Page 95 of Pretty Please Me
“Well, too late.” I drop the phone and shake my head. “There’s no telling what she’s up to now. She’s probably dating that douche-bag, Trent, or someone else by now.”
“I guess you won’t know until you see for yourself,” Wren pipes up, and my eyes dart to her as she nurses Annie.
“So, what am I supposed to do? Get on a plane and go to her?” I scoff. “It’s Christmas Eve. I don’t think I can even call in any favors to get a flight out tonight.”
“Well, then, I guess we’ll just have to take this party on the road,” Jamie says as he waggles his eyebrows.
I shake my head, but everyone jumps up at once.
“I’ll pack you some snacks for the road,” Charlotte calls as she pulls food from the refrigerator and shoves it into a bag.
“I’ll go fill up the tank and make sure there’s air in the tires,” Dad says. “When was the last time you got the oil changed?”
“Two weeks ago. I told you, Dad, you don’t need to treat me like a little kid,” Jamie calls.
I hold my hand up in protest. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. What are you doing? I just got here. I don’t need to be chauffeured in a death mobile by Beavis and Butthead, okay? I’ll figure it out.”
“We don’t have time for that!” Charlotte yells as she shoves a loaf of bread into the bag. “Besides, it would do you boys some good to spend some time together. You can get there by tomorrow morning and surprise her on Christmas if you leave now.”
I look down at my phone and open my photos, finding a candid picture I snapped of Maggie eating cotton candy for the first time as a rush of hope flutters in my chest.
All I can do is try… right? If she says no, then it won’t be any more painful than it already is…
I just hope I’m not too late.
THIRTY-SEVEN
Sam
I can’t believe I’m actually getting in this rundown van with my two moron brothers, but I don’t have time to think of a plan B.
I’m sitting in the van, waiting for Drew to finish shitting since that’s not something any of us want to deal with on this god-awful drive.
I look at my phone for the hundredth time to see if she’s called me back or responded to any of my texts, but no luck. She must really be upset still. It’s not like her not to answer her phone… I try to suppress my fear that something must be wrong. It’s likely nothing, and she’s just ignoring me for all I know. It’s not completely out of the realm of possibility after how I left things.
I dial Benjamin and catch him up to speed.
“I can’t get ahold of her. Do you have any idea where she is? If she’s okay?”
Silence fills the other end of the line, and a beat passes before Benjamin sighs. “Elliot just dropped her off at the bus station. She… uh… she left her phone with Elliot because it’s all a part of the healing experience, and she asked us to look after the studio while she’s gone. You really fucked up this time, Sam…”
“What do you mean? Is she seeing someone? Has she already moved on?”
“She’s not seeing any one person… consistently… but she’s been on a lot of dates.” He sighs again. “She’s happy, dude. She’s got this glow about her she didn’t have before. I don’t mean to be cynical or anything, but I don’t know how this is going to play out for you. I don’t want you to get your hopes up and shut down again.”
I suck in a hiss and clench my fist, half relieved that she’s doing so well—proud, even—and half gutted that she’s not hurting like I am. “I’m already too far gone, Benjamin. It doesn’t matter at this point. I’ll regret it for the rest of my life if I don’t at least try to get her back.”
“Okay, then. Well, I know the bus is stopping overnight in Nebraska. If you hurry, you may be able to catch up to them before they get to Lotus Haven. Once they open the gates, there’s no getting in or out for two weeks.”
“What the fuck is she going to do, cut off from everyone she knows for two weeks?”
“Gee… I don’t know. Maybe she needs somespaceto find herself? Apparently, that’s what the kids are doing these days, running away from their problems and doing mushrooms in the wilderness–”
“I was doing charity work!” I cut him off. “Wait, are they really planning on doing drugs out there? How could you let her do this! What if she gets hurt–”
“I can see your time away did wonders for your control issues. She’s a grown woman, Sam. I don’t know what she’s doing, and I frankly don’t have time to worry about it. Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you left…”
His words burn me like a hot fire poker. “You’re right. Call me if you hear from her, okay? And do you think you can find out information about where they’re staying? Maybe a license plate number for the bus she’s on?”
