Page 132 of Tell Me Something True

“Columbus is less than three hours away.”

Two hours and twenty-eight minutes to be exact. He’d checked when he’d found out she was going to school there.

“I know how far it is. The point is I don’t think it’s the best time for me to not be in Mount Laurel.”

She began to pace, but not in front of him. Around him.

The girl was literally walking—and talking—circles around him.

“Urban and Willow finally got together,” she continued, as he looked over his right shoulder, then his left, not willing to let her out of his sight for even a second, “which is miraculous in and of itself, but there’s no guarantee he won’t mess it up. Or worse. Go at his usual glacial pace and wait sixteen more years before asking her to marry him, which would be fine if they didn’t want kids, but if there were ever two people who were meant to be parents, it’s those two.”

She picked up her pace, as if her steps were in a race with the words machine-gunning out of her mouth.

And the words were winning.

“Miles is even grumpier than usual, which is more than likely due to his trauma over witnessing our parents’ car accident” —she shot Reed a look, as if to see if he was still paying attention— “which he refuses to talk about. Plus, his feelings for Tabitha, which he still has, no matter how many times he claims he doesn’t. I’ve spent the past two weeks dropping hints to him about the benefits of therapy, which Miles has, of course, ignored because our patriarchal society and its toxic masculinity doesn’t think men have feelings. At least, not ones they can express. But who knows? Maybe I’m slowly chipping away at his resistance. But if I leave, any progress I’ve made will just” —waving her hands wildly, she made a pfft sound— “disappear.”

She stopped, both the walking and the talking, but only long enough for her to suck in a breath—and turn and walk in a circle around him the other way.

Squeezing the back of his now-sore neck, he turned in time with her.

“Toby works way too much, which he claims is just him trying to run a successful restaurant, but it’s obvious that’s an excuse and he’s doing everything in his power to avoid his loneliness. And what about Ian? Who’s going to pick him up after school? Or take him to the library on Wednesday nights? Plus, I’m the only Jennings Kat likes. If I’m not here, she’ll never attend another Sunday family dinner, which means she’ll never learn to trust my brothers.”

She stopped again, this time whirling around to face him. “What if Silas comes home? He never stays in Mount Laurel more than a couple of days, and if his leave isn’t on a weekend or during one of my breaks, I won’t even get to see him. Plus, Eli’s trying to get traded to a team closer to home, but if that happens and I’m in Columbus, I still won’t be able to see him regularly.”

Christ, but she had a lot of fucking brothers.

“If you’re busy,” he said, “they can drive down to see you. Or you can skip a couple of classes to come home.”

“It’s not the same. Nothing is going to be the same.”

He didn’t get what the problem was. “Isn’t that the point of growing up?”

“Seeing as how we’re both new to this adult thing, I’m not sure how either of us is supposed to know that.”

“That’s the thing, princess. Some of us aren’t new to it. Some of us had to grow up faster than others.”

She blushed again, but held his gaze and nodded, gracefully accepting his rebuke like the royalty she was. “You’re right. And you were right before, too. Not about everything,” she quickly added, in case he started getting delusions that he wasn’t a complete idiot. “But I was taken care of every day of my life, just like you said. More specifically, my brothers took care of me. They’ve always been there for me. But when I’m in Columbus, I’ll be alone. Which, admittedly, had been the dream at one time, but now that it’s almost here? It just seems like a really bad idea.” Her lower lip trembled. “I’ve never been without them before.”

“That’s what you’re so scared of?” he asked incredulously. “Being homesick?”

“It’s not about being homesick,” she insisted—there was nothing she loved more than to correct him. “I’m just not so certain that going to OSU is right for me at this time. Not when I could just as easily stay here and commute to Pitt.”

Stay here.

If she did that, if she stuck around Mount Laurel, he might start thinking he’d been wrong to push her away. To keep his distance. He might even convince himself that being with her wasn’t such a bad idea.

That he wouldn’t end up hurting her even more than he already had.

Tucking his hands into his pockets, he gave her his best smirk. “You gotta grow up sometime. Might as well be now.”

“As helpful as that comment is, which is to say, not at all, I’m not sure you’re the best person to ascertain whether or not I should go to OSU.”

“Because a dumb grease monkey like me couldn’t possibly have an opinion?”

“Stop,” she said, shame washing across her face. “I didn’t say that. And that’s certainly not what I meant. You’re the farthest thing from dumb, and you and I both know it.”

“I’m not smart. Not like you. We both know that, too.”

---