Sidewinder

Chapter 21

Van stands there, arms folded, fuming.
"It's not what it looks like!" You exclaim, arms flying in the air defensively.
"You were hugging and kissing Larry Mary! I'm pretty sure it's what it looked like!"
"Mate it wasn't like that!" Says Larry as he gets up.
"You know what? Fuck the pair of you, I'm leaving, you can have the house to yourself." He says pulling on a pair of trainers. "Enjoy my girlfriend."
"Van! No! Wait!" You yell as you follow him out the door. Larry tags behind as you stop on the porch. Van unlocks his car, opens the door and before getting in, raises two fingers.
"Mate, can't we just talk about it?" Calls Larry. You rush forward in an attempt to talk to him.
"Van!" You scream. He backs out of the drive and you chase the car down the road, quickly losing energy, tears running down your face. You collapse in a pile of tears on the footpath, moisture soaking into your pyjamas. Larry crouches down next to you and places a hand on your shoulder.
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"I don't know why he was like that Liv, it wasn't like him. He'd normally want to discuss stuff like that with me."
"Maybe he was stressed, I mean he has got an album coming out soon." Says Liv, handing you a mug of tea.
"I guess so." You whisper, hiding your face behind the ridiculously large tea mug Liv had given you. She sits down, her face tired and her hair messy. You were both in a difficult situation.
"Will you go and try to find him?" Liv asks, wrapping herself up in a throw.
"Yeah, I'm gonna go 'round later and see."
"Whatever happens, I'm here."
"Thank you Liv."
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Wind whips your hair as step up onto the porch of Van and Larry's cottage. You take a deep breath as you knock on the door and huddle into your coat. You hear footsteps and Larry opens the door, his face grim.
"Hey Larry, is he back?"
"C'mon inside Mary, I've got something to give to you." Knots twist in your stomach as you walk in and sit yourself down at the dinner table. Larry picks up a piece of paper and hands it to you, scrawled in black ink, it reads:
'Gone out of town for a few days, Don't know when I'll be back.
Have fun with Mary.
-Van'
"When did you find this?" You ask, putting the paper down.
"This morning. He must of come back home 'cause his clothes are gone."
"Oh." Is all that escapes your lips. You could sense the tone in his voice as he wrote the note, he was pretty angry.
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Later that night you lie in bed, the space beside you cold. You enjoyed the loneliness before Van, now it feels strange. You roll onto your side, curl into a ball and begin to sob. You loved him and for him to just run off like that broke your heart. You cried until the tears stopped flowing. Until your pillow was soaked. Until you fell asleep.
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You wake to the sound of your phone ringing, for one split second you think it might be Van. Your heart does a dozen somersaults at the thought but quickly sinks when you read the caller i.d, Larry.
"Hey Larry, what's up?" You yawn.
"Van's back."
"He is?"
"Yeah, and he wants to talk to you."
"Okay, I'll be there in thirty." You hang up the phone and jump out of bed. You pull on a Stone Roses shirt and black skinny jeans. You throw on a red flannel to keep out the cold.
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"I think we need to talk about the other night." Says Van, leading you into his room.
"I think so too." You walk in and sit on the bed. "How long have you been back?"
"Since last night."
"Oh."
"How have you been?"
"Pretty crap, yourself?"
"Could've been better."
"It was quiet without you."
"I can imagine."
"I missed you."
"I missed you too."
You look around the room, avoiding his gaze. Yours quickly sets on something though, a bright pink strap of a bra. You get up and walk over to it, pulling it out of the pile of clothes in the corner. Van's eyes widen. Written on the tag was the name Abby.
"What the hell is this Van?"
"I-I can explain!"
"Really? You never got this from me!" You yell and storm out the door eyes brimming with tears.