Page 140 of Collision
“Um, yeah…I mean, nothing serious. The thing is, yesterday I was so scared, Vanessa. I have never seen Travis react like that before.”
I swallow hard, a strange sense of anxiety settles in my stomach. “After you left with Thomas, I took Travis home and told our parents everything. I thought Travis was going to have another freak-out. I was afraid of that, in fact. But this morning he decided he’s going to go into the Army.”
I am astounded. “What?”
“Apparently he can’t deal with all the horrible stuff he’s done in this last year. He says he’s hit rock-bottom, that he doesn’t recognize himself anymore and he wants to redeem himself.” Though she says it all in an impassive tone, I can sense a note of hurt in her voice.
“And he thinks he can do that by enlisting in the military? What happened to all his plans for the future? The economics degree? Basketball? Your dad?” Travis had always lived exclusively to impress his father. Basketball and college were just pretexts to get paternal approval. I can’t believe he’s throwing it all away.
Tiffany rolls her eyes. “Dad went ballistic. He’d already managed to get at least two sponsor contracts, so you can imagine how he reacted when he heard. But Travis was adamant about it this time.”
So he’s really leaving, then. I can’t tell how this news makes me feel. On the one hand I feel sympathy for him, but Travis does need to get himself together, that’s for sure.
“That’s unbelievable…” I say, staring down at my comforter. “When does he leave?”
“In a few days. This all just happened; it was a very sudden decision. He’s requested immediate transfer to basic training.”
“And are you okay with that?” I ask her, knowing how close she is to him despite everything.
Tiffany shrugs and gives me a resigned look. “I just want to be able to look him in the eyes and see my brother again. If West Point is the solution to his problems, then so be it.”
“I think so too, girls. Travis has been really lost this last year, and a change of scenery will be good for him,” Alex interjects, a polite reassurance. “And Nessy, get it through your head that you have nothing to be sorry about. I don’t want to hear you saying anything like that.” I smile at him sweetly.
“Tiff, do you want to share this sandwich with me?” I ask her to break up some of the tension. The three of us get better settled on the bed and eat dinner while watching a horror movie on Netflix.
After the first hour we get bored by the plot and start talking about something else entirely. Tiffany and Alex are dying to know how everything went down with Thomas and me after seeing us so cozy in the pool. But, alas, I have no good news to report. Though I don’t have much enthusiasm for the tale, I decide to tell them what happened this morning between Thomas and the woman downstairs. I tell them about how, last night, after the mess with Travis, we went to his house and I stayed there all night, leaving early this morning.
“I’d just fallen asleep and then, all of a sudden, I heard his voice. I went downstairs and found him standing in the doorway, can you imagine? My mother was furious, he was furious-er. They were glaring at each other like two lions about to throw down.”
“And then what happened?” Alex’s voice is interested.
“Nothing. I let him in, Mom freaked out, and he, shockingly, felt compelled to act like an idiot.” This confuses Alex, and he gestures for me to be more specific, so I continue, “He told her he’d just stepped in dog poop. Right after blowing cigarette smoke in her face. It was a lie, obviously. He just wanted to provoke her.” I roll my eyes and shake my head, still remembering my mother’s gobsmacked expression.
Tiffany’s eyes bug out, and she begins to laugh uproariously.
“What? My God, I can’t believe I missed that!”
“Well, it’s not really anything new. Esther White loses it becausesome dude got her carpet dirty. I’d say that’s pretty common, actually.” Alex laughs.
“Okay. I will admit that it was kind of funny to see her just quivering with rage and not knowing how to react. I’ve never seen anyone else succeed in shutting Esther White up, so I have to give him credit for that. But in hindsight, it was a stupid thing to do, given that I am now completely forbidden from having anything to do with him.” I snort in frustration. “She still treats me like I’m a child. It’s unreal.”
“But you’re almost twenty years old. You need to start standing up for yourself,” Tiffany says. She pauses before continuing, “You can’t let her boss you around like that anymore.” Alex nods with conviction.
“Do you think I don’t know that? Do you think I like any of this? It’s gotten to the point where she’s threatening me. She has lost her mind,” I blurt out.
“What?” Tiffany sounds shocked as she sits up straighter.
I nod. “She told me very clearly that if I don’t do as she says, she will take everything away from me.” They both stare at me in disbelief for a few seconds.
“But you know what? It doesn’t matter anymore.”
“Why?” asks Alex frowning.
“After my mother left, guess what happened? Thomas and I had a fight. For the thousandth time since I’ve met him. I told him to leave, and he did. And he didn’t contact me again all day. So, you know what that means.” I bring my knees to my chest and rest my forehead against them. I feel so despondent.
“Come on, you don’t think he…” Alex begins. But there’s no need to finish the sentence, we all know what he’s alluding to.
I nod. Because that’s exactly what I think. I lift my head in his direction. “We’re talking about Thomas here. The fact that he couldn’t get what he wanted from me doesn’t mean he won’t go looking for it somewhere else. Plus he was pissed off. And, believe me, that never leads to anything good.”
