Page 52 of Tangled Up

We pull into her aunt’s driveway, and I put it in park, hopping out quickly and jogging around to catch her before she can get all the way out of the passenger’s side.

“Here, let me help.” I reach out to hold her arm, but something has changed.

She pulls away like she just remembered to be pissed at me. My chest tightens, and I mentally fly through everything that just happened, searching for anything I did or said…

I can’t find anything. “Is something wrong?”

“As a matter of fact, yes.” She crosses her arms, looking up at me. “You never gave me a reason.”

My jaw drops, and I hesitate. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“You know what I mean. We’d made promises, Beck. We said we’d make it work. We said we’d talk every night. You were gone one month, and all our promises disappeared.”

My hands fall to my sides, and it’s like a knife to the chest. I’d prepared for a different, difficult conversation. Not this one.

“Carly… It wasn’t like that.”

She tilts her head to the side. “Yeah, it kinda was, and I want a reason.”

“My mom died.”

“Yes.” She slides her arms around her waist in a defensive pose. “But you kept in touch with Henry.”

A knot is in my throat, and I remember those days as if they were yesterday. I was just a kid, and it was like a tornado was let loose in my head.

My dad appeared in my room saying how my mother never wanted me to waste my life on an orphan from Eden by the Sea.

He said she’d made him promise to keep me away from Carly. He said she wanted something better for me. It was so strange and out of character, and I couldn’t figure out why my mom hadn’t talked to me herself, given me a chance to prove her wrong.

“I loved my mother.”

“I know you did.”

“When she died, I was confused.” I’m omitting so much of the story.

“You could have talked to me, but you didn’t. You didn’t believe in us. Why?”

My eyes are fixed on the red brick pavers, and Carly’s are focused on me. She’s determined and angry, and I know I can never tell her the whole truth about what my dad said. His words were hurtful and cruel, and I hate him for them to this day.

I can still remember that night so clearly…

“You think you’ll be the same person in ten years? You won’t even be the same person in five years, and you’ll be tied down by this girl you think you love.” Dad’s voice was bitter and sarcastic like always.

Mine was intense, focused. “I do love her.”

“Grow up, Beck. You don’t marry the first girl you fuck.” He exhaled dramatically, as if I’d caused him to say more than he intended. “Here, let me make it plain. I married your mother too young, and it only took a few years for her to hate me. I don’t want the same future for you.”

“Maybe she hates you because you’re a dick.” I wasn’t holding back anymore. If he took the gloves off, so would I.

Anger flared behind his alcohol-soaked eyes. “This girl is using you. You’ve worked hard. You graduated early, and now you need to focus on med school.”

“Carly is not using me. She’s excited and supportive of me going to med school, even if it means we’ll be apart for a little while. We’ve prepared for that.”

“That’s at least a point in her favor.”

“We’re not breaking up.” My voice was steely, my resolve firm.

“Your mother made me promise…”

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