Chapter 25 Rae
RAE
The next morning, I woke to the sound of laughter echoing from downstairs. Someone was visiting Davis, and from the sounds of it, it wasn’t my parents. So, who else would it be?
Curiosity gnawed away at me as I lay there, listening to their conversation fade in and out, only to be interrupted by random bouts of laughter. Tossing the covers back, I decided it was best just to make my way down and see what was going on.
I pulled on a pair of sweats that had been tossed to the floor last night.
I had no idea where they came from. Honestly, I think they were under the covers, and during one of our rounds, I found them and tossed them over.
Davis had more than enough flannel tucked away in his spacious closet, so I pulled one on and buttoned it closed then walked to the bathroom to try to salvage whatever was happening with my hair.
Once I felt marginally presentable, I padded toward the stairs and with one foot in descent, I paused.
“So, what happened with the stalker girl?”
Air constricted in my lungs as my hand gripped the railing with force.
Davis replied moments later. “I found out she’s fine. I mean, I started at the library, which led to a clusterfuck. I was half tempted to ask Rae for her yearbook when I decided to check out the diner.”
“Why would Rae’s yearbook have that chick in it?”
My body slowly sank to the top step, almost as if it were caving in on itself.
Davis sounded like he sipped something, then cleared his throat.
“She’s around the same age, I think. She just graduated from college, and that girl was barely eighteen at the time, I think.
I mean, she walked up to my motorcycle the summer prior and had said she was seventeen then, so she would have to be around that age. ”
His guest laughed. “Shit, she was probably homeschooled, based off the shit you told me.”
My chin wobbled as tears began flowing freely down my face. I didn’t even feel the burn that I usually did to warn me that they were coming. Fat, salty drops just fell from my lashes, silently securing my future—and the lack of it here.
“Dude, I was homeschooled, don’t be a dick. Besides, she was sweet. A little misguided, but sweet.”
“I distinctly remember how fucking pissed you’d get every time you went to the library and found a new note stuffed into one of your reserved books,” his friend scoffed, and his voice moved closer.
“Shit, I remember when we talked about getting that security system installed because you were worried she’d follow you home. ”
More tears fell, and my heart clenched tight in my chest. It felt like barbed wire was slowly wrapping around it with each word spoken between the two.
He remembered me.
“So what ended up happening at the diner then?” his guest asked.
I swiped at my face with the sleeve of Davis’s flannel, preparing my heart. I already knew my parents wouldn’t know anything because in spite of all my stalking of Davis, I had never worked up the nerve to actually give him my name…but Carl would have known.
“The manager, old guy with the gray hair? He seemed to know who I was talking about because he was the one I dealt with when that girl would leave me those VIP—”
“Reservations!” his friend burst out laughing, finishing the sentiment for him.
My face heated, a hiccup got caught in my throat, and suddenly I just wanted to be anywhere but here.
“Yeah, so he knew who I was talking about. He seemed a little cryptic and protective, like he didn’t want me to try and reach out or find her, but he made it seem like she was fine.”
The memory of Carl sitting next to me, telling me that Davis had asked about a girl, flashed through my mind. I had assumed it was a one-night stand—someone he’d been with or wanted to find again.
It was me.
He’d been asking about me…and Carl knew.
His friend made a loud scoffing sound. “You trying to find her, that’s cool. If you’re looking to somehow get killed or something.”
“Gavin, don’t be a prick. You know she wasn’t like that.”
One of the dogs’ collars suddenly jingled close to the stairs, and within seconds, the top of Dove’s head popped into view. He trotted up until he reached me, plopping his jaw in my lap, like he knew I needed the support.
Gavin made a placating sound before defending himself. “Man, she showed up at the library, when you were having sex. How the fuck did she know, and who does that?”
What in the actual fuck was he talking about?
Did he lie to his friend? He had given me a note and asked me to show up. He set the whole thing up!
“I don’t know man, the whole thing just seemed strange. She seemed shocked when I lifted my head. Not like ‘I saw someone having sex in the library’ but rather ‘I saw Davis having sex in the library.’ Like she was expecting something completely different.”
“Yeah, you there—alone.” Gavin laughed again.
What was he talking about? This didn’t make any sense at all.
“I don’t know. Anyway, just trying to put it behind me.”
There was silence between the friends, and then suddenly Gavin spoke up.
“So, am I going to meet this girl you supposedly have up in your bed? And can we talk about the fact that you have one in there for the first time fucking ever?”
“It’s not that big of a deal,” Davis muttered, almost bashfully.
“Since I’ve known you, you’ve always had random hookups in the chick’s house, a car, or some other place. Never in your house, let alone your bed. Now, I’m hearing she’s been here all weekend and is sleeping in your bed?”
Silence stretched, then Gavin spoke again.
“All I’m saying is it seems like a big deal…like maybe she’s special.”
I couldn’t hear anymore. What if Davis said I wasn’t special, and he’d just gotten too old to care for uncomfortable hookup places? What if it had nothing whatsoever to do with me?
I stood on shaky legs, about to walk away, when I heard Davis finally respond.
“Yeah…I think this might be it for me.”
Never mind, this was worse. Now, I had to break his heart, tell him goodbye, and explain how I was the girl who pathetically stalked him all those years ago. The one his friend laughed and joked about. And because I was her, there was absolutely zero chance for the two of us ever working out.