He shook his head. “I’d do it all again in a heartbeat.”
We sat up drinking the blackest of coffee and not saying a thing. Daddy and I were pretty good at being silent with each other. It always felt right. Right before I was about to head back to bed, he paused. “An English teacher asked a student to name two pronouns. What did the student ask?”
I smiled at his joke and answered it. Who, me?
He chuckled to himself. “Who, me.” As he walked toward his bedroom, he turned back my way and told me the truth he’d been avoiding telling himself.
“I miss her.”
Even through the struggles—even through the hurt—he still loved her. That was the thing about love. It didn’t leave because you told it to go. It simply stayed quiet, bleeding out from the pain, still praying you wouldn’t let it slip away.
“He hasn’t unpacked,” Cheryl said to me from the living room.
Daddy sat at the kitchen island drinking yet another cup of coffee. It’d been a week since we moved into the new apartment, but his bedroom still lived within boxes.
“Why do you think?”
He’s waiting for her to tell him to come home.
Cheryl’s eyes dulled, and her brows grow closer in thought. “Mom’s no better. Not trying to judge, but by the greasiness of her hair, and the swarm of flies following her around, I doubt she’s even showering.”
I snickered at my dramatic sister.
“Love is hard, isn’t it?”
Yup.
“That’s why I’m just going to get a cat. Cats don’t need anything from you except for food and a place to poop. That’s all I want from relationships, too. Give me some tacos and a toilet for the aftermath of tacos, and I’ll live happily ever after. I’m definitely going to get myself a cat. And maybe tacos for dinner. Will you come over and clean the litter box for me?”
No. Probably not.
“Okay then. I’m definitely not getting a cat.”
I snickered. My cell phone started ringing, and I answered using FaceTime.
“Hey, sis!” Calvin said, smiling into his phone.
I waved, and Cheryl popped over to be seen.
“Hey, Brother!” she shouted, waving.
“Ah, two for the price of one. Digging the dreadlocks, little sister. I’m out in LA with the guys for some meetings and stuff, and I only have a few minutes before the next one starts. But I was calling to ask for your help, Maggie.”
I arched an eyebrow.
“I called Brooks, and he sounded pretty wasted when he answered. He wouldn’t talk to me for long, but I think he’s in bad shape. I know he told you he needed space, and I know you were only giving it to him because he gave you your space in the past, but this is different. I get him needing time to collect his thoughts, but I don’t think that’s what he’s doing. I think he’s doing the complete opposite, and I was hoping you could go check on him.”
The answer was yes. If Brooks was lost, I’d be there for him. In a heartbeat. Sometimes, when people thought they needed space, they really needed anything but.
Drive me up there? I asked my sister.
She nodded. “Of course.” She rubbed her stomach. “Can we stop for tacos, first? Because—tacos.”
Raindrops fell over the small town of Messa as Cheryl and I pulled up to the cabin. We unloaded my suitcases and went to the front porch. I’d knocked on the door a few times, receiving no reply from Brooks. My stomach was in knots, thinking the worst thoughts possible. I was thankful that Mrs. Boone gave me a spare key when she heard I was coming up to stay with Brooks for a while.
Turning the knob, the front door opened, and Brooks was nowhere to be found, which was odd, because his car was sitting parked out front.
Maybe he walked into town.