'you'll see me in hindsight, tangled up with you all night, burning it down. some day when you leave me; i'll bet these memories follow you around...'
Sawyer Rivera quit her job after graduating from Top Gun; despite her extreme potential. A traumat...
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CHAPTER THREE — the truth shall set you free
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Lilith goes to re-enter the bar and when I don't make any moves to follow her, she turns to me. I tell her that I just need a minute for air and she hesitates, giving me a small smile, and goes inside. I move to lean against the building, reeling from the emotional conversation that just ensued, and trying to avoid the man who still owns my heart. I'm so wrapped in my own head, that when a hand touches my shoulder, I jump and swing my arm in their direction. It's stopped and my eyes meet Bradley's, as he grips my arm in his hand, keeping it from colliding with his face. "Jesus, you know, you really gotta stop watching horror movies."
"Well, maybe you shouldn't sneak up on people." I remark, as he releases my arm and the two of us rest our backs against the building.
"For the record, I called your name a few times and got no response." He raises his hands in defense and bumps my shoulder with his, before jumping into the next part of our conversation. "So, how'd that go? I see no blood, but your face is a little puffy, so I assume as well as it could have."
"Yeah. We're good though. Talked it all out and things are only gonna get better from here." I respond, looking over at him, while absentmindedly fiddling with my ring. Again. I've always been a fairly anxious person, but today my anxiety's been off the charts; and for good reason. "I should tell him, right?" My oldest friend looks down at me through furrowed brows, until he catches on.
"I can't answer that."
"I should. It's the right thing to do. And he deserves to know. But..." My sentence veers off as I chew on my lip, tasting metal, knowing that I've broken skin and stare at the sunset.
"But." Brad repeats the word and I realize just how much it holds. Everything. It holds everything. Everything that I have been avoiding for years and the weight of all the words left unsaid. I shake my head, ridding myself of this discussion and forcing a new topic.
"Uh, actually, now that we're alone; I've got something to tell you." I start, adjusting to lean my shoulder on the wall and face him. He's attentive, preparing to listen to what I have to say. "It's about Lily." It seems to take everything he has to roll his eyes and pretend to be uninterested. But I see right through him. The man turns to walk back inside, causing my frustration to build. "She didn't know!"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Lil. She had no idea that Mav pulled your papers." I tell him, standing up straight. "She didn't know. Which also means that she has spent years never understanding why you left her. Not knowing why you broke her heart and your own. You idiot. Your lack of communication skills have screwed you. You've got to talk to her. To figure this out."
