Page 25 of Landon & Shay: Part Two

I shook my head.

Nothing. She could do nothing.

Sometimes, there was nothing to do. Sometimes, all a person could do was sit.

So we sat.

We lay.

She slept.

I didn’t.

6

Shay

He hadn’t spokenin over twenty-four hours.

When Landon’s mother called his phone to check on him, I answered because he hadn’t left the bed. She was overseas and was scrambling to get a flight home, but wouldn’t be able to make it for another twenty-four hours.

“What should we do?” Raine whispered as she, Hank, Eric, and I sat in the living room. “He has to eat something. He hasn’t left that room since you two got back.”

“I know, but he won’t move. He won’t talk. He won’t do anything. I was surprised he even got up to go use the bathroom,” I said.

“His father was an asshole,” Hank grumbled. “He treated Landon like shit.”

“True, but he still loved him,” I replied.

Eric frowned and scratched at the back of his neck. He was in school up in Wisconsin and had driven down the second Raine informed him about what had happened. Greyson was dealing with some of his own personal issues but would be on his way as soon as possible.

“This can’t be good for him, for his mind. You know how dark that place can get for Land. He’s already been through so much shit, and he was getting better. He is getting better, but I feel like this is going to throw a big wrench into his progress,” Eric said. “He’s come so far, but fuck. This is heavy. I don’t know if he can carry the weight of it right now.”

“I’m fine.”

We all looked up to the hallway where Landon was now standing. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, and his shoulders were rounded forward.

“You all don’t have to worry about this,” he commented, tapping on the side of his head. “I’m fine.”

“Dude, you don’t have to be fine right now,” Hank told him. “Your father passed away, and that’s big.”

“Like you said, Hank, he was an asshole and treated me like shit. I’m better off without him. Not like he wanted me anyway.”

Those words pulled at my heart. I stood and walked over to him. “What can we do? How can we help?”

“For starters, you can all stop moping around,” he said, brushing his hand beneath his nose. “I’m fine. Eric, I know you drove a long way down here, but you didn’t have to. I already sent Grey a text and told him to stay where he was. He’s dealing with his own tornado—he doesn’t need to come into mine. I’m just going to nap for a bit. You can all go your own ways.”

He turned on his heels and headed back to my bedroom.

I looked back at our friends, and they all wore somber looks on their faces. “We’ll be right here,” Eric said sternly. “We’re not leaving. Now go ahead—he gestured toward the hallway—

“go take care of our boy.”

I nodded in agreement and turned to walk toward my bedroom. Each step I took felt heavy. I didn’t know how to give Landon what he needed because he wasn’t saying anything. He wasn’t opening up. He wasn’t letting me—or anyone—in.

As I entered my room, I saw his body curled up in a ball. He hugged one of my pillows, and his eyes were shut. He looked so fragile, so broken.

I crawled onto the bed and lay behind him. I wrapped my body around his and snuggled up against him, feeling his chilled skin against my warmth.

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