Funny How Love Is (Maylor AU)

Chapter 69

Tim watched as the tow truck rolled his and Roger's car off its bed and onto the road outside their complex, arms folded over his chest and sunglasses sitting on the bridge of his nose; disguising the heavy bags that hung beneath his eyes. A cigarette burned in between his fingers, and with the next draw of the white stick, the car's four wheels connected with the asphalt and the driver extended his hand out for the payment. The brunette blew the smoke he'd held in his mouth to the side and shoved his free hand into the back of his pants, pulling out a few bills and smashing them into the driver's hand.

He counted the money and glared at Tim—the payment less than expected. The latter thought he could fool the former this early in the day, hoping he wouldn't notice, but the driver was acutely aware of the situation, and Tim had no choice but to give him the rest of the cash he carried. The money earned from Roger's weekend had grown scarce over the course of the past few days, being spent on frivolous things Tim believed would cheer his boyfriend up but to no avail. Now he had nothing but the damaged car in front of him and the guilt he felt weighing down on his shoulders.

As the tow truck pulled away from the curb, Nana's car slid into its spot, the tires screeching as she slammed on the brakes and the vehicle jerking back and forth as it acquainted itself to its new stationary position. The woman who appeared young for her age—despite her fading memory—stepped out of the vehicle and joined her grandson's side, plucking the cigarette out of his hand and taking a drag for herself. Tim stood there, stunned by his grandmother's bold move.

She exhaled slowly, tapping the stick and letting the burnt pieces fall to the ground like snowflakes. "I'm worried about Liz," she confessed, her voice low and scratchy, "Something seems off about her."

Tim snapped out of the daze he'd fallen into and cleared his throat. "Oh, erm, she...she's probably still rattled from the accident last night. I wouldn't look too much into it, Nana."

"All I know is that you better be treating her right, boy," the old woman scolded, her eyes narrowing as she turned towards him and poked him harshly in the chest, "You're lucky to have found her, you know. You're not easy to deal with."

The brunette scoffed, rubbing the now stinging area. "Neither are you."

She huffed and brought the cigarette back to her dry lips, mumbling before her chest rose and filled with smoke, "I saw that scar on her forehead and the shiner around her eye." When she breathed out, she averted her gaze back to the crashed car and added, "I've lived long enough to know those both didn't come from the accident."

"Nana, I would never hurt him—her," he stuttered, knowing exactly what she was implying and hoping his slip of tongue went unnoticed by her. Luckily it did, allowing him to plead, "I love her, Nana, and I could never imagine laying a hand of her like that. Ever."

"You better not be feeding me another one of your lies, Timothy."

"I'm not!" he cried, watching her roll her eyes at him.

When Tim's father wasn't around, his mother—Nana—stepped in. Granted, her visits were infrequent and whenever she stopped by, all she ever did was ridicule the boy and his father for living in such a pigsty, but deep down, underneath her sharp criticisms and backhanded comments, she cared for Tim. After all, he was her only grandson, and she wanted the best for him as any other grandparent would, but as he grew older, she saw the kind of person he was morphing into—a person just like his father, and she dealt with this the only way she knew how: by turning a blind eye to his behavior.

She witnessed how Tim treated Roger, who back then was his best friend from school. She'd see them sitting on the couch with beers in their hands and scowls on their faces, and she'd hear them argue over stupid things like which chord should follow the chord they were playing. It was no surprise to her when Roger seemingly disappeared, being replaced with the boy's new girlfriend, Liz.