Beautifully Broken

Chapter 25

"Kayla, wake up babe. We are nearly there" Tyler said softly, shaking my leg slightly.

I opened my eyes, seeing that I had fallen asleep in the car. We had decided to travel to Tyler's hometown late on Friday, he had to meet with the police prosecutor for his mother's case tomorrow morning, so we decided to make a full weekend of it. He had briefly spoken to his friends too and arranged to catch up with them on Saturday night before we head home Sunday.

Looking out the window I watched as we passed a sign welcoming us to Point Campbell. I couldn't see much else because it was dark out, but I knew enough to know this town didn't have grand houses like home, it was a small beach town and a lower class suburb. A few minutes later we were turning into the parking lot of a small beachside motel. It was certainly no 5 star hotel, not that I expected fancy. This motel was modest, with two levels of rooms that all seemed to face the beach.

Tyler had been quiet all day. In the morning we visited Madi in hospital to make sure she was recovering well post-surgery. He hasn't spoken at all about how he feels having to go back to his mother's home, I don't want to push him, but at the moment he seems to be closing off to me and that concerned me.

Exiting the car, Tyler took my hand as we made our way to reception to check in. There was an older lady behind the counter, probably mid 40's with blonde hair that looked to be graying. She had leathery tanned skin, indicating she has spent a lot of her life in the sun. She had a kind smile and it lit up when Tyler and I walked in.

"Tyler! What a surprise!" the lady said, coming out from behind the desk and wrapping Tyler in a big bear hug. She then pulled away from him, holding him at arm's length and looking over him as if checking he was all in one piece. I was instantly reminded how small this town is. 

"How are you? How is Madi doing? The poor little darling, we were just horrified to hear what happened. You know you can always come to stay with us if you wanted to come back home"

"Thanks Janice. I'm happy where I am at the moment, my Aunt and Uncle have been great. Madi is good, she had surgery yesterday" Tyler explained.

I stood off to the side watching this interaction. I could see Tyler felt uncomfortable with the questions, but he obviously knew this lady well. She either hadn't seen me or was ignoring my presence.

"Ok, if you insist. Tasha will be so happy that you are back here. Does she know you are here?" the lady, Janice, said as she made her way back behind the counter.

"I spoke to Daniel, I assumed he would tell the others. We organised to meet up with them tomorrow" Tyler said, grabbing my hand and pulling me to his side. He must have realised too, how she hadn't even acknowledged me standing beside him.

Janice finally looked over to me, I didn't miss how she looked me up and down before painting a fake smile on her face. I gave her a polite smile, already working out that she was the mother of Tasha, Tyler's ex-girlfriend.

"Of course, well they will all be so happy to see you. So did you want two rooms then?"

The nerve of this woman. I got the feeling that she was a big fan of Tyler and Tasha and possibly not ready to accept that they had broken up and he had clearly moved on.

"No Janice. My girlfriend and I will be staying together, in the one room please" Tyler said bluntly, now clearly getting annoyed with her.

Janice shot me a glare before arranging our check in. I had never experienced such hate from someone for just existing. I guess this place really is a small town, with some serious small town vibes. I hoped meeting Tyler's old friends would go better. However, if Tasha is anything like her mother, I may not be welcomed.

We got our room key, collected our bags from the car and made our way up the second level where our room was located. Walking in I was pleasantly surprised. The room had a queen size bed against the wall to left of the room, a bathroom on that same side of the room. On the other side was a small kitchenette with a little table and beyond that large glass sliding doors that led to a small balcony that overlooked the beach. There was a TV on the wall opposite the bed. It wasn't overly large and certainly not grand, but it felt comfortable.

"I'm so sorry about Janice" Tyler said, placing his bag down on the bed then turning to pull me into his arms.

I shrugged, trying to laugh it off. "It's ok, I just hope I'm more welcomed by your friends"

"You will be. Janice was always my biggest fan, she always wanted to see Tash and I end up together. She is probably half the reason we tried dating, when it didn't work out I think she was more torn up over it than we were. Sorry, I should have probably warned you before we arrived or chosen to stay somewhere else" I could hear the guilt in Tyler's voice as he felt the need to explain.

"Babe, it's really ok. You don't need to explain" I pecked him on the lips, before heading to my bag to fish out my pj's. I really wanted to have a shower after being stuck in the car for a few hours.

"Do you want me to order some pizza?" Tyler asked.

"Sounds great. I'm just going to take a quick shower, want some cash for the pizza?"

"Nah, I've got Aunt Nessa's credit card remember" Tyler winked at me.

As I closed the door in the bathroom, I couldn't help but feel like this weekend was going to be awful. Thing's were feeling strained with Tyler already and it felt like he was shutting down by simply being here. I hadn't missed the way he flinched when Janice mentioned his mom and sister. Conversation was feeling forced and he seemed so far away from me, even though he was right there.

Looking in the mirror after my shower I was regretting listening to Kara when she said to bring my skimpy, silk pyjama short and singlet set. On paper, it sounded like a good idea when going away for two nights, just you and your boyfriend. But then you get here and said boyfriend is not himself at all and you are left standing in the bathroom regretting your choices. I knew I had a hoodie in my bag, I would just go and put that on.

Pulling my hair into a soft braid, I opened the door, hoping that maybe Tyler was out on the balcony or something. No luck, he was laying on the bed watching tv, turning his head as I left the bathroom, I watched him raise one eyebrow as a small grin appeared on his face. I rushed to my bag and pulled my hoodie on before joining him on the bed.

"Did you order pizza?" I asked, ignoring the way he is looking at me.

"Mmhmm. It's not cold Kayla, why the hoodie?" Tyler asked, very clearly amused.

"It's comfortable" I replied.

Tyler laughed softly, then before I knew it, he was sitting over the top of me. He ran his hands up my thighs till he held the bottom of my silk shorts between his fingers.

"Kayla are you hiding yourself from me?" he asked, moving his hands further up my body, under my hoodie.

I felt my cheeks flush red and I felt really stupid now. "This is the last time I listen to Kara" I muttered.

Tyler, clearly very amused now, moved closer to me, kissing my neck, his hands still moving under the hoodie. "Did you bring some sexy pyjamas for me?" he whispered in my ear.

"Maybe. It was Kara's suggestion, but now I just feel stupid" I admitted.

"Don't feel stupid around me Kayla and definitely don't feel self-conscious, what I saw, I like" he said genuinely.

He placed his hand on my face, guiding me to look at him. I finally looked up, our eyes locking, he smiled his beautiful smile that I hadn't seen all day. I immediately relaxed as he moved forward towards me, placing his lips on mine. A soft kiss soon becoming a heavy make out. I felt lost in Tyler's lips, butterflies erupting in my stomach again just from the feel of his lips on mine. I felt his hands move the bottom of my hoodie as he began to tug it off me. I sat up so I could allow him to remove it, but as I did there was a knock at the door. Pizza was here.

Tyler groaned at the interruption, "We'll continue this later, I want to see the offending pyjamas" he winked at me before opening the door as I straightened myself back out.