On Thin Ice

48

I followed behind him as we walked out to Wren's car. Fox was more than frustrated that the new battery for his car hadn't come in yet, but he would hopefully have it by tomorrow.

"Wren and I talked," Fox admitted as he drove down the road, putting an end to the silence in the car.

"I figured," I replied, resting my arm next to his on the center console.

It was surprising that he was the one that brought it up, but I wasn't going to complain. I was too nosy for my own good, so I was dying to know what happened between the brothers.

Fox smiled over at me briefly before putting his eyes back on the road. The smile was almost mischievous, like he knew something I didn't.

"Is there anything you want to own up to?" he asked in a playful tone.

The streetlights illuminated his face and his skin glowed, making it hard to focus on anything he said while I looked at him.

"I don't think so..." I trailed, confusion clouding my mind. I thought back on anything I had done that would require me telling it to Fox, and came up with nothing.

"So you didn't talk to Wren about me?" he wondered, though it didn't sound accusatory. His tone was still easy and light.

It seemed like all of my conversations with Wren had revolved around Fox; he was the only thing the two of us had in common.

"Whenever I talk to Wren, it's about you," I admitted with raised eyebrows. "I told him I'd talk to you about making amends, but only because I thought you would want that."

I didn't know the extent of how damaged the relationship between the two of them was, but I knew it took a toll on Fox. I had spent so much time resenting Josh, and I knew how badly that made me feel. Fox and Wren's resentment went far deeper and much longer.

"Well, we talked," Fox told me, stopping at a red light. "For a while."

I smiled over at him as the green light shined into the car and he started driving again.

"It's a start," he continued with a sigh. "We're not completely fixed, but he apologized."

"He did?" I asked, my eyebrows lifting on my forehead.

That was the most surprising thing of all. Wren was hellbent on not feeling guilty or the need to apologize. I would've paid to hear the words come out of his mouth.

Fox nodded. "I did too. We've both done things."

That was the last we talked of Wren for the time being. I knew Fox wouldn't want to get into all the details. It must have been an incredibly candid, vulnerable conversation if the brothers had finally reached an understanding with one another.

Fox pulled up to the restaurant and memories automatically flooded my head of the night I had come here with Micah a few weeks ago. That night I was broken and fragile, on the verge of having a mental breakdown. Tonight, I would make better memories .

Claudia and Holly were already sitting across from each other at a booth near the front of the restaurant. As we made our way to them, Claudia quickly stood up from her seat and exaggeratedly waved us over.

"Sit down, Claud," Fox hissed as we reached the table, sitting next to her and grabbing her arm to pull Claudia down beside him. "You're so embarrassing."

"I think she's funny," Holly giggled as I sat down beside her, bumping her hip with mine.

"I honestly expected you guys to be later," Claudia admitted with a wide grin. "Fox is always on 'Fox time' so..."