His Reverie (Reverie #1)(32)

“Yeah, thank God for that.” David clears his throat. “Listen, I’m sorry for everything else too. For lying. For…getting you arrested. For ruining your life and mine too.”

Great. Now he’s the martyr. I want to punch him in the nuts for saying this crap. “When did you get out?”

“Two days ago.” He studies me, all solemn sincerity. “I f**ked up. I don’t know why I did it.”

Anger rises within me, making my skin hot and my blood boil. He thinks he can come see me and not give me a real reason as to why he did what he did? “So that’s all you’ve got?” I yell, making him wince. I feel like I’m going to explode. “You f**ked up? You don’t know why you did it?”

He shrugs, his expression uneasy. “They pressured me.”

“Who? The cops?”

“Well, yeah. I told those detectives who questioned me we were out drinking that night in the park. Not too far from where that guy got beat up. You remember how it was, when the police talked to you? They questioned me for hours. They wouldn’t let up, asking me the same thing over and over again. Telling me we were the ones who did it. That they knew we did it. I was so tired, freaking delirious really, and I finally said yes, we did do it, just to make them stop.” He pauses and I notice there are unshed tears shining in his eyes. I’ve known this kid since we were six. I don’t think I’ve seen him cry in ten years. But those tears are not gonna move me now. Besides he’s giving me details I already know. “I’m sorry bro.”

“Don’t call me bro.” I tip my head back and stare at the ceiling, the water stains there, the wisps of long abandoned spider webs. The detectives questioned me relentlessly too. Doesn’t mean I gave in to their harassment and said that we did it. We didn’t. No matter what they said to me, I wasn’t going to cave. Why would I? We were innocent. “I didn’t do that to you. They questioned me just as long as they talked to you. I stood by the truth.”

“Maybe you were the stronger one then. I was young. Stupid.”

“We’re the same age, ass**le.” I study him, really look at him. He appears way older. And tired. So freaking tired. Do I look that tired and old? Hell, we’re not even eighteen yet. David looks like he’s lived a thousand lives already. “How did you get out anyway?”

“They tried to make other charges stick, about my making false statements to law enforcement when they’re the ones who filled my head with lies. Dad threatened to sue them all, which sprung them into action. When they realized they had nothing to hold me there, especially once they let you go, they dropped all charges and released me,” David explains.

He’s lucky he has his parents to stand by him. I don’t have anyone. “Is that all you’ve got to say then?”

David stares at me, his jaw hanging open like he’s trying to catch flies. I don’t know what he expected. A sappy reunion? My instant forgiveness? He wronged me like no one ever had or probably ever will. He said I helped him kill someone. “I guess so,” he mumbles. “I thought…”

“You thought what? That I’d welcome you back into my life with open arms? That we’d resume our friendship just like it was before you started spewing lies and accusing me of f**king murder?” The rage that consumes me is near overwhelming. I’m shaking, I’m so angry. “You were wrong.”

“I guess so,” David says quietly as he gets up. “I’m sorry, Nick.”

“Fuck you,” I practically spit out. “Your ten minutes are up.”

Without another word David leaves my apartment, closing the door behind him, the sharp click echoing in the otherwise quiet room.

I stand in the center of the living room, my breathing ragged, like I just ran twenty miles. My lungs burn, my eyes sting and my heart…it f**king hurts.

Never could I admit this out loud, especially to David’s face, but I miss my best friend. I wish I could accept him back into my life with open arms. I wish we could pick up where we left off. There’s so much I could tell him, so much I’m sure he could tell me.

But I can’t. He screwed me over and I don’t mean that lightly. The guy—my so called best friend—told the damn cops that he and I got drunk. That we went out looking for trouble and found it with some chubby middle-aged guy getting off work after pulling a late shift. That we took a tire iron to the dude and beat the shit out of him until he collapsed and…died by the side of his car. In the middle of an otherwise empty parking lot.

I remember seeing it on the news. I remember thinking how close we were to that parking lot the night before. We had gone out drinking at the city park not far from that dead guy’s work. David had brought a twelve pack of beer, one he’d stolen from his dad. We drank it fast and were buzzing pretty hard. We were trying to bond after our fight about Krista.

My best friend and my girl, f**king. I’d been pissed. Not hurt so much by Krista’s betrayal, but from David’s.

Then he went and betrayed me even further.

I collapse on the couch and sling my arm over my eyes. My chest aches. Everything hurts and it’s not a physical pain. More like a throbbing deep in my bones, buried in my heart.

Scarred all over my soul.

I need out of this place. It’s no good here. I stay in this apartment, in this town, hanging out with the same people, I’m just spinning my wheels. Going nowhere.