Life After Taylah(23)
I turn to him, but he keeps speaking.
“You think if you don’t do what your father wants, you’re letting him down. You’re scared it’ll be the end of him, because he won’t be able to cope.”
I turn back and stare at the ocean.
“You can’t live like that, Avery. It’s not fair to you.”
“I’m fine with it, Nate. I care about Jacob.”
“Is that the truth?”
I turn to him. “Yes.”
It’s not.
He sighs and drops it. “All this sadness calls for only one thing.”
I look at him as he stands and stretches his hand out towards me.
“What?” I ask, hesitating.
“The best thing for sadness . . . is dancing.”
I shake my head and roll my eyes. “No way.”
“Come on, Dancer, I swear it’ll make you smile. Don’t let all this ruin your night.”
“No thanks.” I laugh softly.
“Fine, I’ll bring out the big guns.”
He stands in front of me, and, I’m not even kidding, he begins wiggling his hips. He starts making sounds to match the intro of “Knee Deep.” He does a great version of an air guitar and then he slaps his thigh while spinning in circles.
“What are you doing?” I laugh.
“Knee deep in the water somewhere,” he sings, slapping his thighs. “Come on, Dancer!”
I shake my head, giggling uncontrollably.
He keeps singing the song at the top of his lungs, spinning around and waving his arms about like a lunatic. He reaches down, takes my arm and pulls me to my feet. He spins me around and I squeal. He jerks me back and we’re dancing wildly, his arms around me, our hands pointed out beside us. He struts us down the beach, and I throw my head back laughing, unable to stop the feeling of pure joy spreading through me.
He whistles the tune as he dips me backwards and pulls me back up. Another two twirls, some more strutting and a final bow later and we’re on the sand, laughing so hard our bellies hurt. “I. Haven’t. Laughed. So. Hard. In. Forever,” I gasp, rubbing my stomach to try and ease it. There’s some serious knotting up going on.
“I’m good for some things, it seems.” He laughs, lying back in the sand. I lay back beside him.
“I’m kind of glad we became friends,” he admits.
“I make a pretty good friend,” I add.
“When you’re not sulking.”
“Hey!”
He laughs.
“No shit, Dancer. I’m pretty glad I met you.”
~*~*~*~
NATE
“You’re late,” Lena says, flicking the television off as I walk in.
“It’s only just past midnight,” I say, dropping my keys and kicking my boots off.
“I wanted you home so we could spend some time together. Instead you sent me home with Macy and left me to sit here all night.”
I stare at her, annoyed. “Can I ever just come in to you acting normal? Macy was tired; you didn’t ask me to come with you. You told me you would take her home. If you wanted me to come with you, then all you had to do was ask. I’m not a god damned mind-reader.”
“I said be home by midnight.”
“It’s quarter past!” I bark.
She crosses her arms. “Did you stay at the beach, or did you go elsewhere?”
I raise my brows. “You’re not going there, are you?”
“Well, you’re late and I know how the women are with you. They see you and they go crazy.”
“I was at the beach with the guys. There were no women.”
“Avery is a woman.”
I grunt. “Avery is their family.”
“That doesn’t mean she’s not an extremely attractive woman.”
I turn and walk down the hall. “I’m not having this conversation.”
She mutters something, but I don’t stop to listen. I walk into the room, slam the door and sit on the bed. My heart aches. I can’t explain the feeling of coming home to a woman that makes your heart throb in the worst possible way. Depression sinks deep into my soul when I’m here, and it’s slowly eating away at me. How do you find happiness when you’re so consumed by darkness?
I don’t know a way out.
I’m trapped.
CHAPTER 8
AVERY
Three weeks later.
Nate: No.
Avery: Yes.
Nate: Dancer. No.
Avery: Nate. Yes.
Nate: N.O.
Avery: Y.E.S.
Nate: Are you always so bossy?
Avery: Mostly. Is that a yes?
Nate: No.
Avery: Don’t be such a baby.
Nate: Bite me.
Avery: Come here so I can.
Nate: Nice try.
Avery: You’re being difficult.
Nate: You would have to kill me before I dressed up like a fuckin’ ballet dancer and spun you around.