After 3

Chapter 228.

The songs for this chapter are:

Demons- Imagine dragons

Cough Syrup- young the giant

Hardin's POV.

"I don't know why I'm here but I don't know where else to go." I lay my head in my hands and my father takes a seat on the edge of his mahogany desk.

"I'm glad you came to me." He says quietly, gaging my reaction.

"I wouldn't exactly say I came to you." I remind him. I did in fact come to him but I don't want him thinking this is some big revelation or some shit.

I watch as he gulps and nods slowly, his eyes moving everywhere in the room except to me.

"You don't have to be nervous, I'm not going to throw a fit or break anything. I don't have the energy." I sigh when he doesn't respond.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"No I don't," I sigh.

"Okay,"

"I don't want to but I'm going to, I guess."

He looks puzzled for a moment and his brown eyes widen, taking me in, watching me carefully, waiting for the catch, I'm sure.

"Believe me, if I had anyone else to go to I wouldn't be here but Landon is a biased asshole and always takes her side." I groan, knowing that isn't even half true but I don't want Landon's advice right now. More than that, I don't want to admit to him what a dick I have been and the shit I have said to Tessa over the last few days. His opinion doesn't matter to me but for some reason it matters more than anyone else's, except Tess of course.

"I know that son."

"Good," I don't know where to start and honestly, I'm still not sure what brought me here. I had every intention on going to a bar to have a drink but somehow I ended up pulling into my father's, no, my dad's driveway. The way Tessa only says 'mother' and 'father' instead of 'mum' and 'dad' used to drive me insane but now it's almost become a habit for me too. He's lucky I'm even referring to him as father or dad instead of Ken or "asshole" which I have done most of my life.

"Well, as you have probably guessed Tessa finally left me." I admit and look up at my father. He does his best to keep a neutral expression while he waits for me to continue, "And I didn't stop her."

"You're sure she won't be back?" He asks.

"Yes I'm sure, she gave me multiple opportunities to stop her and she hasn't tried to call or text in," I glance at the clock on the wall, "almost twenty-eight hours and I don't have the slightest clue where she is." I was expecting her car to be in the driveway when I arrived here but it wasn't. Where else could she even be? I hope she didn't drive all the way to her mum's house.

"You've done this before though, the two of you always seem to find a way.."

"Are you listening to me? I said she isn't coming back." I huff, interrupting him.

"I'm listening, I'm just curious as to what makes this time any different." When I glare at him he's staring impassively at me and I resist the urge to get up and leave his over-decorated office.

"It just is. I don't know how I know that and you probably think I'm a dumbass for even coming here but I'm tired dad, I'm so fucking tired of being this way and I don't know what to do about it." Fuck I sound so desperate and fucking pathetic.

"I blame you, I really do blame you because if you would have been there for me maybe you could have shown me how to.. I don't know, how to not treat people like shit. If I had a man in the house while growing up maybe I wouldn't be such a shitty person. If I don't find some resolve between us I will end up just like you. Well you before you became this." I gesture to his sweater vest and perfectly pressed dress slacks.