks as Hilary puts her hair products into a bag.

"Almost." She shouts from the bathroom. The three of us share an off-campus house and we have it rented through the end of next semester. Which works for us. When I went home for winter, my mother told me that she had torn out the black roses. I didn't want her to do that, I wanted to keep them, a reminder to never let myself fall so hard again. To never let another person consume me so deeply that I can't find myself without them.

"The flight leaves in a couple hours, we need to get moving so we can actually get there and then check in." George shouts from the living room.

"We're coming. Chill out man." I reply, a little annoyed at him for rushing her. She gets all frazzled if her shit isn't organized in a specific way.

Once we land back home, my parents are there at the gate to collect us. "Mr. and Mrs. Sherman." George hugs my parents and then moves out of the way.

"Is this Hilary?" My mother asks, stepping closer without crowding her.

"Yes. Hilary, these are my parents. Mike and Susan Sherman. Mom, Dad this is my fiancee, Hilary Sliverstein." My mom wraps her arms around Hilary and squeezes her. I reach out and shake my fathers hand, as I've done since I 'outgrew' hugs according to him.

"Glad you made it safe. Help me with the bags." He says, taking Hilary's bag from her. We load the trunk first, then load up in the car for the thirty minute drive back to my house.

"Are you excited for your five year reunion?" My mother asks.

"Seems like yesterday we were graduating from high school, and now we're heading into law school." I reply, staring out through the back window, counting mailboxes. Mailbox counting, I haven't done that in five years. Not since the bus ride through half the country with her. I close my eyes and her face appears like it always does. Haunting me, taunting me, reminding me of what I could have had. I hate it, I hate that she still has a fucking chokehold on me. That she can still pierce the veil all these years later. I wonder if she'll be at the reunion. I know George said that he wasn't sure. They haven't talked much either. He said some shit went down with her and the family and that she chose the wrong path in life. But no one ever told me what happened.

"I saw Katherine at the Inn yesterday. She's still wearing the same black nonsense she wore back then, some things don't change." My mother’s words freeze me over, like time stops. She’s here. Fuck, I’m going to have to handle everything all at once.

I have papers in the back that I need her to sign. Hilary nudges my arm, “You okay?” She whispers.

I nod my head and turn back to look out the window. Katherine is here, looking the exact same. But, I have a fiancee now, one that I want to marry, on purpose. I’ll have to talk to Katherine to get her to sign the divorce papers, since the Vegas wedding was completely real. I found out when I went back home for Christmas and I had mail waiting for me, with a marriage certificate signed by some guy in the state of Nevada. I couldn’t call her to tell her because I deleted her phone number. Then I changed mine, and I wasn’t about to ask George for it, because he’d want to know why. So, I kept it to myself, until now. I had to tell Hilary, which is why we pushed our wedding out to the middle of the summer, to give me time to hunt her down and get her to sign the papers.

Chapter Thirteen

Katherine

---