Page 106 of Collision
“I have class until the afternoon and practice after that. I’ll give you my keys and, after you finish class, you can go take a nice hot shower without anyone hassling you. You won’t even need your car, it’s a five-minute walk off campus,” he turns, pointing toward the fraternities.
“But you don’t have anything to make up to me.” I give him a smile.
“I feel a little responsible for last night.” He shrugs.
“Don’t worry. Thomas is an adult, he should be able to handle himself. As for your offer, um, I don’t know…”
“Come on, Nessy, I insist. You can’t go a whole day without bathing.” He teases me by pulling a disgusted face. He’s not entirely wrong,though. My shift at the Marsy starts at six thirty, and the repairman comes at five. I have no idea how long it will take him to fix the water heater, but there’s a good chance I won’t make it in time.
“Okay, but aren’t all your frat brothers there? I don’t want any nasty surprises.”
“Not a problem, I’ll let them know. You should still lock the door, though.” He walks backward away from me and throws me a ring of keys as he does it. “Purple’s the front door key. Green’s my room. Make yourself at home.”
I stick them in my bag and check the time. That little chat with Matt took me longer than I’d thought. I have class in about five minutes, and I really can’t miss it. I’m going to have to give Thomas his car keys in class. Or maybe now, since he’s just a few feet away, chilling in the entrance of the building. His back is turned, and he’s wearing sweatpants and a black sweatshirt with the hood pulled up over his head. Even from behind, I can see that he is agitated as he argues with Leila. They both look very nervous. I am too far away to hear what they’re saying, but when I see Thomas haul off and punch the wall to the right of him, I rush over to them.
“Hey.” I gently touch his arm, in an attempt to calm him down. He shies away from me like a mad dog. I stay by his side and look at him, his expression furious, so I turn my attention to Leila, whose eyes are glittering and red.
“I’ve already told you, I’m not coming,” he rages at his sister, ignoring my presence.
“This could be the last time. He would like to—” she presses.
“Have you already forgotten what he did to us?” He reaches out toward her in a furious gesture, but Leila doesn’t seem at all intimidated.
“Please, if you just—”
“I saidno!” Thomas is about to unleash another punch at the wall, but this time I grab his arm with both hands and stop him. Only at this point does he seem to notice my presence.
“Thomas, calm down. We are on campus,” I remind him. He twists out of my grasp and leaves without giving me a backward glance. Iwatch him walk away as I try to put the pieces of this puzzle together, but I can’t figure it out. I turn toward Leila, who looks as astonished as I am.
“Vanessa…I’m so sorry,” she whispers, running her hands over her face in an exasperated gesture.
“Don’t worry about it. Are you okay? What happened?” I ask, a little uncomfortable.
“It’s impossible to reason with him!” She slams her palm against the wall in front of her. The Collins siblings have a serious problem with anger management.
“What were you trying to reason with him?”
She sighs, massaging one temple. “Our father is not doing well. Our uncle got in touch with us. He’s trying to reunite the family, a family that fell apart long time ago.” She leans her back against the wall and looks up at the ceiling.
“Is that why he’s so angry?”
She nods. “He doesn’t want to go. He doesn’t want to hear anything about it…” She shakes her head, dejected.
“Why?”
She looks hesitantly at me, as though debating how much to tell me. “It’s complicated.” I hate that word. I hate it with all my heart. Typically people use it when they’ve done something wrong and don’t know how to come clean.
“Leila, I’m just worried about him. Yesterday we were together all afternoon and he was fine. Then in the evening he came to the bar where I work, got drunk, and started babbling nonsense… He said… He said he was grieving,” I whisper, looking around to make sure no one is listening. Leila seems to freeze.
“He told you that?”
I nod, my heart in my throat.
“Listen, this isn’t a good time for Thomas. Not really for anyone in our family, but for him in particular. He’ll get over it, but maybe it’s better if you stay away from him for a little while.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I ask defensively. I don’t like at allthe idea of having to back away from him again. Especially if he is going through an emotional time.
“Because I know that you guys are friends, or whatever you are trying to be. And I know that my brother, when he’s at his worst, destroys every good thing around him.” I’m about to protest but her miserable look stops me.
