Hearts, Scars & Horseshoes

Chapter 74 - Faith

"Tori is seriously MIA." Becca said from her spot under the red umbrella at the Dairy Queen. "It's like ever sense she met this new guy, she doesn't have time for anyone else."

I checked my phone, I had roughly 30 minutes before I had to go to the shelter. Kevin asked the night before if I could come in for a little and I gladly agreed. Anything to stay away from my house.

"Have you seen her at all?" Paisley asked, she sucked on her Tropical Smoothie that she had to have.

"Uh, yeah. I actually hung out with her the other day." I told them.

"Really? Did she say anything about this guy she met?"

I shrugged, "she met him through me."

"What? How? When?" Becca urged.

I ate some of my melting ice cream, not really wanting to talk about Tori and Mark. If she hadn't told Becca and Paisley I wasn't sure I should.

"He's a friend of Toby's." I answered.

I'd just keep it vague. Besides as far as I knew Mark and Tori were just hanging out. Nothing official had been said. So there wasn't anything to tell.

"Luke texted Joel other day." Becca said. "Apparently Tori has been ignoring him too."

"Good, he deserves it." I blurted before I could stop myself.

Even though Tori was accepting of my inability to filter my thoughts and my lack of desire to be the perfect, kind, forgiving, and non judgemental follower of God I'd always been, Becca and Paisley apparently were not. When I looked up from my ice cream, their eyes were wide, mouths agape, as if they had just witnessed a genuine act of Satan.

"What?" I asked, defiant Faith always willing to come to the front, at least as of recent. "He's a jerk. You know it and so do I. I'm tired of pretending he's not."

"Faith..." Paisley started.

"Are you okay?" Becca asked.

I stared at them as both of them stared back. I felt irritation flood my system. I was not okay. I would probably never be okay. But I knew I'd never come close to maybe being okay if I had to pretend that life was one big happy rainbow. It was not. And I was done believing it was.

"I'm fine." I stood from the table where we sat, dumping the remainder of my ice cream in the garbage can. "I have to go to the shelter, I'll text you guys later."

I stomped to my car, leaving before I could say anymore.

                               ————————

"Hey. What're you doing here!" Lily asked as I climbed out of my car in the parking lot of the shelter.

"Kevin asked if I could come in last night."

I reached down and scratched the little white poodle that leaped around chaotically at the end of its leash.

"Hmm, I wonder why." Lily questioned, turning back toward the building to walk with me.

I shrugged. "He didn't say."

I held the door open for Lily and the poodle, the a/c blasting over me. The heat had been relentless the past couple days, indoors had become our safe haven.

"Kevin!" Lily shouted. "Last time I saw him he was in the kennels."

"Alright, I'll go check."

I parted ways with her, heading for the kennel doors. It didn't take me long to find him, as soon as I opened the door I could hear him whistling.