My Soul To Keep

Chapter 10

My iPod was rolled up to a pretty high volume, but I still heard the knock on the door. "Yeah, come on in."

Damien opened the door and smiled at me. "Hey," we both said simultaneously.

"What are you up to?" he asked, sidestepping around a pair of my jeans on the floor—or they could have been Deanna's.

"Nothing, really," I answered, shrugging. I took my iPod off from around my neck and set it on my desk. "Just hanging out, I guess. Glad you came by, though. I was bored."

"Me too," he said. "I felt like getting out for a while."

"Your dorm pretty quiet too?"

"Yeah. They all usually are on weekends."

"Hey, did you ever hear anything about getting in that track house?"

"No. I don't know anything about that yet." Damien came over and sat on the couch. I got up to go to the fridge on the other side.

"Want anything?"

"Sure."

We opened up Dr. Peppers and took sips. It was quiet for a second while I closed out of my email window. I was definitely feeling Damien's gravitational pull. I turned in my chair while taking another big gulp.

"So, how are you?" he asked. "I'm fine. I feel kind of bad, though. I didn't stick around to hear your burden."

"Don't worry about it," he said immediately. "It's okay. It's nothing compared to yours. No one's was, really. I would have excused myself too after that. I mean, that was tough. No one blamed you."

"I couldn't help myself. I was such a wreck."

"It's okay, Sky. What you went through, I mean, I remember when that happened to you, but I didn't really get to hear the details until then. And you weren't even gone that long."

"I did feel like I was in the bathroom forever."

At that point, I thought that I cried out all the tears in me. I was wrong. I put my pop can down and started to sniff uncontrollably.

"It was so...so hard to say all that in front of everyone." Damien leaned forward, momentarily abandoning his drink.

"It's something that is just never going away."

"Hey, it's okay," Damien said soothingly. He put an arm around me, awkwardly half-off the couch.

"Sky, seriously, that was so brave of you to tell everyone that," Damien continued, giving my back a little rub.

"You had to get it out of the open and off your chest. That's what that whole ceremony was about. For us to let go of our burdens."

I wiped my face and hugged him back, then got up to get a tissue. "I know I told you before, but I am so sorry about your dad."

"Thanks," I said behind the tissue. I went back to my desk but didn't sit down, taking another drink.

"Truth is shit happens, especially in ghetto city areas. It just happens; there are bad things in certain areas and innocent people suffer from it."

There was a very inviting area on the couch next to Damien, and we were both willing me to sit down. Damien reached his arm out when I sat down and draped it over my shoulders, and the next thing I knew I found myself in the cozy nook of his chest. It was like how I felt after the ceremony, relieved, comforted...better. I turned sideways and allowed myself to hug him back, and I closed my eyes.