Full Out

Chapter Forty-Two

I bursted through the doors, ready to demand answers. Everyone in my life was letting me down. What was one more?

Dripping wet, I sultered through the diner in search of one particular waiter. Harry soon appeared around the corner from the kitchen, carrying a tray filled with desserts. He marched his way towards a table but stopped when he recognized me standing there. He grinned over at me, but I didn't do the same.

The curly haired waiter delivered the food before making his way over to me. His apron was in perfect place, along with his light blue diner shirt.

"Hey, Millie," he smiled down at me.

"Did you know?" I asked, skipping formalities. I came here to find out one thing. Once I had my answer, I was gone.

Harry's smile faltered and his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. His brown eyes, once happy, dimmed.

"What?"

"About McKenna and Ezra. The money. Did you know?"

Harry stood with his mouth open, blinking at me. He was speechless. That could have only meant one thing.

I turned, ready to book it for the door. Harry's hand snatched out to my wrist before I could even take a step.

"Hold on, hold on. Just sit down in a booth and I'll talk with you, okay? Just give me five seconds. Please," Harry pleaded. I sighed and nodded my head. I needed an explanation from all parties, Harry included. With one last look, afraid that I would run away, Harry walked away and disappeared into the kitchen.

I plopped myself down in an empty booth, looking around at other people. There were only two other tables that occupied people. One had two older gentlemen, probably truckers, and the other a few teenagers with bloodshot eyes.

It wasn't long before Harry came back to find me. He placed two glasses down in front of me before taking a seat across from me. I eyed the shakes.

"I got you both vanilla and chocolate. I wasn't sure which one was going to fix the problem," Harry said sweetly. Both had extra whipped cream and a straw. I grabbed them both, putting the straws together and taking a sip before sitting back. I was grateful for Harry's gesture, but I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to take more than three sips from the shakes.

"So, what's going on?" Harry asked, leaning closer to me. His brown eyes were kind and his look was sympathetic.

"I went to your house tonight," I said, wiping a bead of water falling from my forehead. I was freezing, but focused on what I was saying. Harry nodded his head, listening close. "Did you know about all of the money Ezra had stashed away?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "Leo told me after he found it all. We've been trying to figure out where he got it from."

"You don't know?" I asked. I stared harshly into his eyes, waiting for him to tell me the truth. He had to have known. He lived with the guy. He must have seen McKenna there all the time. He must have heard their conversations before. Harry had to let me down just like everyone else.

Harry's eyebrows rose. "No, I don't. I wanted to ask him but Leo made me promise that I wouldn't." Harry was quiet, willing for me to explain. My shoulders slouched.

How could I think that Harry would betray me? I supposed it wasn't so hard to believe, since my two best friends and almost boyfriend seemed to do it easy enough.

"Ezra and McKenna were at your house tonight," I began.

"And?"

My bottom lip began to quiver as I peered away from the waiter. Just the thought of what had happened made me ball my eyes out all over again. I tried keeping my composure, but my chin shook harder.

"I heard McKenna and Ezra talking when I got there and..."

Tears streamed down my face. I wiped them away ferociously, not wanting to cry any more. It pissed me off that I was so upset about someone who didn't care about me.

"Hey," Harry said softly, reaching a hand out. He laid a warm hand over one of my cold ones, rubbing his thumb over the top. It felt like a nice fire, warm and comforting. I smiled gratefully at him, as much as I could anyway.

He never took his hand away as I spoke to him.

"I know where Ezra is getting all of that money."

This was it. I was going to tell Harry the truth and sound so pathetic doing it. Someone actually had to earn money to spend time with me. How naive I was to believe that someone like Ezra could actually like someone like me.

I sniffled, my heart breaking all over again as I continued.

"McKen... McKenna is paying Ezra to..." I swallowed, soldiering on. Why was this harder to talk about than I thought? "Take me out on dates. The more time he spends with me, the more money he gets."

Harry's jaw dropped some, his eyes growing into saucers. He didn't speak for a moment, but when he gained his composure, his thumb on my hand continued to rub.

"That can't be true," Harry denied. "I've seen the way Ezra was with you."

I shrugged. "Then he must be a great actor, Harry. I heard them. I heard them talking about me and the money and the dates." Another tear slipped down my cheek as I eyed Harry's hand on mine. He never stopped trying to rub out the pain. "Ezra played me, Harry."

I used my other hand to cover my eyes as I broke down in front of my only friend. I kept my sobs quiet, but my shoulders shook. Harry began rubbing up and down my arm, no doubt getting his hand wet from my soaking jacket. He didn't seem to care as he continued.

"Millie," Harry said and shook my arm. I sniffled again and again, not having the strength to look at him. "Millie, look at me."

After wiping my face for what felt like the hundredth time tonight, I stared up at Harry's face. This wasn't the waiter that I had grown to love over the past few years. That guy normally smiled, had bright eyes, and always flirted and joked where he could. Now, all I saw was rage, sadness, hurt, and sympathy. His brown eyes were almost black and there was no trace of a smile on his handsome face.

"If Ezra really is being paid to take you out, then he is a fucking asshole, okay?"

I almost giggled at his language. I couldn't recall a time where I had ever heard him curse before.

"He clearly doesn't deserve you. I mean, getting money to spend time with you is pointless. I'd much rather have ten minutes with you than get all the money in the world."

I rolled my eyes and sniffled again, shaking my head. "Stop," I whispered out. Harry didn't mean that. No one could truly mean those words. People chose money over people. That was how the world worked.

"I mean it. Do you not understand how much I look forward to seeing you? My heart skips a beat every time you walk through those diner doors," Harry explained, tugging on my arm when I broke eye contact. I looked back up into his now warm eyes. "Millie, you are a treasure worth more than any kind of physical money this world has to offer."

My heart swelled at his words. No one had ever told me things like this before. I wanted to cry even more from the overwhelming feelings he was giving me.

Harry suddenly stood up and moved around the table. He patted my thigh, indicating that I should scoot down. Once I did, he dropped into the booth beside me and faced me, taking my hands in his.

"I'm serious, Millie. You're amazing. You can't let other people tell you otherwise."

With that, Harry tugged me forward. My head fell into his chest, the beating of his heart sounding through my ears. He wrapped me tightly in his arms, protecting me from the world.

"I'm going to get your clothes wet," I warned him, but not wanting to move away from him. Harry made me feel better. He was a friend that I could trust. He was there when I needed him, even if he was busy at work.

"Shut up," Harry teased, squeezing me tighter to him. I forgot about my wet clothes and reveled in the way it felt to be in Harry's arms. He really was like a fireplace, alive and bright, always warm like the sun.

Here, at Booster's Diner, I snuggled with Harry in a random booth as the rain poured out onto the roof.

My only real friend.