Finding Carson Lee (Oh Captain, My Captain 3)

“Yeah, thanks for the invitation. Good luck at camp. I’ll see you at the launch party in a couple of weeks.” I quickly hang up because I don’t want to hear his voice anymore.

~

If there’s one thing about being single for so long, it’s that I can bounce back pretty well. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself anyway. I haven’t talked to Carson in over a week, and I know that he’s started training camp already. I’ve actually been keeping up with his schedule.

I’m flipping through emails when someone begins to pound on my door. It scares me so badly I almost drop my wine glass.

“Cassie?”

She rushes past me into the apartment. “Have you watched the news?”

“No, I haven’t even turned on the TV. Why?”

“Where’s your laptop?” She spins until she spots it on the table.

“What is going on?”

Cassie ignores me and starts typing in a YouTube address.

“Hello? I asked you a question.”

“Shh, watch this.” She turns the screen to me and there’s an older man on it.

“Who’s that?”

“It’s Carson’s dad. It’s all over the place. Watch it.”

I sit in the chair and listen to the man ramble for about five minutes to the news reporter. He tells a tale that he was a long time drug user and apparently was very mean to Carson growing up. When Carson’s mother died of an overdose and the state caught wind of his drug issues, they took Carson away, and he went to foster homes. The man states that he’s been trying to get in contact with Carson, but he can’t reach out to hm. He wants Carson to know that he’s sorry, but he won’t talk to him.

“Did you know this?” Cassie asks me.

“Um, no. Carson never talked about his family. I didn’t know anything.”

“Well, is he okay? I mean the media is going nuts with this story. Carson’s not a very open person with anything but his sex life.”

I nod. I can’t figure out why he never told me. Did he not trust me? Was he that ashamed of his life? I mean, I can plainly see the man on my laptop screen still doesn’t look like a father-of-the-year, but I don’t understand at all. I think about the day on the patio and him asking me not to ask questions. This is what he meant. His mom died of an overdose. That had to be so tragic for him, and he has no one.

I gasp. He has no one. Carson’s always alone.

“When did this come out?”

“Well.” Cassie looks at the screen. “It looks like yesterday, but now it’s blasted everywhere.”

“Oh God.” I push my hands through my hair. I want to go to Carson so badly, but I don’t know where he is right now. As if a wish was just granted for me, my phone rings. It’s Mike.

“Hello,” I rush out.

“If you care about him as much as he really cares about you, you’ll go to his house right now.”

It takes exactly one second for me to realize where I need to be. “I’m on way.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

Carson

I’m sitting on my couch with my head in my hands.

What the fuck has become of my life?