Trust me, babe

Chapter 17

Kathryn

The sun was shining brightly as I drove towards the airport. So brightly, in fact, that I cursed myself a million times for forgetting my sunglasses at home. Forgetting something that vital for driving was probably one of the many signs that I was still a rather inexperienced driver.

The traffic towards the airport was slow, causing me to constantly keep glancing at my watch, hoping I'd make it to the airport on time. But honestly, there was no need to worry as I had left for the airport very early, surprised by how much time I'd had in the morning. Why had I set my alarm so early in the morning? Anyways, it would still take nearly an hour for Kenzie and Jacky's plane to land.

Only an hour. AN HOUR. I couldn't believe it. They were almost here. ALMOST HERE. I would see Kenzie. I could hug Kenzie. It all made me feel rather sentimental. I had missed her so much.

But I was a little worried, too. It wasn't only Kenzie who was coming. It was Jacky too. How would I react when I saw him? Would he bring bad memories to my mind? Would his presence make me feel uncomfortable? He was Mikey's brother after all.

When I thought about it I realized I had never heard how he had reacted to Mikey's betrayal. Had it changed anything between them? Had he been angry at his brother? What did he think about me? How would he react to seeing me?

As anxiety began to take over I tried to remind myself that I hadn't done anything wrong. When I'd see Jacky, when he'd cause all the memories to come to me as he most likely would, I'd have to remember there was no reason for me to start wondering if I should've done something differently so that I wouldn't have lost his brother last summer. And I'd also have to remember Jacky had no reason to hold any bad feelings towards me. But no matter what I told myself, I still felt a little nervous.

I glanced at my watch again just to realise it had been, like, a minute since I had last checked the time. I tapped my fingers against the steering wheel and sighed loudly as I drove on in the frustratingly slow traffic.

Eventually I decided I had to do something to calm down a bit. And what could you do to calm yourself down while driving? Listen to music. But where the fuck was my phone? I checked my pockets and glanced around the car. Shit. Of course I had left my phone in my purse and dumped my purse on the backseat. I'd have to resort to something else then.

I turned on the radio, hoping they'd play some good music on there for a change.

"And next we will listen to a new single called 'Oceans between us' from a promising young artist, a star clearly rising from America," the radio host announced. Then she turned on the music.

I nearly drove off the road. I recognised his voice immediately. I would never forget that voice. Never. No matter how hard I wanted to. I just couldn't.

How could you forget the voice which had uttered to you the words you had wanted to hear so badly, the words you had waited for someone to say to you? The words which every parent should say to their child — and mine had never said. The words which every loving partner was meant to say to their beloved one. The words which made you feel important and cared for. The words 'I love you' and 'you are special'.

How could you forget the voice which had finally said those words to you and then turned out to have been lying all along? The voice which had uttered the words which had built and sustained in you the illusion of being important and special to someone.

I felt tears stinging in my eyes. It was Mikey's voice.

I wanted to turn off the radio but somehow I couldn't. Something forced me to listen and as I listened, tears were no longer just stinging in my eyes but now they were rolling down my cheeks, too. I had to blink rapidly to keep my vision from going all blurry.