AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She was talking about Trent. I knew it was only a matter of time before he came up. She was still angry about him being gone and it showed each time she looked at me. I was angry and hurt about him being gone too, but I couldn't turn back the hands of time. I hoped she would get over it.
“Can we not do this?” I asked. “Trent and I made a lot of mistakes when we were kids. I've been trying to get over things and move on with life, you should do the same. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don't think about my best friend. So don’t come here with your bullshit. I've got enough bullshit going on in my life already.”
“If you had listened to me and not gone with him that night, none of this would be going on right now. He'd be home. But no, big bad Brayden Knight never listens to anyone. He does whatever he wants to benefit him, no matter who he hurts.”
“Oh, whatever Mia,” I scoffed. “You know what, I don’t have time for this. I don't have to listen to this. You want to keep blaming me for everything, go right ahead, I'm out of here.”
I grabbed another beer from the fridge and wheeled myself out to the patio. The day was still young, and I told myself I wouldn't let her ruin what was left of it. Do I wish we could have sorted through the whole ordeal about Trent, yes. I wanted that more than she knew.
There was a lot about that night that Mia didn’t know, and she would never give me the chance to explain it to her. I didn’t have the energy to keep fighting with her about it, so I let her think whatever she wanted to think.
Chapter Six ~ Mia
I got the feeling that there was something Brayden wasn’t telling me about the night of the accident. I was so angry with him this morning, I didn’t even think to ask. He had already been a jerk to the nurses who’d come to help him get better and that was a complete turn off to me. So, after our angry exchange in the kitchen, I got dressed and went out for some air.
The thought of leaving and finding a room somewhere weighed heavily on my mind, but it was like Uncle Joe’s cabin had already had its effect on me and I wanted to stay. It was my first summer back in Big Bear in years; I wanted the experience to be grand and new. Too bad there were people who seemingly wanted to ruin it for me the minute I arrived.
You know what, Mia, just relax. I told myself. Go into town, grab some food, and enjoy the day.
As a romance writer, I was all about finding solutions to problems. Sure, the occasional drama spiced things up a bit but at the end of the day, I wanted a happy ending. Food was my happy ending, and Big Bear had some of the best street food I had ever tasted. Outside of the foreign countries I'd traveled to.
While I was out this afternoon, I tried so many new food trucks and pop-up shops I couldn’t keep count. I even revisited the amusement park I used to go to when I was younger. Of course, I never had any money to actually go inside and ride the rides, but it was fun to watch.
I thought about the times when Brayden and I would sneak in just to walk around and I got angry again. We did so many fun things together; made so many memories. I hated him more when I thought about the life we could have made. All he had to do was grow up, get a job, and stop hanging out every night.
What was supposed to be a fun afternoon for me turned into a long trip down memory lane. My overwhelming thoughts of Brayden consumed so much of my time; I didn’t realize I was sitting in my car with no real destination at one point.
I thought about going over to the lake and seeing what kind of tailgating parties were going on since I'd been gone, but I spotted a familiar face just as I got ready to pull up. Nick. He was with a crew of guys who looked like they were up to no good. It made me furious. After the hell our family went through when Trent was taken away, there was my younger brother trailing the same path.
That uncomfortable feeling of being a parent washed over me. I took care of him when he was a baby, I took care of Brayden, and even though Nick had turned eighteen and he wasn't my responsibility, I felt the need to take care of him again.
“Aw shit, who is this fine thing?”
One of the guys he hung around cat-called me as I approached their crew. Of course, Nick rolled his eyes and huffed and puffed. I thought it was funny to see him so embarrassed by his older sister checking in on him.
“She's my sister, man,” Nick said. “Keep your eyes off her.”
“Sister?” the guy laughed. “Your sister is a sexy Mamita.”
I fake smiled and flirted with my eyes, embarrassing Nick enough for him to grab me by the hand and quickly whisk me away. He didn’t want to look like a softie in front of his friends, and I didn’t want him hanging out with them to begin with.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he grumbled.
“What? I can’t kick it with you and your friends?” I joked. “You didn’t have to be rude; you could have introduced me.”
Nick rolled his eyes again and shifted his weight to one foot, the same way I would do when I knew my mother was going to lecture me. He reminded me so much of myself when I was his age. I guess he would, I practically raised him as my own.
“You don’t need to be hanging out with those guys, Nick,” I said. “There’s nothing but trouble up the road you’re walking.”
“How do you know what road I'm walking, sis? You haven’t been here to see it in years.”
His reminder made me hurt inside. I felt terrible for abandoning him at a time he needed someone the most. A day never passed when I didn’t think of all the ways I could have done things differently. Though Nick wasn’t my child , he still needed me.
“That’s not fair, Nick,” I said. “Look, I’m not trying to tell you what to do with your life, I just want you to make smarter choices and stay out of trouble. Alright?”
He ignored me for a moment, staring off into the distance as if he didn’t want what I said to register. I know he is a smart kid and could make better choices than a lot of people. But I also knew that if he kept hanging around the guys he did, those choices would become influenced in ways that were unimaginable.
“I hear you,” he finally answered. “Those guys aren’t all that bad. Some of them are stupid, but they’re cool and give me someone to hang out with when I'm alone.”
