Kade, one week later
"Thanks for making time to come out," I greeted Spencer and the short, blonde haired woman attached to him. With Sage expected to return home next week, I wanted to know what we're dealing with. Over the last week, she shut herself off from everyone, claiming to be focused on her recovery. I don't buy it one bit. The girl can't even look me in the eye without some darkness creeping into those pale iris's of hers.
"No problem, Kaden." Spencer replies and clasps me on the shoulder before his gaze flicks to his girl. "Sorry. Noelle, this is Kaden McCarthy and Sage's brother, Kyle. Guys, this is my girl, Noelle, who works with Madison, one of the on call docs over there."
"I know this goes against protocol, but thanks for speaking with us," Kyle offers a small smile as he shakes her hand. Even exhausted the kid still could pull off a million dollar smile, but Spencer was practically family and Kyle would never cross that line.
Unlike me, who's still dreaming about the brief kiss Sage and I shared days ago. I missed the feeling of her in my arms, feeling Sage and seeing the laughter dancing in her blue eyes. My little firefly was finally coming back to the light and someone has the audacity to drag her back into the darkness.
"Yeah, I'm totally risking my license just speaking to you," Noelle wrinkled her nose and burrows herself into his side. He whispers something in her ear and she rolls her eyes, but the adoration is clear in her eyes as she gazes up at him. Jealousy of that simple exchange slams into me and I shut that shit down. I have a girl, one that is absolutely perfect and guilt barrels right over where jealousy had been. Lola. Fuck, I've been so focused on Sage that I've ignored my actual girlfriend.
Kyle herds us all into the living room and because I'm sure Rosie's an alien from another planet, a spread of finger foods is set on the coffee table with an array of coffee and teas. "I see Rosie's still remembers my obsession with tea sandwiches," Spencer chuckles as he sits on the couch, pulling Noelle with him. I grab the arm chair to the left of the couch and Kyle takes up his recliner to the right of the couch.
"I just want to know she's being safe there?" Kyle starts off, worry swimming in his eyes. "She seemed to be regressing when we last saw her and that concerns my family."
Noelle frowns as she laces her fingers with Spencer's, "I'll be honest, Kyle, I saw a shift in her last week and it was like an overnight thing too. I know that Dr. Lawrence has expressed concerns about Sage's behavior this close to her discharge date and has increased her sessions because of it."
Kyle and I exchanged a look across the room. How come we weren't made aware of this? If the doctors treating Sage had concerns of her well being, then maybe she's not ready to come home. I know that when Sage is in the state she was in last week, she's hiding something pretty fucked up and she's shutting everything down to try to grasp onto some sense of normalcy.
"Is she taking her meds?" Kyle asked, reaching up to grab a club sandwich. "Could she be having some kind of depression episode?" When doctor Lawrence laid out Sage's mental health diagnosis, everything clicked in my head about her behavior for the last few years. Sage Henderson excelled in deception. She fell into the roll of perfect daughter in public or at least as much as Kingsley could afford to pay off the press to not rub explicit stories about the Henderson princess.
To think all that time she'd been battling depression and anxiety. Tackle on the suicial ideation and this girl's a therapist's best toy. Pick apart her brain and see how to fix it. But years of emotional trauma has made Sage reluctant to seek any kind of help that isn't in the form of a pill or white powder to be sniffed.
"According to her chart, she has, but something is upsetting her and she's not talking about it." Noelle rakes her fingers through her hair and sighs, "What I do know is that before she can be discharged, Sage has to undergo a final evaluation and doctor Lawrence will be meeting with the family to determine where Sage will live after discharge. The conditions of her discharge will be laid out during your next visit."
"So... there's a chance she won't be discharged?" I asked, dragging my hand down my face. Exhaustion pulls at me from lack of sleep the last few nights, but I'm so focused on helping Sage that a thing like sleep seems completely miniscule in the grand scheme of things. "I'll be honest, Kaden, Dr. Lawrence is probably going to recommend Sage remain in Hillcrest unless she opens up about what's going on, because she was making such progress and suddenly she's closed off."
I thought so too. I can't help, but feel like this has something to do with me. Ever since that tiny kiss, I've thought of nothing but her and seeing her so incredibly distant and almost afraid to look at me just shatters something in my heart. Does she regret it? Is she worried that I do? My brain goes over scenario in my head, even when Spencer and Noelle have long gone. It isn't until Mikey's staring down at me with a grimace on his face that my hackles rise.
"What's going on? And I thought you were spending Christmas with your family in Arizona?" His brown eyes ping ponged between my own and he bites his nails. That's his tell whenever something's either bothering him or he knows something that will undoubtedly piss one of us off. "What happened, Mikey?"
I've been friends with this kid since the sandbox, literally. He was eating sand because Tanner dared him and all these years later this fucker still has never said no to a dare. "It's about Lola," He shifts uncomfortably on his feet and raked his fingers through his now buzzed dark hair. The seriousness in his expression and tension coming off him in waves has me sitting straighter and my brows furrowed as I stared up at him.
