The Heartbroken - S01 E160

Story 2 years ago

The Heartbroken - S01 E160

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 160

“You know,” I said in lieu of a hello,

“Spongebob usually waits another

day before bothering Squidward

again.”

“I’d been trying to call you for the

past hour.”

“Oh. I was on the phone with Hail,”

I told him. “What’s up?”

“I just wanted to check up on you.

How are you feeling?”

I closed my eyes, pressing the

phone closer to my ear, as if that

would bring him closer as well. “I’m

feeling better.”

“Good.” I didn’t have anything to

say to that, so I kept my mouth

shut. There was a rustle, then I

heard him take a deep breath. “So.”

I raised an eyebrow. “So.”

“You and your mom.”

If he found it surprising for me to

have made up with Mom, he didn’t

show it. He kept his voice neutral,

asking without asking in a way that

made me feel like he would have

been okay with whether or not I

answered, and it was exactly this

that compelled me to talk to him, so

I did.

I told him about what happened

this morning, and when I was

done, he told me he was glad Mom

and I were back in good terms.

I expected him to say goodbye,

then, but he didn’t, and for a

prolonged moment of silence, we

just stayed on the line, listening to

each other’s subtle breathing.

When I thought the silence had

grown long enough, I cleared my

throat. “Seth?”

“Yeah?”

“Is there something else you want

to say?”

I wasn’t sure what I expected

when I asked him that, but it

definitely hadn’t been the words,

“Question game.”

It seemed like only yesterday, Seth

and I had barely known each other,

and now he knew me more than

anybody else, and it was all because

of this “game” he’d thought up

when I ran away that night. I’d

already used up four of my

questions and this one was going

to be his fourth as well, and for

some reason, I felt weirdly nervous.

Perhaps it was because I was more

conscious of him now, or because I

heard the hesitation in his voice as

well. Whichever it was, it made me

feel uneasy.

I swallowed, forcing out an “Okay.”

There was a moment of silence as I

waited for him to speak again,

making me grow even more

anxious, and I had to focus on the

blinking colon on my digital clock

just so my thoughts wouldn’t run

wild.

There was a rustle, then, softly, he

said, “What happens after this?”

My throat went dry. “This?”

“The whole fake relationship

thing,” he replied. His voice was

calm and even, making it hard for

me to imagine the expression on

his face. “What happens after?”

“Other than Alyssa and Lily

castrating you?” I asked him in a

futile attempt to delay having to

answer.

He didn’t even force a laugh.

I realized for the first time how

fragile this thing between us was,

and it felt as if my answer could

break it to pieces. Why did he ask

this, of all questions? Was he

planning to end the whole deal

soon?

My heart dropped to my stomach at

the thought.

Taking a deep breath, I said, “If it

was totally up to me, I don’t want

to go back to being strangers.”

He let out an audible sigh. “You

scared me for a second there.”