r o r y
For the past few days, I've sought solitude in the comfort of the Evans' household. Caroline was ecstatic the night I showed up after Tyler cornered me and has been pleasant every moment after. My own apartment is a place I dread returning to, and staying under the same roof as Tyler is no longer an option. Caroline didn't question my company, just welcomed me with open arms and treated me like a daughter. I've been here ever since.
The pool has kept me company most days. Even when her husband is out for business meetings, she's a busy woman with her own clients and meetings to attend. She's tried her best to show me company when she can, and it feels odd to linger around an empty mansion, but it's the only place I've got for now.
Chace's first business trip has been rough, and I can only hope he doesn't go on these often since he's not in the same position as his father. Caroline told me some years are worse than others. Sometimes she and Chandler are separated for up to a month.
I stare at the clouds hovering above my head as I float across the cool water. If I empty my mind, I can pretend I'm drifting in the infinite sky. What if I were stuck with Tyler for that long? I want to say it'd be torturous. After what he did to me the other day, I don't want to see his face again. It hurt how mean he was and how he'd use my weakness against me just to get a reaction. I thought we were becoming friends. I was really starting to like him.
Sometimes people just prefer to be alone. He's kind of a lone wolf. Maybe I was breaching his comfort so he returned the favor.
I sink low and relish in the cool water engulfing me. When I resurface, I'm facing the sun as it glimmers around me and lowers in the sky. Maybe that's why he pushed me away so hard. Triggering me must have been the only thing he could think of. Perhaps our friendship is breaking into that hollow shell of his. He doesn't know what to do with our connection.
From what I've seen over the past weeks, it's hard for Tyler to get attached to people. The few he's close to, like Caroline and Chace, he holds dear to him. He cares about them a lot. We were becoming good friends. Maybe that scared him.
I haven't had the courage to tell Chace about what happened. I don't want to upset him while he's away, and I want him to come home to a warm and positive atmosphere. Confessing my love for him is the top priority. Smiling, I sink deeper into the water until it covers my soft expression. One more day. Chace comes back tomorrow. I just have to wait twenty-four hours before I get to see him again. Hopefully, my plans are executed as romantically as I imagine them.
"Rory?" The sound of Tyler's voice sends me surfacing out of the water and turning fast. He's poking his head out of the sliding glass door and his eyes land on me. "I thought you might be here."
Panic sends my heart plummeting into darkness. Instead of answering, I sink back into the water, covering the bottom of my face, and swim to the opposite end of the pool. My stomach twists with discomfort. Why is he here?
He seems disappointed by my reaction and steps out with his head lowered. He ruffles up his hair and takes cautious steps towards the end of the pool. It's odd seeing him react this way. His aura is gentle. Shy. "I've been looking for you." He glances up. "Haven't seen you in a few days and I got worried." When it's clear that I won't move forward or respond, he swings his hands back and forth and catches his fist in his palm. "I wanted to talk."
"Why'd you follow me?" I demand, but my voice is so soft it barely sounds threatening.
"I came to apologize. Chace is coming back tomorrow, you go back to school in a couple of days, I didn't want there to be any tension between us before then."
"Maybe you shouldn't invade my personal space. Especially, when you know how it feels to me."
"Yeah." He ruffles up his hair vigorously. From this distance, it looks like he's scowling at the ground. "I told you to get away from me." He shakes his head. "That's not the point. You're right, I took things too far." He looks up suddenly. "Can you come closer? It's hard to talk to you like this."
I arch a brow even though I know he can't see it. "Aren't you the one apologizing to me? I was here first."
"Fair." Tyler pulls his shirt over his head and kicks off his sneakers until he's only in the shorts he came in.
I stare in shock as he dives headfirst into the water. My heart speeds up as he cuts through it and is in front of me in seconds. "This is not what I had in mind," I mumble.
Grinning, he pushes wet hair out of his face. "Thought it'd only be fair to talk at the same level."
"I guess."
"Look, the other day, I wasn't trying to trigger you," he begins in a tone so serious and a gaze too intense to escape from. "I know how rough things have been. I know you're at risk of relapsing. I'm trying to be careful around you. When we go to Anarchy, I make sure you only take what you can handle. It's just, the other day, I was feeling emotional and overwhelmed. I reacted in a way I shouldn't have and it hurt you. I'm sorry. I don't want to hurt you, Rory. I really like you, and being your friend is pretty fucking awesome."
I bite back a smile and glance away. Elation spreads from my chest to my toes and fingertips at an alarming rate. Days ago, I was certain I'd keep my distance from him, but the thought of rekindling our friendship is more tempting than I expected. It sucked having to ignore him and avoid him after what happened. I wanted to have fun with him this week, not be upset with him. Sometimes people are reckless when they're emotional, and I truly believe he wasn't out to hurt me. "I forgive you," I say.