"What is it, Mikey?" I asked, a million silent questions in my head. I'd been so focused on Sage that Lola, my actual girlfriend, became an afterthought.
He closes his brown eyes briefly and when he opened them again, they were borderline black. "I saw her while I was in Arizona and she was having a cozy lunch with a guy."
You'd think the nonexistent panic and anger would clue me into just how much my relationship has fallen to shit. "When exactly was this?" I questioned as I sat back, the leather chair cool on my heated back. Mikey puts his fingers on his stubbled chin and hummed, "I stayed a week after Thanksgiving, so I'd say maybe two or three weeks ago."
My eyes narrow and I cock a brow at my best friend. Why'd he wait so long to tell me about this? But more importantly, why am I less pissed about the possibility of my girlfriend cheating on me with some guy from her hometown? Probably because of the secret kiss and the sensory memory of Sage fucking Henderson in my arms and on my lips. But all I say to Mikey is "Was she kissing him or something? He could be a close friend, Mike."
His expression shifts to a 'don't be an idiot' look. I, as someone who's been cheated on in the only relationship prior to this, can't see Lola ever cheating on me. Maybe it's my own guilt spearheading the boat of denial down these murky waters, or maybe I'm hoping she is and I can save us both the heartache and end things now.
"Look, all I saw was her sitting was this guy, dressed to the fucking nines like a rich country club socialite," He drops into the chair across from me and leans forward to rest his arms on his thighs. "He looked older though, maybe in his thirties, but the intimacy of how they were seated was not of a relative or a family friend. That and the way they were eye fucking each other so publicly says a lot too."
I know Mikey wouldn't just come to me with this type of shit if he wasn't atleast ninety percent sure, but I need to heatyot from Lola. Then I'd feel less guilty about Sage. "Thanks for the heads up, man." He doesn't say anything, but nods his head in silent solidarity. He's got his own hang ups with women and to have a girl in our circle other than Sage and even Erin, is fucking huge.
"Let's get you fucked up so you can forget your girl's fucking some old dude behind your back!" I reached over to grab a pillow from the couch and tossed it at his head. "You're the best, Mikey."
"Jesus, did you guys leave any fucking booze left," A voice filtered in the room. My head swam and the room was upside down or was that just me. A bottle of bourbon was clutched in my hand and my head was hanging off the couch along with my left leg. "Shit, what happened?" Kyle asked as he peeled the bottle from hand. I groaned and slid, more like rolled to the floor with a thud.
"He found his girls a dirty little whore is what!" Mikey slurred from somewhere in the room. I remembered him calling some chick and bitching about being the right guy for her and that was after bottle number one. "They all fuck with our emotions, trying to change us into fucking Ken and then when you fuck up one time they go fucking running." He rants and I throw my arm over my eyes, blocking out the blaring light from above.
"Wait a minute... Lola's cheating on you?" Kyle actually gasped and suddenly the bourbon is pried out of my hand. "Fuck. Never thought I hear that. She was one of the good ones."
And she was. Or so I thought. My alcohol fueled brain tries to pinpoint the exact moment everything went to shit in my relationship, because Lola's not the kind of girl to just fuck around on a guy.
"Have you actually confirmed anything with her?" Kyle asked when I finally sat up my back pressed against the couch. "Communication is key in relationships, fuckers. It could've been a misunderstanding or some shit." Maybe he's right. Maybe it was a misunderstanding. Fuck that, the drunk part of my brain rationalize, from what Mikey saw that wasn't an innocent meal between friends or family. It was that of two people who were lovers. He had his cock in her probably right after that meal and then she got on a plane and came back home to me.
"Even if she cheated, something had to drive her there," Kyle reasoned and I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. I can't deal with this shit right now. Not until I've actually talked to Lola. Part of me wonders what that conversation would be like. Did she fuck him? Is she in love with him? Because that would make ending things a shit ton easier so I can focus on Sage. And like a freight train reality came barreling into me. Did Sage and I have a future together? Realistically once Kyle's done murdering me for fucking his sister, Sage has her own demons that's she's still fighting and I'm sure the last thing she needs is a relationship.
"Says the guy who's cheated in just about every relationship he's been in," Mikey groaned crawling over to the armchair. Kyle flipped him off and passed the bourbon back to me. "I do agree you should talk to her and see what's really going on."
As if the universe was pushing me to do so, my phone vibrated in my pocket and I pulled it out, frowning at the text from Lola.
Lola: Can we talk?
"Might want to sober up before you talk to her," Kyle murmurs over my shoulder and I groaned as I heaved myself up to lay back on the couch. "Yeah, I'll let her sweat a day or two. Text her back that I'm out of town." I grumbled, shoving my phone in Kyle's chest and promptly passing the fuck out. I can deal with Lola in a day or two... right?