Boys Like You

“Please?”

I glanced back toward Nathan, but he was talking up some huge guy with massive shoulders. Football was written all over him.

Rachel took a sip of the beer in her hand and then tossed it, but her eyes never left me. What did she want? Did I want to know?

“Sure,” I said and followed Rachel past the line of trees on this side of the clearing. She stopped a few feet in, her back to me, and it took a few seconds for me to realize that she was crying. Her shoulders shook and a sob echoed into the night.

I wasn’t sure what to do and, honestly, was about to take off, when she turned around so fast, she nearly fell.

Feeling weird about all of this, I took a step back.

She sniffled loudly. “Nathan’s a good guy.” Her voice broke and she wiped her hand under her nose, shoulders hunched as she looked at me from behind her raccoon-like eyes.

I didn’t know what to say so I stayed silent.

“I miss him, you know? But it’s over between us.” She wrapped her arms around her body and shook her head. “I think it was over before that night.”

I didn’t get it. “Why are you telling me this?”

Rachel smiled, a sad sort of smile that never reached her eyes. She shrugged. “I don’t know why.” She looked down at the ground. “He was going to break up with me that night. Bailey told me. So I kept feeding him beers whenever I got the chance. Anything to keep him from telling me we were over.”

When she glanced back at me, I saw the same pain in her eyes that I saw in Nathan’s.

“I’m just as much to blame as Nathan is for what happened that night.”

“Maybe you should tell him that,” I whispered.

She shoved her hands behind her back and sighed. “Maybe.” She paused. “I hear you’re heading back to New York City tomorrow.”

I nodded.

“Nathan’s a good guy. I’m glad he found some kind of peace with you.”

“Thanks,” I mumbled, not really knowing how to respond to that. So I kept it simple. “Have a good…night,” I managed to say.

Abruptly I turned and plowed through the trees until I made it back to the clearing. I spied Brent almost immediately, there near the edge with his girl, and I ran to him.

“Can I borrow your car?”

Brent glanced up, his mouth still on the girl’s neck, a slow grin on his face as he licked her once and then turned to me. “You and Nate want some alone time?”

I nodded, not in the mood to play games, as I held out my hand.

He reached into his front pockets and then tossed the keys to me. “I’ll get a ride with someone.”

“Thanks.”

In seconds, I was back with Nathan, and I guess I looked wild or crazy or, I don’t know how I looked, but he waved off football buddy and grabbed my hand.

“Are you all right?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

No.

“Can we get out of here?”

Nathan stared down at the keys in my hand. “Are you sure about this?”