Lia
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As I watch the master bathroom door close behind Darwin, I can't help but feel bad for him. He kept his emotions about Marie's passing all bottled up and wasn't sure how to deal with them.
When he finally took the cap off the bottle, the pressure was too much. It fucking exploded. The entire time he was punching the pillow, you could practically hear his heart shattering from the explosion of emotions. I just hope that I can help him from being the victim of another emotional eruption.
Just over the past few hours, Darwin and I have seen each other at our lowest. He was the witness to my panic attack, and I was the witness to his outburst.
I really shouldn't call it an "outburst", "explosion" or anything along those lines since it was how Darwin was grieving, but it's the best way to describe what happened.
"Hello? Is anyone here?" Vince shouts from the living room. Shaking away my thoughts, I muster up a fake smile and leave the master bedroom.
"Yeah, I'm right here." Vince whirls around to face me, a smile that he doesn't need to fake spreading across his face,
"Lia! You're back!" His strong arms pull me into a quick hug. It takes all of my strength to stay on my feet after being hugged by someone who looks exactly like a supermodel. "Where's Darwin?"
Vince notices my tattered and bemired clothing, yet I don't give him a chance to comment on it, "He's in the bathroom. Also, Darwin said Lincoln was coming with you. Is he here?"
"Uh, yeah, he should be somewhere upstairs. Come on, I'll help you find him." Gratefully, I follow Vince upstairs. I'm glad that he won't see Darwin come out of the same room that I did and jump to conclusions.
We reach the second floor, only to find no sign of Lincoln. "I'll start checking the bedrooms." Vince says as he walks to the guest bedroom.
I scan the room, still finding nothing. Behind me, Vince leaves the guest bedroom and strolls into the girl's room. The tiniest bit of movement from a shadow on the balcony catches my eye.
"I think I might've found him." I call to Vince. He comes out of the bedroom and slings his arm over my shoulders,
"He really missed you. Poor guy barely slept a wink." I know it's not my fault, but I still feel guilty. "I'll give you some space."
"Thanks, Vince." He flashes me a dazzling smile before giving me a small pat on my shoulder,
"Now go get 'em, tiger." I step out from under Vince's heavy arm and hear his footsteps fade away as he walks across the room and down the stairs.
I don't even know what I should say to Lincoln. Sorry? Are you ok? Hi?
You're overthinking this. Just go out there, you dumbass!
I pull back the curtain on the slider a little to see Lincoln standing on the deck with his back to me.
Oh, come on! It's Lincoln! You'll be fine.
Before I can peer pressure myself out of it, I grab the handle of the slider and walk out onto the deck. As soon as he hears the slider open, Lincoln looks over his shoulder.
Oh my God, I've never seen someone so relieved. I barely have enough time to shut the slider before Lincoln pulls me into the most bone-crushing hug I've ever had.
The guilt that I felt is stronger now. I kissed Lincoln and his best friend. Lincoln has no idea that I kissed Darwin, either. Even though I'm not dating either of them, it still feels like I'm cheating.
Ew, I'm the absolute fucking worst.
"I'm so glad that you're ok." He mumbles. The guilt gets worse. Suddenly, Lincoln releases me and holds me at arms length, eyebrows creased. Internally, I freak the fuck out.
Oh, fuck! He knows!
"You are ok, right?" I'm sort of fine, but I'm more worried about him. Lincoln looks like a hot mess.
His hair is disheveled, and his clothes (the same ones he wore yesterday) are rumpled and wrinkled. It's obvious that Vince is right about Lincoln barely getting any sleep. There are dark circles under his exhausted-looking eyes, and it seems as though the only thing keeping him awake at the moment is the fact that I'm standing in front of him.
"Oh yeah, I'm fine. You, and I mean this in the best way possible, look like shit." Lincoln's laugh is quiet and appears to take a lot of energy,
"Thanks for noticing." He smirks, sarcastically running a hand through his hair. "It's a new look I call 'my friend is missing'."
"Very creative." I say with a slight grin.
"Speaking of you being missing, why were you gone for so long?" Well shit. There's no way that he's going to stay awake for the amount of time it'll take me to explain what happened.
"I'll tell you later. Right now, let's get you to the truck so you can take a nap." He seems more than willing to comply. I let Lincoln lean on me as we make our way back inside and downstairs.
Vince and Darwin, who already has his shoes on, are waiting for us in the kitchen. Any indication that Darwin had been crying is gone. The way he's standing with his hip against the island makes it seem as though nothing ever happened.
If he's acting normal, then I should, too. I don't make any eye contact with Darwin as Lincoln and I pass him.
"Alright, let's go." Vince says, spinning the keyring of the truck keys around his index finger. Lincoln walks ahead to pick his seat while I put on my shoes. Vince follows him out the door and I hear the truck start.
I finish tying my shoes and stand up, coming face to face with Darwin's chest. I don't let my eyes meet his, yet he leans down so his mouth is near my ear,
"Stay up with me tonight," his breath tickles my skin, almost giving me goosebumps. "I need to talk with you again." Still keeping my eyes down, I nod. Without anything else, Darwin stalks outside.
I exhale the breath that I didn't realize I was holding. I don't want to let my mind wander thinking about what Darwin wants to talk to me about, so I head outside, shutting the door behind me.
Darwin climbs into the passenger seat and slams the door shut. Through the windshield, Vince signals for me to go to the backseat on the driver's side.
When I reach out to grab the handle, Vince reverses. With a groan, I step to the side, trying to get to the door handle. Yet again, Vince reverses the truck. I shoot him a glare through his window, but he ignores it, laughing like this is the funniest shit he's ever seen.
For the third time, I walk towards the door. Vince, like the dumbass he is, keeps moving the truck back so it's just far enough away. I've had it. I stop, and once his window is level with me, I flip him off with both hands. His laughter doesn't stop. Finally, Vince puts the truck in park and lets me in.
"What the hell, Vince?" I scold, doing my best to conceal the smile that wants to show. Vince continues to giggle like a little girl. Neither Darwin nor Lincoln look very amused.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist." Vince says, pulling the truck around the circle drive and taking off down the driveway. He expects us to laugh along with him, but the truck stays silent. "Come on! You have to admit that it was pretty funny!"
"I don't think Lincoln thought it was funny. He was trying to sleep." Darwin mutters. Lincoln confirms Darwin's statement with a yawn and a gruff "mhm". Vince's laughter dies down,
"Sorry, Linc."
"You better be." Lincoln mumbles as he tips his head against the window and closes his eyes. I catch the smallest smile from him for a split second. I knew he wasn't actually mad.
After a while, soft snores come from Lincoln. The truck hits a few potholes, but Lincoln doesn't wake up. I take this as a sign that I can whisper and not disturb him.
"So where did you set up camp?" I ask Vince, leaning forward so he can hear me better.
"About half an hour away from here." He whispers back.
"Ok." I fall back into my seat and stare out the window, listening to the sounds of Lincoln getting much needed rest.
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Salut, tout le monde!
This was a shorter and boring chapter. So, sorry about that. It'll pick back up soon, don't worry!
Also, while I was writing this chapter, we hit 70 reads and got our first vote! Yes, I'm aware that ratio isn't great, but it's definitely something!
We've seen a few interactions between Lia and Darwin, and Lia and Lincoln. Which couple do you like more?
Thanks for reading chapter 17!💕