Hope ignites behind his eyes and his lips arch. "Seriously?"
"Sure." I nod shyly, trying to ignore how happy our friendship makes me after barely two weeks.
He laughs and balances in the water on his back. "Well, that was easier than I thought. I was sure you'd make me suffer before forgiving me."
"I didn't finish."
Tyler turns his head to find me smirking. "Oh?"
"For making me suffer through a panic attack, I think it's only fair to say you owe me."
"I can get behind that." He balances upright and lingers a mere foot in front of me. "What do I owe you?"
"An explanation about this person you like."
Warm colors drain from his already fair complexion, and his playful expression falls. "Rory, I-"
"I was certain you liked Jeffery." I hold up a finger to hush him. "Everything pointed to it, but I guess I'm not as observant as I thought. So, I want to know who it is."
He shakes his head. "Why do you want to know so badly?"
"'Cause it caused you to lash out at me, and I wanna know why."
"I didn't mean to lash out at you-"
"But you did. So, tell me."
We stare at each other. Electricity crackles in the air. Each quick shift of his eyes tells me everything. He knows I'm stubborn. He knows I won't give in. "I don't have time for this." He turns to swim back, but I grab his wrist and keep him close.
"No. You can't run away." I squeeze for emphasis. "You're my friend, and friends tell each other secrets. Especially, romantic secrets."
He looks at my hand then at me. "Is that so?"
I nod vigorously.
He thinks for a minute and slowly pulls his wrist away. "Fine. I'll give you a hint."
"Tyler, giving me hints won't help anything when I don't know who your associates are."
"I think it will."
I stare at him with a blank expression, but he's insistent. Sadly, he's just about as hard to budge as I am. "Fine. Give me a hint."
"If I'm going to tell you who my crush is, you have to earn it." He swims back a bit like my nearness is an advantage. "It's sort of a big deal, so I can't give it to you easily."
"Fine." I swim close, refusing to give him enough room to escape. "What do I have to do?"
He thinks for a moment as a gentle breeze sends nature rustling around us. The sun warms my back and shines on his face, bringing a golden reflection to his grey eyes. "I'll give you two options. One of them will be wrong. If you pick the right one, you move on until you can make your own guess. Get enough wrong and you lose."
I narrow my eyes and purse my lips in a comical manner. "How many can I get wrong?"
"Three. I think that's fair."
"This should be easy enough. Give me the first option."
"Alright!" He huffs and lets his attention wander as he gathers his thoughts. "This person is either a man or a woman."
I observe as his face becomes a shield of emotionlessness. It's apparent that he desperately doesn't want me to figure it out, but I'm too thrilled to discover the person that managed to grab the attention of a guy like Tyler. "A woman?" I guess.
The corner of his mouth twitches. "Right."
"Whoo!" I fling my hands up, spraying water around us. "I'm gonna find out in seconds."
"Calm down there, it was only the first one." He clears his throat. "She's either a blonde or brunette."
"Hmm." I rub my chin. Another fifty-fifty shot. It's hard to imagine Tyler with a blonde. His type seems to be of a darker look and aura. Jeffery is blonde, but he doesn't like him. He was insistent on that. "Brunette?"
"Damn." He smirks. "Now you're making me nervous."
"Yes." I stick my tongue out at him. "See? I know you. I can read people easily."
"Don't get too cocky. If the person you guess is wrong, you lose no matter how many chances you have left."
"Fine." I shrug. "Keep throwing them at me."
"Alright. This person is either tall or short."
"Hmm." I purse my lips and say, "Tall," with confidence.
"Wrong."
"No way! I was sure you'd be pining after a tall goddess-like woman."
"Nope." He laughs and splashes water in my face. "Plus, women don't need to be tall to have a goddess-like aura to them."
I wipe my face clean and splash back at him. "Long legs are sexy."
"True, but there's beauty in shorter, thicker hips and thighs." He smirks. "I happen to find rounder figures more attractive."
"Is that so?" I think of any smaller, rounder woman Tyler could possibly be thinking of. Chace's assistant is tall and thin, so she's out. "I can't think of anyone except..." My eyes widen. She's shorter than him and curvy towards the bottom. No way. "Is it Rosie?" I demand.
He furrows his brows. "What?"
"That's the only person I know that fits that description. You said she came back into your life. Does that mean you knew Rosie before I slept with her? How did Chace not know about this? Was she a secret lover? She never mentioned anything to me when she saw you." I grab my face as it all pieces together like a puzzle. The heated tension. A lover he can't have but so desperately craves. It's straight out of a novel. "Ohmygod. I honestly don't blame you! She's gorgeous." That's why he was having a hard time befriending me. I slept with the girl he likes.
"Rory-"
"I totally don't care if you date her," I say quickly.
