I do now.
“Can you come help me get the mattress and blankets out of my apartment? I don’t want them here. I don’t want to be here. I can’t think.”
Is this all a dream? Maybe I’m living a nightmare, and I will wake up soon.
Logan stood in the doorway, and that’s when I noticed I had the phone to my ear still from when he hung up a few minutes ago. He took a quick look around, scanning the place to make sure I was safe before he ran to me and took me into a strong hug. “It’s okay. I got you, Lucy. It’s okay.” He kissed my forehead, and the tenderness from my brother only made me cry harder. I felt so pathetic for crying. Brian wasn’t worth the tears, but the betrayal I felt went so deep.
“Come on, let’s get this mattress out of here and then we will go back to my place, watch movies and drink some beer.”
“I just want to get some sleep,” I said and got on the other side of the mattress as Logan lifted it up. Once it was on its side, we slid it through the wine, and the white material got stained red. Logan dropped the tailgate and lifted the mattress onto the bed of his truck.
“How about we set this on fire first? What do you say?” He stretched a free hand out to me and waited for me to take it. “Me and you, Luce. I’ll always have you.”
Ever since our parents died when I was sixteen and Logan was eighteen, he took care of me. We had grown together, and he had become my best friend. I didn’t know what I’d do without him. A life without Brian I’d be able to get used to. A life without Logan?
There wouldn’t be one.
“A bonfire sounds nice.”
“I’ll let you do the honors then,” he said.
Ten minutes later, we pulled up to an empty plot of land where partiers frequently came, and Logan poured lighter fluid all over the mattress and blankets. I lit a match and watched the flame burn the stick for a moment before tossing it onto the ruined pile of memories.
Just like that, my previous life was going up in smoke and fire. I just hoped my heart could be reborn from the ashes.
Chapter One
Lucy
I unloaded the last box from the truck and dropped it in the elevator, pressing the button that would take me to floor seven. Logan and I just moved to New York City yesterday, and while change usually frightened me, I couldn’t wait for the adventure that this was going to bring. This year had been the longest year of my life. Brian kept coming around, and I had to get a restraining order against him. He became unbearable and everything Logan warned me about, I saw over the past three-hundred-and-sixty-five days.
My brother was protective of me, and he got really sick of Brian always getting away with his stalkerish tendencies. He applied to a company in New York that built some of the tallest buildings in the world. I could tell he was trying not to get my hopes up when he told me the chances of him getting it were slim to none because he was just a good old boy from the south that built homes, not skyscrapers.
Apparently, it was the chance of a lifetime for Logan, and he got the job. When he told me he wanted me to get away from Atlanta, away from Brian, and away from the death of our parents, I had no reason to say no to him. So I said yes because a life without my brother would have sucked anyway.
So here I was, unpacking our boxes in our new apartment while Logan worked. He hadn’t been able to help much since he started work the day after we got here. I told him not to worry about it and that I’d make our apartment feel like a home in no time. I was so stinking proud of him for doing this. More than half the skyscrapers in this city are made by Stoneridge Corporations. Logan was kind of a big deal now.
And so was the money that he made.
It kind of made me feel like a bum because here Logan was, Mr. Bigshot builder, and I was unemployed with no job. I knew it took time, but rent in Brooklyn was still crazy expensive. This two-bedroom apartment was three-thousand dollars a month. Logan made enough to cover that and more, but that wasn’t fair to him. I wanted to help. He told me to take my time settling in, but I knew he only said that because he didn’t want to pressure me.
The elevator dinged, and the doors opened, revealing hardwood floors that lead to apartment number 707—my new home. I was so excited to be in a new place! I could hardly believe it. Opening the front door, I set the last box on the kitchen floor and sighed when my back popped.
“I know how you feel. Moving sucks.”
I screamed and held my hand to my heart when I saw a young girl standing in my doorway, holding a margarita pitcher in one hand and chicken wings in another. “Holy shit, you scared me.” The wings smelled so good; my stomach reminded me how hungry I was by grumbling.
“Sorry. I noticed you guys were moving in, and I wanted to introduce myself. I’m Maria,” she said with a bright smile on her face and stepped forward. “I would shake your hand but…” she lifted the wings and the margarita mix up in the air and shook them a bit. “I came with goodies.” She did a little dance to show her excite
ment.
“I can see that. I’m Lucy. My brother is Logan, but he isn’t here right now. He is at work.”
“Just us girls. Cool. Do you have any glasses that I can use? I can help you unpack, or you can take a break.”
A break sounded nice. I had been unloading the U-Haul since eight this morning. It was noon now, and my stomach was growling for those wings in her hand. “Sure. I’ll grab some plates. Sorry, we don’t have a couch yet. We are going to have to hang out on the floor.”
“That’s fine. I’m just glad someone around my age finally lives in the building.” She set the pitcher down on the counter and dug through a few boxes that were labeled ‘kitchen’ just making herself at home.