Filed to story: You’re Mine Read Online Free
Harper soon appears in the parking lot, heading toward Sadie’s car, and I know all hell is about to break loose as Blake follows behind her and hands her a scrunchie. Really?
A fucking scrunchie?
I hear him say,
“You dropped this after gym.”
He winks at her, tuffles her hair and says,
“Good game, thanks for handing me my ass. It was actually more fun losing, I think.”
He looks over at me and smiles.
“Maybe winning first isn’t where it’s at these days…”
I want to kill him. Blood pumps through my body as my nostrils flare. Ryan grabs me before I can run after Blake or just hop into my car, start the engine, and run him over.
“Not worth it, man,”
Ryan says quickly.
“Look, maybe we should just head out and talk or something?
You could use it”
Hell yeah I could, but I want to talk to Harper. The minute my eyes search for her again, she’s already hopping into Sadie’s car and putting on her seatbelt.
“Wait!”
I call out. She hesitates putting it on.
I wait for her to get out. Instead, she looks away and clicks herself in while Sadie gives me the finger and burns out of the parking lot, like she’s getting chased by the devil after stealing his horns.
I curse until Ryan again informs me that people are watching, then I blindly crawl into my Jeep and follow him to the pizza place by his house. I don’t remember him ordering.
I don’t even remember eating my first slice of pizza before he cracks his knuckles and says,
“Tell me everything, like you’re a girl on a super dramatic reality show. Then, tell me why you look so equally pissed and sad.”
I grit my teeth and stare at my empty plate.
“Other than, you know…the incident.”
“Is the whole tree thing called the incident now?
I like that better than”
“Yes,”
l interrupt him.
“For the love of God, can we not talk about it anymore?”
He lifts up his hands in surrender.
“Fine by me, again, it’s my sister. If I could bleach my brain I would.”
I shrug.
“I’m sure your mom feels the same way.”
He shudders.
“I have constant secondhand embarrassment and horror, just so you know.”
“I’ll have nightmares of her face for life.”
I take a sip of my Coke and lean back in the chair, explaining how everything went down.
Pure anger flows through me as I explain how much it hurt that Harper didn’t tell their parents she had a fucking boyfriend who also happens to be her brother’s best friend.
And then I rage about the chaos that is Leigh. And to his credit, Ryan sits there and listens, though I can tell I’m stressing him out too because he’s had five Cokes and he hates soda.
I’m sure he wishes each of the Cokes had rum in them.
Give me a damn bottle at this point.
“So…”
Ryan winces.
“I think you quys need to sit down and talk. I know why you kept it and I still support it, the picture that is, but she’s so stressed out, man. Mom and Dad were not easy on her after…the tree.”
He clears his throat.
“And, on top of that, she doesn’t have her phone, she can’t even communicate with you right now and seeing that on your screen couldn’t have been easy after all the lies and drama.
I know Sadie isn’t being helpful either because girls have this need to stick together like they do when one has to pee and seventeen of them get up and go. The point is, I know my sister.
It’s going to be fineeventually.
Just be patient.
She’s stressed about finals too, after being so sick, and this is just as new to her as it is to you.”
The man has a point.
I nod as the bell on the restaurant door goes off and Aisha walks in with Julia and maybe because I’m stressed and sad as fuck I lose my censor and end up barking out,
“Why the fuck are you always finding us?”
Aisha rears back, her face a mask of innocence.
“Can we not eat pizza?”
“You always said you hated this place because it was a greasy, toxic dump.”
Ryan sips more Coke.
“So, no… and sorry they don’t have any salad. Grab a fucking baked cookie or slice of greasy pepporoni and leave.”
Julia goes pale. Aisha juts her chin out.
“We just came here to grab a quick soda.”
lroll my eyes.
“Whatever, dude.”
I slap some bills on the table.
“We were just leaving anyway.”
Aisha has the audacity to pout.
“Aw, we were going to join you, remember last time we were here and ”
“Gonna stop you right there.”
I hold out my hand.
“I’ve had a shit day and you’re giving me actual stalker vibes. We’re out, enjoy your diet soda and don’t forget to puke up whatever food you eat after so you can stay a size two.”
Julia’s eyes widen. Aisha looks ready to cry. I honestly don’t care anymore. I leave the restaurant with Ryan.
“A bit harsh,”
he says under his breath.
“Even though she’s a bitch.”
“It’s not normal,”
I find myself saying as I unlock my Jeep.
“How often she finds us.”
He frowns.
“You’re right.”
I shake my head.
“Hey, I’ll text you later.”
“Let me know how I can help.”
“Yup.”
I feel like shit my entire drive home.
Harper
“It would be so much easier if I still didn’t feel like shit!”
I throw myself onto my bed as Sadie paces back and forth as if that’s going to help the trauma of the day. Why can’t things be easier?
I do love him. I do. I just feel betrayed. Hurt.
And exhausted, quite honestly, I could nap for ten days and probably still not feel rested.
Maybe it’s the fact that I was so sick and jumped right back into school, the trauma of my mom finding us, or feeling guilty over not telling my parents about the love of my life.
Wow, take your pick.
“He’s an asshole,’ she finally says.
“Let him sweat it out a bit.”
“Would you?”
I ask.
“Let Ryan sweat it out?
Or would you communicate?
Hear him out?
Be mature?
I don’t even know what I want to do. One minute, I want to run Easton over, the next I want to hold him and never let go.
He’s mine, Sadie. Mine. I love him. I just…I don’t understand this side of him. The one that’s still holding back, the one that’s afraid.”
She sighs.
“Love is scary, babe. No matter how young or old you are.
It has no prejudices, it is what it is. One day, it cuts you so deep you think you might bleed out, the next day you wonder how you ever lived without that feeling.
It doesn’t take sides. It simply exists and you live in it because on those good days, the really good fucking days, you can’t imagine waking up without your person.
You can’t imagine breathing one more second without that person holding your hand and standing by your side.
So yeah, while this all sucks, I know if you really love each other, you’ll get through it, fight for it, and come out on the other side. Until then.”
She claps her hands.
“He’s dead to us.”
I laugh, I can’t help it, and then I burst into tears again.
“I’m sorry, I’m just so emotional these days.
I hate that I missed school when I was sick, and I feel so much pressure over finals and getting into college.
Things with Aisha still feel like a true crime story ready to unravel and Blake…”
I stop myself. Sadie tilts her head.
“Blake seemed extra friendly today. Wanna talk about that?”
I shrug.
“He was pretty tame. Normal.
He wanted to be my partner in gym. I let him because honestly everyone else was pairing up while I was throwing a pity party and he just seemed…nice.”
“Was he nice?”
she asks, examining her fingernails.
“For Blake, I mean, since all the Aisha shit?”
“He was. We had fun.”
I smile.