Going Long (Waiting on the Sidelines #2)(22)

“What the hell?” I said, forgetting for a second why I’d come. I pointed over my shoulder to the strange dude who I did not like feeling so at home in Nolan’s room.

Nolan just rolled her eyes at my gesture, and I would have taken her bait if the cold stare that followed didn’t jolt me back to the entire reason I’d driven here. “Noles, you are soooo off on this one,” I started, but she was quick to cut me off.

“What are you doing here, Reed? Just leave,” she was pale and looked ill. I’d hurt her, and it was killing me.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I said, probably a little too defensively, but I was still worked up. When Gavin interrupted us and reached for my arm it didn’t help things.

“Reed, right? Why don’t we go take a walk or something, hey? She’s had a bit of a day…” he was trying to explain things to me, like he had any part in our lives. It was pissing me off.

“Gavin, right?” I said, mocking his words. “Why don’t you take a walk?” I stood right in his face, our chests inches apart. I was pretty sure if I had to I could break him in half, and part of me wanted to.

Looking for a lifeline, Gavin peered over at Nolan who just rolled her eyes and told him to give us a few minutes. A few minutes? What the f*ck was going on?

Gavin left, letting her know he’d just be upstairs if she needed anything. I did not like this guy. When the door closed, I turned back to Nolan who was sitting up taller on her bed now and pulling her blanket up to her chest. Something was definitely wrong with her; she was sick, maybe? I just wanted to pick her up and put her in my lap and stroke her hair until she fell asleep. But I had to fix the mess my brother made for me first.

“What are you doing here, Reed? Shouldn’t you be somewhere with Dylan?” her words had bite to them, but she also seemed distant and detached. I hated Jason for this chain reaction he’d started, but even more so because he found it all so damned amusing.

“Nolan, Dylan wasn’t there for me. She was there for Jason,” I said, sitting down next to her. She flinched a little at my nearness, and it broke my heart. She was wary of me. “I told you never, Nolan, and I meant it. Never.”

I could tell that the truth was starting to creep into her fortress a little, her eyes pooling a little. She was staring me in the eyes, wordless. I slowly inched closer to her until our legs were touching, and then I placed my hand to her cheek and she shut her eyes, leaning into it a little. The tear that had been threatening to fall finally slid down the side of her face. When she finally looked up at me, she seemed like there was so much she wanted to say, but her mouth would only open and shut, like she was struggling for where to begin. I didn’t need to hear any words, and she didn’t need to say sorry.

“Don’t, just shhhhhh,” I said pulling her close to me and cradling her, kissing her ear and holding her tightly while I rocked her back and forth a little. “It’s okay, baby. It’s okay. It was just a really messed up misunderstanding. It’s okay. We’re okay.”

I held her like that for the next hour, waiting for her to fall asleep, but she never did. When a smile finally tugged at her lips, I felt like we were back on even ground. I lay back with her and clung her to my chest so I could play with the long wisps of hair that were sweeping over her shoulders.

Unable to help myself, I broached the other topic that had been rattling in my head. “So, Gavin’s…nice?” I said, so obviously not a fan.

“Stop, Reed. He’s just a friend, from class. He lives upstairs,” she explained him easily, but I still didn’t like how familiar he was with her.

“Okay, I trust you. But that guy’s a little too comfortable with you,” I pursed my lips and shook my head a bit.

“You’re cute when you’re jealous, you know that?” she poked at my nose, and I bit at her finger teasingly.

“Well, I’m glad you think so…” I trailed off, just staring into her eyes. “So, why was he here?”

She blew the loose hairs in her eyes up with a fast breath and then sent me a sideways grin. “I had a little accident,” she grimaced, almost embarrassed. “I got a little overzealous with my running when I came home. I was a little angry, in my defense. Anyhow, I sort of fainted.”

She was shadowing her face with her hand a little, hiding her embarrassment. I didn’t like that she’d fainted. It wasn’t anything for her to be embarrassed about, but it was something to worry about. I just threaded my fingers through hers and pulled her hand to our sides then leaned forward to press my lips to her forehead, mostly to see if she was running a temperature. Instead, she was extremely cold.

“You probably got dehydrated,” I decided, standing up and walking into her bathroom to fill a cup with water. “You’re still really clammy; you should drink more liquid, okay?” I handed her the cup, and she sat up to drink it, giving me her trademark salute, a cute gesture she’d been doing since we first started dating in high school.

“And Gavin?” I said, biting my lip, not wanting to seem overly suspicious, but still wanting answers.

She put the cup on her night table and nestled back into her blanket and pillow. “He saw me go down. I hit my head pretty hard, and he helped me get back home,” she rubbed at her forehead a bit, and I could see a small bump forming.