Page 27 of Gabe

Taking a deep breath, I curled up on the RV’s bed. The phone remained clutched in my hand, still silent.

I stared at the dark screen.

“You stupid man. Where are you?”

Holding the phone to my chest, I lay my head on the pillow, just intending to rest my eyes. I had barely slept in the last few days. Although my nerves were still strained with worry, my exhaustion won out in the end, and I fell asleep.

CHAPTER 10

Frankie

The sun was still up when a knock on the RV door woke me, though the angle of the light was different. Either I’d slept an entire day, or it had only been a few hours.

Based on how groggy I felt and the grit clinging to my eyes, either option was a possibility.

“Frankie,” Newt’s familiar voice called through the door. “You awake?”

“Yeah, I’m up.” My throat felt like it had been replaced with a tube of sandpaper and my eyes were sensitive around the edges. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought I spent my entire time in the RV crying, but not a single tear had escaped me.

When Newt stepped through the door carrying a large glass of water, I groaned in relief. As soon as the drink was in my hand, cold condensation dripping over my fingers, I chugged half the glass in one go. I would have drunk more if it weren’t for my need to breathe.

“Thanks,” I gasped when I came up for air. “How’d you know I needed that?”

Newt shrugged. “I noticed you didn’t eat or drink much these last few days. There’s food prepared back in the house. Also...” He held up a bag with some supplies. A closer inspection revealed they were the hair care items I’d bought at the store the other day.

I sheepishly tugged at the braid that had mostly come undone. “Is it that noticeable?”

“Not really.” Newt took my hand and led me out of the RV. “But you’re more easily agitated when your hair needs to be redone.”

Back inside the house, we went through the familiar motions of my hair care routine. Just taking out all the braids and washing and conditioning everything took over an hour, but it was much easier with two people than if I’d done it alone. Newt had been helping me with my hair for years, ever since our first semester of college when we became roommates. He’d noticed me struggling with my hair on my own and offered to help.

At first, I thought it would be simple. So long as I walked him through the steps, then everything would be fine.

How wrong I’d been.

The first time he tried to help with my hair, he messed it up so badly I had to go to a salon to get it fixed. My anger had quickly died in the face of his numerous apologies, and I eventually agreed to let him try again. With a lot of practice on his part, and patience on mine, he’d eventually gotten better.

Now, years later, Newt easily managed my tight curls without a second thought.

“Do you want the same braid pattern as before, or something new?”

I thought about it for a moment, while at the same time finishing the last few bites of food on my plate at the kitchen table. A new pattern did sound enticing, but there was already enough upheaval in my life right now.

“Keep it the same. We don’t have the usual materials, so it’s probably not the best time to experiment.”

Newt started partitioning out the sections for the braids, using a chopstick we’d found in a kitchen drawer since we didn’t have a proper stylist comb.

“So, do you want to talk about it?” he asked as his fingers deftly twisted the first braid into shape.

“Talk about what?”

I was glad he stood behind me so I couldn’t see his disapproving look.

“About Gabe.”

I shrugged, though I was careful not to move my head. “Not much to talk about. He’s missing, and as you and Sebastian have so helpfully pointed out, there’s nothing we can do about it.”

The first braid was finished and hung against my neck. The feeling brought a sense of comfort. I always felt a bit naked when my hair was unbraided, like some sensitive part of me was exposed to the open air.

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