Page 33 of Begrudgingly Yours
The look on his face is devastating. “Please, Rory. I want to explain.”
“I can’t,” I hiss at him. “I just… I can’t right now, Jett.” And this time, when I walk away, he lets me.
There isn’t any air in my lungs until I walk through thefront door of my house. The second it closes behind me, I feel like I can finally breathe. It’s embarrassing that I’m falling apart like this. I met myscent match, and that moment is ruined by the fact that said match has known this information foryearsnow.
Opal comes around the corner. Her eyes widen when she sees me. “Whoa, Rory, are you okay?” She comes to my side and rubs my back as I’m bent over panting and trying to breathe through the angry tears.
“I’m fine,” I say, but I know I’m not. I look at her, her scent completely invisible alongside my cranberry one. My perfume is the only scent here in this house, and that acknowledgment has me turning my attention to her. “Have you told Sam yet?”
Opal flinches. “No. I haven’t had any time to process how to go about it.”
“You’ve had nothingbuttime,” I nearly scream at her. Even as I speak, I know I’m projecting but I can’t stop the words as they tumble out. “You can’t let this go on much longer. At some point, you have totell him, before it’s too late and you’re years into keeping a secret that you can’t fucking get out of!”
Opal is observant, so she looks at me with a raise in her brow. Before she can get me to talk, I dash around her to get to my room. Again, when the door is shut, I release as much anguish as I can. The first tear is the hardest, because it comes out simultaneously angry and sad .
It’s the absolute worst moment for my phone to ring. When I look to see who it is, my mother’s name stares back at me. I feel a scream come up my throat but I swallow it and bury it deep down. I shut my phone off completely and toss it to the side. I can’t deal with any more craziness right now.
I crawl into my bed despite the sun being out and envelop myself underneath the covers, leaving all the problems in my life to be dealt with another day.
EIGHTEEN
Playing: Just Another Girl by The Killers
“Please.Just tell me the way to your best friend’s heart,” I say to Stacia from my spot on the floor.
“Don’t put me in the middle of this.” She’s sitting in Ciro’s lap as they share a packet of M&Ms. The rest of her mates take up space on the couch, their attention focused on their game of Halo. Everett is sitting in the recliner, laughing at me.
“Hey, you want to know as badly as I do.” I throw my empty bottle of water at his face and miss.
I know I shouldn’t push my luck. Asking Stacia for advice is probably crossing an unspoken boundary, but the few shots I took with Ciro when we got here is blurring it for me.
“Stacia—” I start but she interjects.
“I swear if you two are the reason why she and Opal couldn’t come tonight, I will get one of my mates to steal your skates so I can dull them on thesidewalk.”
I put my hand on my chest dramatically. “There’s no need to get violent.”
“Why would that be the reason? Did she say something?” Everett asks.
“I invited them but after she found out who was going to be here she declined. Something about an early rehearsal tomorrow.” Stacia waves her hand casually. Everett and I exchange looks, ones that say‘Yeah, that might be our fault.’
“Well, Sam and his pack are also coming, maybe they’re the reason,” I huff stubbornly.
Stacia sighs. “No, I’m sure it’s the truth. She’s taking an analytical Shakespeare class and got cast as Juliet for this semester’s play. She’ll be going to a lot of rehearsals soon.”
“Oh, my sister is in that class. That’s amazing,” I say sincerely. Even in my disappointment, I feel myself preen with pride. I had no idea Rory got cast in a play recently but that’s nothing short of incredible. I knew she was an actor from our night together. She spoke very highly of the art, so I know it’s something she is very passionate about.
I almost told her about my mother from excitement but stopped myself. It’s not public knowledge, so I can’t tell anyone but my pack. Even though I’m sure my other friends would take it in stride.
Ciro’s chuckle pulls me from my thoughts. He’s looking at me with amusement. “Damn dude, I’ve never seen you look like that.”
I cough slightly. “I just think that’s wonderful for her. She deserves it.”
Stacia looks at me with inquisitive eyes, but my phone rings before she can say anything else. I check the caller ID and excuse myself.
“Hey,” I answer as I walk into the kitchen.
“Have any of our parentals called you?” my sister asks.
