Dude...Thats Not a Guy

35. A Nice Looking Boulder

Willow's POV:

The entire car ride had been silent.

Not even one second of it had been comfortable.

He was freezing me out slowly, and every time I had pushed him about it he seemed to retaliate by becoming colder. He was less like the vibrant person he was, who he began this relationship as, and now it was like I was dating a rock.

And I wish I could say it was a fun kind like Dwayne Johnson, but instead it was like a boulder. A nice looking boulder, but a cold piece of solid rock none-the-less. I couldn't even look at him as we pulled up to Xavier's house for the belated birthday party for Soraya. A party I knew had an ulterior motive to it, but I didn't know the details.

It wasn't just Alistair that was pulling away from me, the last few days I had seen less of Soraya than usual, and my brother was so disapproving of Alistair that he hadn't spoken to me in over a week beyond family necessity.

I was beginning to think that maybe Wil was right, that I didn't mean anything to Alistair beyond what he used girls for constantly. That the portrait I had painted of him from our impromptu photoshoot was a waste of time and energy, that maybe I should just burn it and move on.

"Will?" Alistair finally spoke as his car jolted to a stop, I could barely lift my eyes to meet his. "What's going on?" He asked as if he didn't know exactly what he had been doing, didn't know that every time he brushed off my concern he was hurting me just a tiny bit more. It was all adding up, and I wasn't entirely sure if I could handle it anymore.

"Why don't you tell me?" I asked, watching his face for any hint of remorse.

"I don't know what you-"

"Don't bullshit me, Alistair." I cut him off, my voice was still gentle as it always was. It's how I was raised. Lashing out hurts everyone, talking things through and resolving conflict with understanding and empathy was better in the long run. And if that doesn't work, it means that the other person doesn't want what you do, and it's best to cut your losses.

"I..." He trailed off, like he was stumped for words. Good.

"I don't expect you to talk to me every second of every day, or trust me with everything because what we are is still new. What I do expect is for you to not let those things get between us and to let me in so I can help you when you're hurting." I told him, the way his eyebrows furrowed told me my guess was right. This wasn't him shutting me out for no reason, he was keeping something from me.

"Willow, this is something you wouldn't understand." He said as if it made everything better, I shook my head.

"Then make me."

"It has to do with money, Will, you just wouldn't get it. Your family has everything, they aren't scared about missing too many mortgage payments in a row and losing everything they have." Well that was a very specific situation to mention.

"Alistair, is that what's happening?" I asked, he shook his head, but not in denial. He screwed his eyes shut as he shook his head, it was to deny that I was trying to understand, that I wanted to help him.

"Will, please, just leave it-"

"No, you have been freezing me out, you can't tell me that you haven't."

"I haven't been doing shit-"

"Exactly, that's the point I'm trying to make. I ask you what's going on and you tell me it's nothing or simply choose to ignore me. And if money is the problem I can help-"

"I don't need you throwing money at my problems, okay?"

"Then what do you need?"

"This isn't your problem, you shouldn't be worrying about this, it's why I didn't want to say anything."