Page 16 of Setting Limits

“Shay should be here tonight. She hasn’t spent the night in a few days.” My routine argument.

“She should be with me, because she prefers to be.” His usual comeback.

“You can sleep here.” Not that I want him to. But I miss Shay. I rarely see her these days.

“I don’t like sleeping here with the small bed and all the noise. Besides, she was just here two days ago.”

“No. She was supposed to be, but decided to spend the night with you instead.”

“Well, that’s not my fault, and I shouldn’t be punished for it.” Lochlyn and I have been going back and forth like this for almost twenty minutes.

“Would the two of you just fuckingstopalready? I can’t take this shit anymore!” Loch and I freeze and look at her. “You’re acting like children fighting over a toy. I’m not a thing; I’m a person.”

“We know that, Shay. We just both want to spend time with you.” There’s a newfound gentleness to my voice. I don’t need or want to be as bossy with Shay anymore. Anybody, really. But the habit is harder to break with Lochlyn.

“I’ll make this simple. I’m going to spend time with who I want, when I want. We’re all here together right now. If the two of you could get over your petty bullshit and make up already, then things would be easier. You both need to understand who the other person is and that they have a role in my life.” She’s angrier than I’ve ever seen her, and I’m starting to worry about what the cause of this behavior is.

Lochlyn, who’s been leaning up against the wall while sitting on her bed, slides forward so that his legs are on either side of her and wraps an arm around her chest, kissing her neck. I’d look away if I wasn’t concerned about Shay. “What’s wrong, baby?”

Instead of leaning into him, she shrugs him off. “Nothing.”

That’s when Lochlyn and I lock eyes. It’s the first time in weeks, and neither gaze is filled with anger, but instead full of worry for Shay.

“Are you having trouble in your classes?” It’s a venture I have to try, though I’m sure it’s not possible.

“No, Chelsea, that would be you.”

I jerk back at her response. Not only is it rude in a way sheneveris, but the tone is straight up nasty. “Wow, Shay. If you’re mad at me about something, just say so.”

“I’m not mad! Christ, can’t you just see I’m tired of being talked about like an object rather than a damn person who has opinions and can make her own decisions about who she sees and what she does and when!”

Lochlyn hops off the bed and grabs her hand, dragging her out the door before I get a chance to respond.

I haveno ideawhat is bothering her, but if anybody can get to the bottom of it, it’s Lochlyn.

They’re gone for a solid twenty minutes, and when they come back in, it’s crystal clear that Shay has been crying…hard.

I’m immediately on my feet and wrapping my arms around her, squeezing her tightly. When I let her go, I start to ask what happened, but she holds a hand up and stops me.

“I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“We’re going to stay here tonight.” Lochlyn speaks firmly, not allowing any room for argument, even though he and I still aren’t on great terms, and he hasn’t spent more than an hour or two here since they got back together. Not to mention the strong argument he just madeagainststaying here. Clearly, whatever happened changed his mind enough.

“Yeah, okay, that’s fine.” It is, because it’s what Shay needs.

“Are you sure?” Shay’s voice holds nothing but sincerity in wanting to know if he’s okay with it.

He nods. “I think you need both of us right now.” At least he and I are on the same page.

He climbs up on her bed, building what seems like a fort in the corner and leans against it, holding his arms out to Shay. She quickly scrambles up and curls into his side. When she’s settled, he offers to put on a movie, and I can tell she’s relaxed by how she’s resting. Her body looks less tense.

Shay falls asleep quickly. I’m sure the crying exhausted her. She always seems to doze off peacefully in Lochlyn’s embrace. Clearly, she’s very comfortable there.

“Loch. What the hell happened?” The way she was so upset, the way she acted before Lochlyn took her outside, all of it was too out of character for Shay for the reason not to be something huge.

“Tomorrow.” When he says nothing more, I’m left to think on it. And just before I ask him, thinking I’ve come up empty, it smacks me across the face the way Shay should have.

“Fuck. We suck.” Tomorrow is the anniversary of Shay’s dad’s death, and Lochlyn and I have been so wrapped up in our own shit, we forgot. My heart feels heavy, and a weight settles in my stomach as I realize that I, yet again, failed my best friend.

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