Knockout

Chapter 1

"Pass me that." Thatcher says kindly, referring to his jacket hanging over the chair.

I grab it and hand it to him. Over the course of this trip Thatcher and I have grown very close. He's actually a genuine nice guy. About two weeks into living together in Alabama I told him all about Marshall. Like, everything. We stayed up all night at his aunts house while I babbled to him about everything that's happened to me. The move, the fights, the attack, Marshall's stab wound, Jon, Emmett, Ren, the miscarriage, everything. He's a very good listener.
And after I was finished spilling out my life story he just gave me a big hug, and told me that everything's going to work out. For the first time in a while, I was able to believe that.
We left for California the next day, and when we got to my grandmothers house Thatch told me about a heartbreak of his own. He had had a boyfriend back in Alabama, it was a friend of a friend named AJ. As Thatch tells it they 'fell in love on the first date'. He explained that things had been going very well and that he had never felt that way about anyone before. And then one night when the two of them were walking home from a restaurant, two strange men followed them. The guys called them awful names and then robbed them. I guess one of the guys took a swing at Thatcher and when AJ fought back, one of the muggers shot him in the chest and fled. AJ died instantly, leaving Thatch all alone.
Ever since then Thatcher hasn't found anyone he's taken a liking too half as much as AJ. He says a love like theirs will never die, and he'd rather be alone the rest of his life than be with anyone else.
Now we're here, our last day in California getting ready to leave for the airport. We've talked it over and decided that when we get back to Detroit, Thatcher and I are going to move into my mothers house, and mom will move in with Paul.

"Can't wait to get out of this damn heat." He whines, folding a pair of jeans and putting them away in his bag.

"It's still summer in Michigan you know." I laugh, packing away the last of my clothes into suitcase number two.

"Let me dream." He sighs, and put his leather jacket neatly into the bag.

I laugh once and then notice a black t shirt on the floor. I bend to retrieve it. My stomach churns when I realize whose it is. I forgot I took this from his place when I left. I feel my heart getting heavy, and shove the shirt in the front of the bag. Now is not the time to feel things for Marshall. I'm the one that left him.

"When we get back you have to help me pick a dress to wear to Ren's wedding." I tell him, zipping both of my bags up.

"I thought I already was." He laughs, and offers his arm to me which I accept graciously. "Besides, you gotta look good because Marshall's gonna be there. And I want his jaw to drop to the god damn floor when you walk in."

I playfully smack his shoulder and he laughs at me. The two of us walk down the big wooden stairs of my grandmothers house. No one is waiting for us at the bottom of the stairs, they're all already in the car.

"Those jerks didn't even wait for us." He says in a fake offended tone.

I laugh at him and check my phone, I see the notification for six voicemails. They're from a while ago, and I know they're all from him. I just don't have the strength to hear his voice. I can't even bring myself to delete them.

"Why do you look so sad?" He asks me. "We get to go home!" He smiles that big award winning smile.

"He left me six voicemails." I say, holding my phone out for him to see.

"What the?" He takes it from me and scrolls. "You didn't even open them?"

"How could I?"

He nods sympathetically and tells me that we're gonna listen to them as soon as we're back in Detroit. I nod in agreement, I shouldn't have waited this long.