Never Have I Ever

Chapter 22

"He what?" My mouth was dry, my voice hoarse. You hear these things on the news, and they're sad, heartbreaking even, but they never grip you like hearing this did to me. I shook my head, tears filling my eyes. "Nash," I whispered. His goddamn brother. 

"Don't," he said sharply, pulling away when I reached out to hold his hand. I froze and pulled it back. I tried to hide the hurt from my face, sucking my cheeks in and looking at the ground so he wouldn't see my eyes filling rapidly with more tears. It felt like he'd slapped me, that's how much it stung when he'd pulled away from me. 

I kept staring at the pavement of the parking to distract myself from crying. I couldn't cry. I wouldn't let him comfort me when I was the one who should be giving the comfort. Jesus.

"Aria," his low voice made me want to look up, but I didn't. "Look at me," he nearly growled. I kept my eyes on the ground, scared if I looked at him I'd break down, scared that he'd tell me that he didn't want me. He gripped my chin with his fingers and made me face him. His eyes burned with anger and something else I couldn't identify. "Why were you crying?" 

I knew it had been coming. Nash wasn't one to let things go often, and this was something I had been expecting. The thought of why I'd been crying still put a lump in my throat, and made my eyes water even further. She was back. Maybe she had always been here. And she'd left me with her six year old son and a house I couldn't take care of while she went to be a loved-up teenager. It was sick. 

"No reason," I said hoarsely, trying to look away from his burning blue eyes. He narrowed his eyes at me, his forehead crinkling in frustration.

"Don't lie to me," he said in a low voice. I stared at him desperately, pleading him with my eyes to let this go. Concern filled his eyes and a warm feeling spread throughout me and I couldn't identify what it was. I stared at his concerned eyes.

"Why did you pull away?" I asked. It was bothering me. I had tried to comfort him and he hadn't let me. It stung when he pushed me away, and he'd done it too many times already. His eyes softened slightly. He tilted his head to kiss me and his lips were both soft and firm against my own and I lost my breath until he pulled away. 

"Why were you crying?" he asked me again. I couldn't answer. He sighed deeply, heaving himself up off the ground. His face constricted in pain before he masked it completely with a blank expression. I could tell he was still in pain by the way he leaned heavily against the side of my car and pressed his palms to his ribs as if that would help them stay together. 

Guilt filled me when I realized they probably hurt because I had made him run after me. I frowned. Why did I have to be such a brat? His ribs were newly healed! They could still be in pain. Stupid, Aria.

"It's not your fault," he said firmly. 

I sighed, pushing myself off the ground as well, "Yes, it is."

"No," he denied again. "The doctors said it would hurt more than normal, sometimes."

This didn't make me feel any better, but I dropped it. He sat in the passenger seat, still fully shirtless, and I worked hard to keep my eyes from wandering. I drove in silence, one of his hands on my knee, one still pressed to his ribs. We went over a small bump and Nash let out a loud curse, bending over in his seat and wrapping his arms around his midsection.

"Nash?" I said frantically. He kept swearing. "Nash! Are you okay?"

"What? Yeah," he said calmly, sitting straight.

"Are you sure that's normal?" I asked him, narrowing my eyes. He rolled his eyes. 

"Yes, Aria."