The Fire We Make

chapter twenty-two

new cast :) gif of Mila above! The actress is Clark Backo.

My worries about Kaiden having to handle himself all by himself vanished as I took a sip of my water. It was 7:30 and Kaiden was still a no-show. I checked my phone again, trying to see if he replied. All I saw were the two texts I sent him, wondering where he was.

"Are you sure you told him 7?" Mila asked, grabbing a seat from across from me.

"Yes, I mean I'm pretty sure I did." I shook my head. "Now I don't know."

"Well, you don't have to worry about Brayden. He's occupied in front of the TV."

I looked in the direction Mila's was looking at and sure enough Brayden was sprawled out on the couch, watching the baseball game. A commercial came on and Brayden got up. Mila looked over in my direction, her eyes widening.

"Sorry, I spoke too soon!"

"Hollyn, where's Kaiden? He should've been here by now, no?" Brayden asked, walking into the dining room.

Our downstairs has an open layout and the dining room opened right up into the family room, so Brayden was here within seconds. I looked at Mila, wondering what I should say, but she was lost in her own world. I started fidgeting with my fingers, a nervous tactic I developed after our parents passed away. I was the world's most terrible liar and I knew Brayden was going to see right through my lie.

I cleared my through. "Uhh, yeah. He should have."

"Where the hell is he then?" He asked, stealing a beer from the fridge. He had one eyebrow raised, waiting for my answer.

"He's probably held up in some traffic," Mila finally spoke.

"Yeah, or he's bailing," Brayden mentioned.

"He wouldn't do that," I retorted. I don't know if I was trying to convince him or convince myself.

"Holls, how many times have I told you? You barely know the guy. You don't know what he would and wouldn't do."

"You know I'm getting a little tired of you saying that," I fumed, feeling my temper rising.

"I'll stop saying that once I have a reason not to. Tonight was supposed to give us a moment to know who he is, but he can't even bother to show up," Brayden chuckled. "You don't find that a little ironic?"

"Brayden, stop being mean," Mila said, crossing her arms.

"I'm just stating facts, babe."

Mila couldn't even argue with that and I couldn't either. He wasn't saying anything wrong, but why did it still feel like a slap on the face?

"I'm going to get some fresh air," I said, walking outside.

I saw Mila try to come with me, but I shook my head no. I just needed a moment to myself. I sat on the porch steps and took a deep breath in. There was a full moon tonight, casting natural lighting over me. I looked up at the sky and thought back to the times where mom and dad would take us camping. I hated going, but Tristan loved it. He loved the escape from society. I truly felt like Tristan was one with nature. He never needed anyone, he was always self-reliant. Sitting here now, looking up at the stars, I realized the reason why I always rebelled against him was because I wanted to be like him but always fell too short. I could never be who he was, and that upset me.

"If only you could see me now," I laughed, kicking some rubble with my shoe. A set of headlights blinded me for a second. I used my hands to cover the intense lighting. The car brakes were violently pressed on. A second later, a body jumped out.