Page 124 of Wreckage

Adrian and I talked about it sometimes. About how she seemed perfect for him. How he deserved happiness after all of this shit. How at least we weren’t fucking it up for him and making him miserable like we’d done when Lacey was alive.

We were just fucking shit up with Elena instead.

“How are you feeling?” I finally asked.

Adrian’s jaw clenched.

“Empty,” he murmured.

I sighed, looking at the ceiling. “Yeah. Me too.”

Adrian shifted, moving a bit closer. “Has Amanda stopped calling?”

I let out a dry, humorless laugh. “Nope. Six times in the last two hours.”

He turned his head slightly, raising a brow. “She’s crazy, you know.”

I shrugged. “I haven’t answered her except for one text,” I admitted. “Told her I’m taking time and to respect that.”

Adrian scoffed. “You gonna end things with her?”

“I already did,” I muttered. “It just hasn’t been said out loud yet. It feels like something that should be done in person.”

Adrian grunted, but he didn’t push. I knew he never liked her.

We both knew Amanda didn’t matter anymore.

Not in the grand scheme of things.

Not compared to Elena. Hell, I hated to admit it, but maybe Amanda had never mattered. She was a band-aid I put on my heart because I was too scared to be honest about my feelings regarding Elena.

I would bear this cross because I deserved it. It’s what I kept telling myself.

“You think she’s OK?” Adrian asked softly.

I didn’t have to ask who he meant.

I sighed, rubbing a hand down my face.

“I hope so,” I said. “I want to return to the East Coast to see her.”

Adrian nodded. “Yeah. Me too. Sooner rather than later.” He exhaled, his brows furrowing. “But I’m not flying,” he muttered.

I smirked, the first real hint of a smile I’d had in weeks. “Elena was onto something with that one.”

Adrian let out a soft chuckle, but it was short-lived.

The silence stretched again, thick with everything we weren’t saying. We wanted our girl back so much it was slowly killing us. Everyone spoke about trauma bonds to us, but it wasn’t a fucking trauma bond. I loved her before the crash, and I’d love her until they planted me like a fucking daisy into the ground. There would never be an argument about it.

I sighed,grabbing my phone and scrolling through my contacts the following day. We’d slept through the night mostly. Adrian would whimper in his sleep and wake me. I’d watch him thrash around, crying out to be saved and begging for Elena. It broke my fucking heart into pieces to see my big, strong baby brother like this.

All I knew was that our girl was the only cure for this madness. I prayed she wasn’t suffering like we were.

“What are you doing?” Adrian asked.

I glanced at him. “I was thinking about Elena and wondering if she was OK. I figured I’d call some friends back on campus,” I said. “See if anyone’s seen her or heard anything.”

Adrian perked up instantly, sitting up.

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