"No, I-"
"What we did was a one-time thing. If I had known you had a history, I never would have slept with her." Makes sense why he wanted to see her so badly. Why didn't she mention it?
"Rory!" Tyler flings water at my face, shutting me up. "It's not her."
I stare at him shocked and wipe my face. "Asshole!"
"I had to get you to stop talking, god." He laughs and shakes his head. "You know, I believe you're book smart. I really do. You might even be street smart. Your romantic perception is fucking awful." He relaxes his arms behind his head and swims on his back. "Game over."
"No way! I was wrong?" I swim next to him and poke his ribs. "Tell me who it is!"
"Nope." He smiles and shuts his eyes against the sun. "You used your only guess, and it was wrong as hell. Now you'll never know."
"No fair! I was sure I was close. She's the only person I know who matches all the hints. When you came to the bar with us, I thought it was odd. It makes sense you wanted to be around 'cause you like her."
"Not quite."
I jab his side a little harder. "You're annoying."
"What?" he laughs incredulously. "You're the one that guessed wrong."
"You're lying about something. One of those hints were wrong. Is it Chace's assistant? Jade or something, right? She's pretty."
"I didn't even know he had an assistant."
"Fine. Tell me who she is. Show me a picture."
"Nope."
"Ty!" I push his side, throwing him a bit off balance.
"Fuck." He hisses and quickly adjusts himself upright. He gives me an irritated look for a long moment. I try to beg with my eyes for him to tell me, but his expression is unmoving. Without warning, he snakes his arms around my waist and twists me with enough strength to go over his hip. There's not enough time to react or even scream as my head goes underwater. I kick and thrash, but his powerful hold continues to surprise me for someone so thin. I push at his chest as hard as I can, separating us.
"You ass!" I gasp when I'm finally free. I fling water at his face as he laughs and pushes his hair back. "You tried to kill me."
"You're being annoying. You guessed wrong. Give up."
"You didn't have to drown me!" I shove his chest as he continues to find my near-death amusing. "What if I sunk to the bottom?"
"Then I'd save you." There's a smile in his voice despite his straight face. "I know you think I can't handle you, Rory, but you're nothing to me."
Even though he doesn't directly mention it, I know he's referring to the few times he's lifted me with ease. It is surprising how someone with little to no muscle can handle a girl of my density. Chace is the only guy who hasn't had difficulty with my weight, or rather, made subtle complaints about it. Tyler would be the second on that list.
"You suck." It's the only response I can think of. I turn my back to him and swim to the other end of the pool. I climb out and rest on the edge, back to the sun and feet in the water. I've been in here for hours now. My palms and feet are wrinkled and my muscles are going to ache from the exercise. Still, it's worth it for what's come of it. I got a friend back and it's like nothing ever happened between us.
Tyler swims over and rests at my legs. "Are you seriously mad because you're bad at guessing?"
I use my feet to flick water at his face. "No. I'm annoyed that you're so dodgy and secretive."
A delicate laugh leaves his lips and he pulls himself out to sit next to me. "Rory, you know how blunt and unfiltered I am. It's not my fault you aren't perceptive of people's feelings."
I fold my arms and angle away from him. "Mhm."
"Rory..." Tyler touches my thigh then hastily pulls away. "Sorry."
My heart jumps at the sudden softness in his voice. Turning back, I'm met with cautious eyes like he's truly afraid he's annoyed me. I break out a small smile and bump his shoulder. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm not so good at reading people."
Relief floods his face and he returns my smile. "Yeah. It's okay though. We all can't be perfect."
"Haha." I peer at the water as it glimmers at our feet. I roam my legs around and rest my hands on the warm concrete behind me. The sun begins to set on our backs, turning the water a lovely shade of peach and lavender. "Pretty," I whisper with a light feeling.
"Yeah."
We remain silent for a while, enjoying the peace and warmth of the coming evening. Chace returns in just a day. Butterflies with tiny flames at their feet flutter around my chest. Forgiving Tyler was a good idea. With no dreadful pressure in my lungs, the only thing I have to worry about is saying three little words. One big word, really. Instead of I adore you, it'll be I love you. I bite back a smile and sigh. I love someone. I love someone and it's right. Not toxic or harmful, but pure and honest.
"You know," Tyler begins softly, "you were really close to figuring it out. My crush." I look at him, but he's staring at the water. He moves his legs around as well, matching my motion down to the exact pattern. The gentle sounds of moving water fill his silence before he continues, "The girl I like...she's not quite as tall as Rosie. Her complexion is lighter. Her eyes are" —a vulnerable look captures him— "the prettiest shade of brown that I've ever seen."
"She sounds pretty."
"Gorgeous. Confident. Fiery. Stubborn as hell to the point that it becomes annoying."
I chuckle. "Sounds like your type."
