out of breath ; hemmings au

sixteen

The only light in the motel room is from a little lamp on the bedside table. I’m lying down on the bed and Luke is sitting on the edge of it, with his back facing me. 

He’s clearly frustrated because I haven’t been talking to him since we left the pub. I told him I wouldn’t and he has kept trying since, asking me a million questions: “Why don’t you believe what Ashton said?”, “What makes you think we’re lying?”, “Why can’t you trust us?”, “How come you’re so convinced Calum didn’t try paying for his drugs by giving away some information when you believed it yesterday?”, “Why are you acting this way?”, and the list goes on and on. Not a single word came out my mouth. 

It was hard. I wanted to answer but I know this could really make him talk. He already told me it’s not up to him, that he’s not the only one involved, but to be honest, I couldn’t care less. I’m very tired of all of this, I don’t want anyone to sell my body, but if they were lying to me, then Calum might be hurt or something and just the thought of it makes tears pool in my eyes. 

I can’t stop thinking about the news report: she left town with her boyfriend. He wasn’t home and that makes me feel uneasy. If Luke would at least tell me where he is, a phone number perhaps, I could know if he’s okay or not and talk to him again. I guess that’s my real worry right now. It’s weird how the chaser, the man who broke into my house a few days ago, seems like an old nightmare from last year.

Luke groans, putting me out of my thoughts, and I turn to him. His face is buried in the palms of his hands as he rests both elbows on his knees. He has been in the same position for the last 15 minutes. He must be looking for the next question to ask me to make me talk, or maybe he finally gave up and now he’s thinking about telling me the truth. I don’t want to speak and make him think that I’m okay with him not telling me what I need to know, but I would advise him to call Ashton. No, probably, that isn’t a good idea. If he lied to me once, he could lie to me again. Why didn’t I check with Luke what Ash told me that day?  

Surprisingly, Luke lays down next to me on the bed. I shift my body to the side to give him my back. Looking into his eyes will make it harder to stick to the silence mode. 

“You know I’m sorry, right?” He said but I don’t answer. “Yeah, I know you do,” he said and I agree silently. “And I know you want me to tell you the truth… Yeah, I’m saying the Calum story wasn’t it…” Is he really going to spill everything? 

I feel the mattress move softly below me and the bed cracks a little. He sighs a deep breath and I feel it on the back of my neck. I close my eyes and resist the impulse to turn around and face him. Instead I listen.

“I’m not the one who should tell you the horrible things going on in our town,” he pauses. “Why can’t we wait for Ashton to come?” He asked but, obviously, I don’t answer. That’s not a choice. “Please I need you to talk to me,” he breaths out making it sound as a whine. “Please… I promise I’ll tell you everything but it’s hard. I need your help.”

I won’t talk to him, although I turn around and face him. I meet a pair of watery eyes that scare me. He isn’t kidding. He’s about to tell me everything. 

“What do you know about Ashton’s father’s business?” I shrug my shoulders. “Nothing?” He raises his eyebrows and I shake my head. “He runs the town, kind of… I guess you know he’s well known around there,” I nod; everyone has a lot of respect for him.

His fingers run through his hair awkwardly as I wait for him to continue.

“And you know as well that your father used to be his partner, right?” I nod again, afraid this time; my dad’s involved. “He had recently quit, stopped helping with money and such,” I knew that. “They fought, did you know that?” I deny with my head.