Keeping Tabs

Chapter 16

“Sorry. I just didn't expect you to come.”

“I'm not that far out of touch, babe. I've gotten better about doing the right thing over the last few years.”

“I didn't mean anything by it.” I said, feeling terrible for saying anything in the first place. I couldn't bear the silence, so I asked him, “How have you been?”

“Breathing. Sober. You?” Colin said, the anguish in his expression ripping my heart out. I still had no immunity to him, even after five years of separation.

“In school. Dating.”I said quietly, knowing the reaction before it even came.

“Really? Well, first me, then Chris and now, who is it?”

“His name's Jared, you don't know him.”

“Jared Madorith, yeah I do know him.”

“How is that even possible?” I was beyond floored.

“His band did some work on a movie I worked on about six months ago. We got along great until one night when he started telling me all about his girl and how amazing she was. And then he gets serious and tells me that it's you, and that he felt bad because we'd become such good friends. I haven't talked to him since, but I would assume that you have.”

I remembered earlier in the year, Jared had left for a little over a week with his band. They'd gone to do a cameo in a movie after the director had been in town and caught one of their shows. Jared had left talking about exposure and publicity, and had come back seeming withdrawn and distant for a long while after that. And now I knew why. Jared had never said anything about meeting Colin, and I wasn't sure if I loved him or hated him for it.

“Well, Jared didn't deserve to have you ignore him, no matter how much you hate me.” I said, feeling a waspish sting of protectiveness toward Jared.

“Hate you? I've never hated you, I love you. I just can't help that it stings a little to know that your taste in men is the same as my taste in friends.”Colin spoke in a hoarse voice that I scarcely recognized.

“I'm sorry. I never intended for it to hurt you, but I had to move on. How did you know about Chris?” I asked, the thought just dawning on me.

“He's right outside. I still haven't decided whether or not to stop being friends with him.” Colin joked in a half-hearted manner. He rubbed his eyes before looking at me again, and I walked forward, wrapping my arms around his chest before I could stop myself. I couldn't stand to see him like this, even now. I wanted it to go back to when we were just friends and life was easy. But even then I knew that was a fool's hope.

“I'm sorry for everything, but Chris and I didn't know at first, and we never meant you any harm. This isn't the place, anyway.” I said, trying to ease as much pain as I could while reminding him what we were all here for anyway.

When I stepped back, his face had completely cleared, and with one hard swallow, he appeared perfectly fine. I realized then just how good of an actor he really was. By the time we left the room, you'd have had to have known us to see that we'd ever been anything more than close friends.

I saw Chris almost an hour later, and he kept as much distance from me as possible. I supposed it was for the best, but it still caused my temper to flair for a bit. I noticed with no small amount of satisfaction that Audrey Scott was nowhere to be found.

The wake was that evening, and her burial was scheduled for the next morning. Micah and I spoke with all of Nann's friends and the few relatives that ended up coming. The following morning, the number of people nearly doubled, and the funeral was carried off without a hitch. One of Micah's great-aunts hosted a party afterward, but Micah, Bryan and I went back to Nann's.