"Exactly my type. Spending time with her makes me feel things I never have with any other man or woman. I get nervous, anxious when she's in the room. What she's thinking and how she feels constantly affects me. I usually don't care about people's emotions too much, but I constantly find myself being cautious about being too careless with her. I want to be...gentle and rough at the same time." He stares at his palms and frowns. "It makes no sense. I don't understand it." He curls them into fists. "I don't want to like her. It's wrong to. Yet every second I spend with her, I just fall deeper and deeper until I can't take it. Something just snaps inside me and makes me want to risk it all."
"What's keeping you from her?" The weight of his confession is too heavy to bear. It seems so powerful yet cruel like he's suffering in the most loving way. "It sounds like you really like her."
With a swift turn, he stares at me. It's so hasty that my heart skips. He holds my gaze for the longest moment; I almost forget my question. The basic function of my lungs is lost in space, and oxygen refuses to fill them. I become dizzy in his eyes. What the hell is happening? "I can't have her," he whispers.
"W-why not?"
"Because she belongs to someone else. Someone I care for just as much. No matter how much it hurts me to be so close and so far, I have to stay strong for them. I have to."
"Tyler." His gaze lowers, following the movement of my lips forming around his name. I scowl. My heart thuds. No. That's not what he means. It can't be. "Tyler..."
"Stop," he mumbles weakly. "Don't say my name like that. You'll just make this so much harder."
"What do you mean?"
"The second you came back into my life..."
My ribs squeeze around my heart as it thuds so harshly in my chest. It can't be. "Tyler," I insist with more desperation than I knew I had.
"That very moment that I turned around and laid my eyes on your face, I was reminded of the woman I met six months prior. The woman I was so enamored with after such a short meeting. I went back to that venue hoping to see you again, hoping to extend our one night into something casual. There was something about you that enticed me so much."
I blink back tears and try to ignore his words. It's not me. He's not talking about me. This is just another game.
"I gave up after a while. Thought I was just some unlucky bastard, and I was." He laughs heartlessly and rubs his palms into his eyes. "Who would have guessed that the first woman my brother was so excited for me to meet would be that exact same woman I wanted to be with? From the moment I laid eyes on you, I couldn't stop thinking about you. At first, I thought it was just lust, and it annoyed me so I took it out on you. Then I began to realize that I care. I fucking care," he chokes out. "I care about your opinion and what you think. I feel inferior next to my brother because of you. Even if I did stand a chance, I am nothing compared to him."
"Ty-"
"Stop." He grabs my wrist. "Stop. It's not a game. Not a joke. Rory, I don't know how you could be this blind, but it's you. I've been trying to stop myself, but I can't help it. You're so damn annoying and it hurts." He bites his lip as it trembles and stares into my eyes as rain threatens to spill from grey clouds. "You don't have to tell me what's wrong with it because I already know. I know what and why. It won't stop me from falling for you."
My heart implodes. Before I can think or react, he drops my hand and jumps up. "T-Tyler." I scramble after him. "Wait!" Why can't I say anything else? Think of anything else? Is this real? I shake my head. No. It can't be. "You can't just say that and walk away," I insist as I catch up to him. I grab his wrist, but he yanks away and keeps going. "Are you joking?" I demand. I want to hit myself. Stop being an idiot. I stop and stare as he continues to stalk away. Anxiety engulfs my entirety until I'm a frozen mess. I rub my arm and look off to the water next to me, wishing this was all a dream, that I didn't hear what he just said. "W-we can fix this."
He stops.
"We can talk about this. I'm sure y-you're just confusing our friendship with emotions you aren't used to."
Tyler gradually turns around. His expression is unreadable with his hair masking so much of his face. Endless emotion swirls in his eyes, so much that I can't tell what he's thinking. He comes at me again, steps slow but too fast for me to register. My heart stops. I forget how to breathe. I'm panicking yet unmoving. Sweat soaks my palms. A fog veils my brain. I am suspended in space as he approaches me, no doubt challenging my words. I blink. Tyler is right before me, towering over me. He still hasn't said anything. Does he believe me? Is this a joke? My thoughts are so scattered I can't make sense of anything.
I tilt my head to meet his eyes. They're swimming in sadness. Glimmering water reflects off of the pool and onto his face. "We can fix this? Is that what you said? Rory? We can fix this?"
"I-"
"How?"
"I-I don't know. I-"
"How can we fix how I feel about you? Every time I see your face, the only thing I can think of..." He stops and lowers his gaze to my lips again.
Time stops. Suddenly, cool fingers caress my jaw and soft thumbs graze my cheeks. One touch and my body is ablaze. My eyes widen as a familiar feeling returns. Forbidden flames engulf me and set my core on fire. Desire burns inside me. "T-Tyler," I gasp.
"How can you stop me from feeling like this?" he whispers right before he leans down and brings his lips to mine. Everything comes crashing down around me.
How are we feeling about this chapter?
rae🍑