Logan

60. Sunlight

*Canyon's POV*

It had been a few days since Natalie had her bad experience with her...boyfriend? Man-friend? I don't know who he was, but Frankie had been telling me things about him. I just nodded.

Part of me asked questions, sometimes. I wrote things down in my notebook to keep track of what everyone said, and what I said as well. It was like passing notes in class, but for me it was a way to hold onto something concrete.

Aeron was thinking of ways to approach the subject with Natalie, about her trauma.

"Okay, what if I just said, 'so how'd it happen' do you think... oh no. She wouldn't open up for that."

I shook my head, and scribbled 'just be patient' to him. I lifted the page up and he squinted a bit, reading the rest. He shook his head.

"Aah, I just want to know more about her, when I'm with her...I-"

I quickly scribbled down, 'She has a boyfriend' and when he read that, he stopped.

"They always have boyfriends," he sighed, "and you know I don't care about that. She still needs support, that's the most important thing for her recovery. We both know that."

He sat down on his bed, part of him anxious because of the rain, the other part anxious because of how he felt about Natalie. I knew I could just give him the answer, but it would take the both of them to confide in each other.

I just stared at him, and tilted my head. He squinted at me and then pointed, "You're right, I should tell her about myself, my trauma. Maybe she'd open up a bit more." He sighed, and then looked out the window. "Let me tell you, that rain is making me nervous."

I scribbled again, 'ice cream in the community room, invite Natalie and Frankie?'

He nodded, "Grand idea."

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They had chocolate this week, and it was the best. Some sugary treats in America were a bit too much, but this just hit the spot. Sometimes... I felt like talking. Sometimes I felt ready, and then other times I remember what Aric said to me a few hours before he died.

"Canyon, I can't imagine my life without you... please, just... think about it."

Some nights I remember that moment countless times, and other times I can barely stand it...

He was driving... but he shouldn't have been. I knew that, I tried to get him to let me drive, but he was so stubborn sometimes. The rain was coming down furiously, and I couldn't see the yellow line anymore.

"Aric, let me drive."

"It's fine, I'm fine."

"No, you're not. Pull over."

"Fine, but just because I love you."

And then the driver hit us. The rain was too heavy, but we were stopping. We were stopping, and then it hit us. I heard the crunching and whine of metal against metal, the car tilted and then we were upside down. Aric had his seat belt off, and I remember the moment the car flipped, he landed wrong, and I knew my life would change forever.

"Aric?" It was silent. I heard the sound of raindrops, the whirring of cars passing in the other lane, and more silence. "Aric... can you hear me?"

A cold ice cream bucket took me out of my thoughts. "Hey, your ice cream is melting, do you want a top off?" Natalie held the scoop, and waved it a bit.