Whisper of Broken Things

Chapter 9

Halle asks me to walk her home, and we leave the rest of the group to deal with Dylan themselves. It's not until I get a text from my dad asking if "Anyone was able to come to dinner?" do I remember the plans he had for tonight. Halle's walking beside me this time, completely involved in her own little world. I'm sure she's thinking about how hurt she is with Dylan. I can tell he just wants to protect her, maybe as much as I do. But this is too important to Halle, her brother means everything to her, and if anyone tries to intervene, I doubt she would hear them out.

 I look over at her, her red in her hair peeking through in the sun, the bracelets that line her wrists, how effortlessly beautiful she is, and I think back to when I saw her in the gift shop, just yesterday. Something in me tells me that the universe wanted us back together, but I can't decide if it was to help free her brother, or to fall in love, or both. I debated asking her to come to dinner with my dad. Something inside me wants her to know a piece of my family, bring her closer to me. But another part of me feels bad for Dylan, he expressed his feelings for her quite clearly earlier and unlike me, he never left. He has been here for her through everything she has gone through, for a moment I begin to convince myself Halle isn't my secret anymore, she's Dylans. But when I look over at her, as she moves her hair out of her face, and the summer wind blows it back and forth, I don't want her to be Dylans. I don't want her to be anybodys. She's too perfect to be assigned to someone, she doesn't deserve that. She's her own unique mystery, but maybe, even if it's just for a little while, she'll want me a part of it. 

"Are you ok?" I ask, looking down at my shoes and watching the untied lace bounce against the side, as my feet hit the pavement. "I guess, I just don't get what the big deal is with him", she tucks her hair behind her ear and twirls the loose string of one of her friendship bracelets between her thumb and pointer finger. "I think he just cares about you a lot" I suggest, almost biting my tongue as the words flow out of my mouth. I feel like I owe it to Dylan to at least pretend to be on his side. "I would do it for him though, no matter how much I was against it, if he needed my help with something that he cared this deeply about, then I would help him no matter what, because I love him.", she tells me. I can tell she's really hurt by the whole situation and maybe what I decide to say next won't help, but I need to know. "You do?" love him I mean, but she knows that. She looks up, slowly meeting me dead in the eyes, "Of course I do, He's my best friend."

 I guess to most people platonic love and Romantic love are so easily dividable, but I've never gotten the chance to grasp either of them. I never had friends that I truly deeply loved, and I never had a real girlfriend either. The last girl I went out with lasted 3 weeks. Her name was Cecily Marie Jones, she was on the school golf team, and was super sweet. Though we both knew it was nothing but a fun little fling, something to take our minds off of school for a few weeks. We'd walk each other to class, and give a kiss goodbye. We never did anything intimate, I've never done anything intimate with anyone. We spent our days together at school, laughing, enjoying each other's company. Texted funny memes back and forth when we got home, maybe once and a while shared a date at a local restaurant. And when it came to the end, we both knew it, mutually ended things, and went our separate ways. We didn't land on bad terms or have a big blowout, we just knew when it was over, and we remained acquaintances, smiling at each other when we passed in the halls, and holding the door open when the other one followed with a hand full of books. That's how most of my relationships would go, many of my friendships were the same too.

 I look down at the time and realize I've got 45 minutes before my dad is going to pick me up, and expect a group of friends along with me, so I decide to just get over myself and ask Halle the question that has been weighing on my shoulders this whole walk back to her house. "So, my dad is having this dinner tonight, well he isn't having it we are just going out to dinner. But he wanted me to invite all you guys, and I told him I'd try. But now we are kind of all split up and I know you probably have better plans but-" "Yes ill come with you" she says, making no point to hide her laughter at how nervous I am. I let out a sigh of relief and laugh a little at myself too.