//Josh//
Tyler refused to say another word about Aria to me. He's been avoiding me since the maniacal situation last week at the tree house. Now he avoids any contact with me, instead hanging out with Aria and her group of friends.
Aria's friends were disgustingly arrogant and brash, and Tyler hanging around people like that worries me. He's known for changing according to his environment.
Amd while he's at the pool, laughing and surrounded by alcohol and cigarettes, I'm sat here and Melanie's house, spilling my problems to her.
"So this...Aria, girl. What's her family like?"
"We don't know, Mel. That's the issue here. Tyler can be cocky, yeah, but he's still a sensitive little boy behind that mask, and I'm afraid he'll forget about that little boy once Aria finds a way to break him and build him back up with anxiety and loneliness.
"What are you so afraid of, J?" I stared at her blue eye shadow, her words resonating through my head.
"Losing him. Losing him to a druggie. Does that count?"
Nodding, she got up from her knees, walking behind me and leaning against my back, her arms wrapping around my shoulders.
"Tyler's a smart guy, Josh. He won't let anyone break him down. I promise you that. He'll be okay. But you have to let him have a social life, hun. You've chosen all of his friends since elementary, and I think he's ready to branch off on his own. You can't baby him forever." I sighed, pressing my head back against Mel's chest and letting myself relax in her arms.
"Am I the one who's going to end up breaking him down and rebuilding him with anxiety and loneliness?" I whispered. She said nothing, instead kissing my forehead and letting me melt into her.
"I don't believe you could rebuild him with anxiety and loneliness, but I do believe you could potentially break him down if you keep holding him back, J."
