Page 169 of The Breaking Pointe
“Thanksbro,thisis—thankyou.”Thedadbecomes flustered with happiness as Grayson admires his souvenir. “Oh, and uh, I’ll see you guys at the fight, alright?Seatingis pretty close,” I add, holding out the tickets with a shrug. “Real tickets?”Grayson asks, lowering his voice with wide
eyes.
“Yeah.Real ones.”I nod, laughing softly.
He throws himself at me, hugging me as tight as his small arms could allow, “Thank you,” he says into my shirt.
Hisenergyissowarm,Icanfeelitmeltingintome.
“Yo, Cole, I don’t wanna interrupt, but we gotta go,” Trey says, getting in the driver’s seat.
Grayson pulls away from me and says, “See you at the fight?”
I nod, watching him back away with his dad as his dad repeatedly mouths to me,“Thank you.”
Giving one morewave, I nod.“See youthen, little man,”I
say with a smile, hunching over into the car and closing the door.
Trey, waiting in place, smirks at me as I get situated in my seat.
“What?” I ask, confused by his silence. “You’re like a little celebrity.”He chuckles.
“Oh, shut up.” I laugh quietly, shaking my head. “Look, could you do me a favor on your way back to your place?”
He starts the car, agreeing before I can even finish. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll do the favor,” he says in a fake, dreadful voice.
I smile, digging in my pocket for my wallet and retrieving it. I open it and pull out a folded, rectangular paper, setting it in the cup holder with the extra tickets.
“This is the check for the studio. Would you be so kind as to drop it off at Cheswick’s for me?” I ask.
He watches my actions then half smiles.“No shit.You really got it done?”
“Course I did. I told myself I would, and honestly, making it happen really helped me a lot with finding my love for art again. She deserves this, Trey. It’s the closest I’m getting to marriage without being married yet.”
He scrunches his brows. “Marriage? That doesn’t scare you?”I think for a moment, but not long.“No.In fact, it makes me excited.I just can’t jump into that.I have to be patient. Right now she needs this, not a ring.”
He nods, slowly. “Alright, my man. Proud of you.”
At times, Trey says the things I would’ve loved to hear my father say. He knows I need to hear it. No matter what happens, he’s the male figure I’ve always needed. He never left my side, and reminded me who I was, and what I’m always able to achieve.
“Thank you, Trey. You never let me officially lose it. You believed in me,” I tell him, right before he drives off.
“If I had a kid, it would be similar to this. I may not have decades on you, but I have lots of years.Our bond means something to me.I love you, Cole.I’m just happy you’re finally seeing yourself the way others do.”
Yeah.I have to say that I agree.
* * *
“Elle, I’m home!” I call through the house as I set all of my things down on the floor by the front door. Looking around, I wait for a response, but receive nothing.I mosey my way upstairs to see if I can find a source of life there.
“Elle?”Iaskintotheopenagain,takingalookinto the guest rooms and bathroom before walking toward our bedroom.
Upon entering, I see a hump in the bed and red hair dangling over the edge, hanging from a body stuffed under the covers. The room is quiet, with nothing running to make a sound except the ceiling fan.On the floor is the small garbage can from the bathroom, sitting at her bedside. To go with her set up was numerous tissues, crumbled up and laying beside her—some on the nightstand.
I get closer to her, sitting on the edge to look over her shoulder and see her face glistening as she sleeps. Resting the back of my hand on her head softly, I instantly feel that her body temperature is abnormal.Peeking into the garbage can, I stand up, picking it up with me once I notice the bits of vomit in it. I then head to the bathroom and set it down, thenopenthecabinettogetathermometerandwhatever
kind of flu medication I can find.Keeping my motions going, I stuff the plug in the bathtub and turn on the water, making sure it runs at a warm to hot temperature, just the way she likes. Picking up a washcloth, I dip it in the water then ring it out and take it with me, along with the thermometer and medicine, back to the room.
