How To Stay Afloat (BxB)

Chapter 136: manipulation

"You're gonna be late for school! Hurry up, I have to drive you." Caleb's voice wakes me up.

I faintly remember turning off my alarm and falling asleep again.

"Ugh, thanks!" I call out and sit up.

He's standing in my door with his arms crossed, looking around the room. "Had someone over yesterday?"

"Uhm, you mean Carla?" I ask him confused.

He scoffs. "No, in the evening."

"Uhm, Austin was here." I tell him.

"Right. Who else?" He says and turns around.

"Hey, wait up!" I yell and climb out of bed.

He sighs and turns around. "What is it?" He asks me annoyed.

"Are- are you okay?" I ask him hesitantly.

He shrugs. "Yeah. I'm not the one who tried to kill himself twice."

I'm just gonna ignore that.

"Uhm, what's up with Carla and you?" I wanna know.

"Nothing. We're broken up." He says nonchalantly.

"Yeah, uhm, what happened?" I ask him.

"You know what happened. She's mad that I lied to her." He says.

"Yeah, no, I know. But you seemed really close when you visited me. Did something else happen?" I ask him.

He rolls his eyes. "Just leave me alone."

"Caleb. Hey! Come on. I also tell you all about my problems." I point out.

That makes him step closer to me with an angry expression. "No! No, you tell me nothing. You went out in the middle of the night to commit suicide right after you said you're alright. No. You don't tell me about your problems at all. Fuck off."

"I- what was I supposed to tell you? 'Hey bro, I'm planning to go and kill myself, any advice'?" I ask him.

"Yeah. For example! That feeling didn't come out of nowhere. You could have talked to me before it got this bad." He says.

"Are you fucking serious?" I ask him. "You were mad at me! You wouldn't even speak to me." I shout.

"But you could have told me. I would have listened." He argues.

I could rip his head off right now.

I glare at him. "I tried. I tried talking to you. Two times." I say angrily. "You wouldn't even let me finish saying one sentence. You just kept saying you don't care. I wanted to tell you, but you didn't wanna listen."

He loses his angry expression and looks at me with his eyebrows raised.

"You just kept interrupting me and didn't even give me a chance to tell you. So stop being mad about me not reaching out when you didn't let me." I say.

"But you didn't-" Caleb says.

"Yes, I did!" I say angrily. "You didn't listen! I'm not trying to blame you, I just want you to stop being so angry at me."

He looks at me with his eyes wide open. "Lucas. That's who you bought the drugs from, right?" He asks me.

"Louis." I correct him. "Yeah."

"Shit." He says and comes over and hugs me and I instantly lose my tense stance. "Shit, you're right. Fuck. Fuck. I'm sorry. Man, I'm so incredibly sorry."

I lean against him and hug him back tightly.

"I didn't realize. I- I was so angry. I didn't- but I asked you how you felt. Before you left I asked you." He says.