Bitter Treats (BxB Romance, In Progress)

20: Sweet Truth

Tyler had intended to talk to his aunt before school that morning. However, the stress of early-hour preparations turned out to not be the best environment for self-revelation. Emmie had yelled about her socks being the wrong color and the subsequent debate about why other colors than pink should be acceptable had delayed breakfast preparations. In the end, Donna told Tyler to grab some yogurt tubs and apples so they could eat in the car on the way. She usually dropped him off at the university on her way to Emmie's daycare, so they hadn't even got any tantrum-free time in the car to talk.

So now he was on his way to class, stomach growling from the meager breakfast, and still not out to anyone in his life. It didn't feel like the best start to the day.

It got worse. When Tyler entered the classroom, with only two minutes to spare before class because he'd been compelled to stop at the coffee shop downstairs and get a cinnamon roll and a caramel-fudge latte to solve his food crisis, Robin wasn't there. Robin was always on time. Which meant that Robin must be avoiding him.

Without his tutor/friend/crush there, Tyler didn't quite know what to do. He didn't really know any of the other people in the class, since all his attention had been focused on one adorable boy. And just sitting down beside someone, crutches and all, could prove to be a logistical nightmare. Not to mention the inevitable sympathetic looks and well-meaning words.

"Tyler, here!"

Tyler turned his head toward the origin of the call and was greeted with a friendly wave. Des smiled underneath a cat-eared beanie and patted the seat next to her.

Grateful not to have to sit next to someone unknown, Tyler made his way toward Robin's best friend. She helpfully slid out the chair for him, decreasing the difficulty level of crutch logistics.

"Thank you," he said, feeling a bit awkward to be hanging with Robin's friend without him. While Des seemed to be an incredibly loyal friend to Robin, Tyler was kind of scared of her. He feared she may actually physically hurt him if he was perceived to have committed some kind of slight against Robin. Which he of course never intended to do, but with their current fraught relationship there was no knowing how things may be interpreted.

"You're welcome," she replied, once again flashing a smile his way. Thankfully, it didn't seem like she was in a repentant mood.

"Where... is Robby?" Tyler asked, unable to keep himself from caring about his tutor's whereabouts.

"He's sick," Des explained. "He didn't text you? He wrote me this morning and said he's staying home."

Worry filled Tyler's mind. "What kind of sick?" he asked. "He didn't tell me but he seemed fine last night."

He bit his tongue. He'd said too much. But he couldn't help but care about Robin's wellbeing.

"You saw him last night?" Des gave him a curious look. Tyler looked away to avoid her way-too-observant gaze. He had no doubt she could read everything that had happened on that football field simply by peering into his eyes. "I thought he was at his mom's all weekend."

"Yeah..." Tyler stalled while trying to think of an innocent reason for why they would have seen each other. "He went home a bit earlier so we could meet up and study. I really needed some help with my Geology class."

Des still stared at him with a puzzled expression. Tyler still looked away, pretending the world map on the wall was super interesting.

"That doesn't seem like Liza to let him just leave like that," she mumbled. "His mom can be kind of... overbearing."

That was not quite the word Tyler would have chosen to describe her based on what Robin had told him the night before. But he didn't want to give any untold secrets away, so he just nodded in reply.