Did you ever leave?

6

4 months ago...

I'd been crying for hours. Time was sort of bleeding.

I have a baby inside of me.

I felt like I'd been infected by an alien and it had planted its eggs in my stomach. I also felt like my heart was cracking.

There was no way I was keeping this thing. I couldn't. I was broke and completely uninterested in being a parent.

I'm only eighteen.

My phone was on my nightstand and I'd been debating picking it up for a very long time.

He needs to know. I need help.

I lifted it and called him.

Voicemail.

I tried three more times.

Once more.

I listened to the tones as it rang, tears streaming down my face, and looked up at the ceiling.

'Hey, you've reached Grayson. Sorry, I can't make it to the phone right now...'

Sobs wracked my body and my phone slid out of my hand as I fell apart.

——————

Present day

'That was so hard.'

I didn't know what to say to him. There were many obvious replies, but my awkwardness had peaked. A feeling of disgust had also been sneaking up on me over the last week and I'd been busy trying to squash it, but working with him for so long had really brought it into play.

'How do you do that everyday?'

I cleared my throat and checked for any other cars before pulling out of my space. 'It's not everyday. And it's not that hard.'

'It's pretty hard.'

'You only think that because you've never worked a day in your life.'

'Woah,' he said. 'Youtube is a job.'

I rolled my eyes.

'What's up with you? Why are you all aggravated?'

'I'm just tired.'

'Tired of what?'

I didn't reply.

We rode in silence for twenty minutes before he spoke again.

'Why did you lie earlier?'

'When did I lie?'

'My question about the surgeries.'

I took a moment to think about what he'd meant in view of the fact that I had no idea what he was talking about. 'In truth or dare?'

He nodded and I laughed.

'Where was the lie, you whack job?'

'Come on,' he pushed. 'You know that you're not being honest.'

'Grayson, I swear to you; I spit down on my grandmother's grave; I have no tonsils.'

'I'm being serious.'

'And so am I,' I rejoined.

'Fine. Be like that.'

'If you've got a problem, spit it out. This isn't kindergarten.'

Grayson took a long moment to think about that, finally deciding to air his issue. 'You told me that you'd had a procedure done on your...lady parts.'

My hands gripped the wheel, and my body tensed.

'I want to know what it was.'

'Awfully bold of you,' I spat after a lengthy pause.

'Why won't you just tell me?' he shouted.

'Because you don't deserve to know!' I yelled back. 'Who are you? Who are you to me? A dance partner? My roommate's boyfriend? My friend's brother?'

'All of the above?'

'You ignore me for five months, kick up a fuss when we're paired together for the show, barely say a word to me, then all of a sudden want to hang out and work with me and share secrets.'

He hit the dashboard. 'I know what happened, Milo. You don't have to recite the whole story to me.'

I yanked the wheel, pulling into the hard shoulder and slamming the breaks.

'Wh-'

'Get out,' I bit out.

'You can't be fucking serious. There's still another hour left until we're in L.A.'

'Get. Out.'

He stared at me.

'Get the fuck out of my car you conceited douchebag!'

'Fuck you,' he said, getting out and slamming the door. My breathing was heavy with anger as I pulled back onto the highway and he flipped me off.

~•~

I entered like a tornado, banging the door closed and storming my way to my room.

The wood rattled after I gave it the same treatment as the front door and I wasted no time heaving my dresser in front of it. I then moved my desk chair against the dresser and sat in it for good measure.

A second passed before the door handle rattled and Eden started pounding.

'Milo! Milo, let me in!'

I put my earphones in and blasted my music, blocking out all outside noises.

He had no right to speak to me that way. I'd actually started to feel bad about how I'd treated him when we first entered the car, and then he brought up that stupid truth or dare question?

I'd tried my hardest to be civil during practice and I made the dance's theme something special to him in an attempt to make him feel more comfortable. All week he'd been stiff and avoided touching me as much as he could, which is the height of immaturity in my opinion since, you know, it's a mambo. Touching is sort of essential.

Did the dopey prick deserve to be left off the side of the highway more than twenty miles away? Some would say no, but I think so. Is he going to be mad? Definitely.

My anger slowly but surely fizzled. Fifteen minutes must've passed before I felt myself being repeatedly nudged forward so I ripped out an earbud, turning.

'Milo!' he roared.

Oh, fuck.

I got off of the chair and planted my feet, pushing the dresser with all of my might. He was too strong, though, and blasted his way through in less than a minute.

I fell flat on my ass as he stepped through the crack he'd made between the door and dresser.

'Ethan?'