To Dance With Wolves ▪Liam Dunbar▪

| 18. It's Like Chasing the Clouds

Mason made it through the first three episodes before he said that if I made him watch another one he would have nightmares for a week. He asked if I was going to be okay, and I said yes, even through I wasn't really sure it was the truth.

Then he was off to Liam's house because they were friends too. He didn't say that was where he was going, but I wasn't an idiot.

Watching Supernatural with Mason had been nice, but I needed something that wasn't as dark. I settled on Parks and Recs, so I walked upstairs with my laptop and some ice cream in hand. My bed still wasn't made, so I tossed a blanket over where I'd be sitting and called it a day.

The ridiculous comedy and familiar characters calmed me down and reminded me of much simpler days. The rich chocolate treat provided a sense of relief that only comfort food could give. By the time the sky was dark and my bowl was empty, I was actually laughing. I figured it was best to quit while I was ahead, so I quickly threw some sheets on my bed, and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning the sky was slate grey, fog swirled around the ground and storm clouds hung low in the air. The light was minimal and dull, making the view out my window look drab and boring.

There was a missed call alert on my phone screen that I ignored. I needed something to keep my mind occupied, because I was not ready to speak with Liam again. I knew exactly what could keep me distracted for a while - there was a pink nail polish in my collection that was so bright it wouldn't matter that the sun was hiding behind the clouds.

In the hour it took me to finish painting and drying my nails, my phone rang three times. Three times I let the calls go to voicemail. I felt oddly alright, like everything was going to be okay. I spent the morning not thinking about how crappy the day before had been, and my mood only improved.

It wasn't until lunch time that realization hit me like a bullet train. I was happy because I was ignoring all the crap that lay just outside the front door, pretending it didn't exist. I was acting like my life was still what it was before everything fell apart. And then I knew why Liam hadn't wanted to talk about the skeletons in his closet any more than I wanted to talk about the ones in mine. I decided next time he called I would pick up the phone and hear him out.

With my good mood gone in the wind, I did homework to kill time before the phone rang again. As I had learned before, it's much easier to be productive when you're avoiding something. I was over halfway through all my assigned work when my phone lit up with an incoming call.

I took two deep breaths before I answered on the third ring, "Hello?"

"Emily?"

"Yes, Liam?"

"I've been calling you all day."

"I know," I said bluntly. No use sugarcoating things.

He sounded like might start crying when he spoke again, "I though maybe you were never going to answer."

I couldn't pretend that the thought hadn't occurred to me, but hearing his voice again made me realize that there was no way I could have done it, I would've cracked eventually. I made myself stay strong though, I was not going to go crawling back to Liam because he sounded a little sad.

When I didn't say anything he kept going, "I'll tell you everything if you still want to know."

"What I want to know, is why you didn't just tell me yesterday? Was there a reason you couldn't say anything? Or were you just being an jerk?"

I caught him by surprise with that question, and he stuttered out a few words before I'd heard enough, "Stop, Liam. I don't want a half-assed explanation or apology or whatever this is. Call me again when you can form a complete, coherent sentence."