Broken Pieces (17 page)

“Kara, you are
not
going to live there! I will not allow it! Did you see the landlord checking us out?” She makes a disgusted face.

I sigh. “I know, but I really don’t have a choice.”

She gives me a pointed look. “Yes, you do.”

“Lauren, please don’t start …” I let that sentence trail off, as I bang my head against the steering wheel.

She is being way to quiet. It takes me by surprise so I look up and, as soon as I see her face, I roll my eyes. “What?”

“I was just thinking … I’m not sure if I have talked him into it yet, but …”

“Spit it out, Lauren,” I say, bored.

“I have been talking to daddy about me getting an apartment and, of course, I would have to have a roommate …”

“But, you still have one semester left. You don’t want to live at the dorms?”

“No! I have to be there enough as it is. Living there is beginning to become a little overrated.”

“I’m not sure I could afford …,” I start to say.

She holds up a hand. “Nope, daddy will pay for it.”

“I am sure he will not want some random girl living in an apartment that he is paying for,” I say, trying to reason with her.

“If I say I don’t want to live all alone …” She drags out “all alone” while making a pouty face. “Then he will be perfectly fine with it, I’m sure of it.”

“Okay, but I have to be out of the dorm by next week when I graduate.”

“That’s fine. He’s already been looking.” She turns her head looking out the window, then suddenly looks at me. “He’s already found one! We move in this weekend!”

I sit there astonished. “Lauren … I can’t. I mean, I already feel like I am taking advantage of you and your dad.”

“Trust me, you are not. Let me do this for you.” She sounds so grown up. “Plus, daddy has it all taken care of. Now, would you like to go see our new apartment?” There is the Lauren I know.

I just shake my head, trying to process all of this. In two seconds, what has been stressing me out for the past two weeks is solved. I guess having a daddy that actually cares makes stuff happen like that, or maybe having money makes it that easy.

She instructs me on how to get to our new apartment. I am really wishing she would have driven because I really hate driving in the city. I am not paying any attention to my surroundings, purely concentrating on not driving down one-way streets. She finally tells me to pull into a driveway. I look away from the road for the first time, and see several brick buildings of different sizes. They look pretty brand new, and pretty expensive.

“Uh, Lauren … are you sure this is the right place?” I’m hoping she’s wrong and right at the same time.

“Yep, I have already picked one out for us and have the key.” She holds it up.

I look at her to see if she is bluffing. I glare at her. “Why didn’t you tell me about all of this?

“Because I knew you would say no so I just told daddy that I wanted it.” She knows the truth at least. “Let’s go!”

She instructed me to park in the covered parking garage so we can be as close to our new apartment as possible. Our apartment, here? This will take some getting used to. I do not know how I will ever repay her for her kindness to me. We take the short walk from the parking garage to the apartment, and I roll my eyes at the astonishing size of this place. Because she’s already seen the inside, she opens the door for me to walk in.

I walk in the door, passing a smiling Lauren, into a clean entryway with arched doorways. This is too crazy! I see what looks like a bedroom straight ahead and, to my left, I walk through the arch to see windows covering the far wall. Everything is remarkably clean and new. I run my hand along the curved bar area, as I walk further into the living room. It’s already furnished!

Confused, I turn to look at Lauren but, before I can say anything, she beats me to it. “I hope you like the furniture! I picked it out, but we can always change it.”

“Uh … no, it’s beautiful, Lauren …” I never cry, but this time I do.

I launch at her and engulf her in a hug. She squeezes me right back and whispers in my ear, “I’m glad you like it. I know you have been through a lot in life and, hopefully, you will tell me one day. You deserve this. Do not think otherwise, okay?”

I pull back, tears still running down my face. “Thank-you so much! I don’t know how I can ever repay you for your generosity.”

She pulls out of the hug, throwing a hand up. “Don’t worry about it. I was going to find my own apartment whether you moved in with me or not. I’m glad you are, though.”

I look around at the already decorated and furnished apartment that is going to be paid for. I can’t wrap my head around this. She ushers me onto the patio, and shows me the most incredible view of the lawn and other buildings. She shows me her room. She finally has a closest big enough to house her massive collection of clothes, and a bathroom to match. She has her own balcony with a great view, and the décor is unbelievable. I know she personally decorated the apartment. She is good at those things.

We head back over towards the foyer, to the door I saw when I first came in. She opens the door further and I see a beautiful white bed, which looks like it belongs in a beach house, with matching dresser and night stands. It has a canopy with white sheer drapes hanging dramatically from the top. Then I see I have two windows framing a door that leads to the patio. I turn to Lauren, picking my jaw up off the floor. “This is my r-room?”

She gives me a hearty nod, “Yes! Do you like it?”

“YES! I love it!” I say, as I make my way to my own walk-in closet.

“You have to share the hall bath with guests, though. They didn’t have two suites.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. I promise I will survive. Thank-you again!”

She talks me into going back to the dorms and packing right away so we can get completely moved in. I don’t have much to pack, though. All I brought with me from home are clothes and a few pictures. With Lauren’s and Drew’s help, I have accumulated a few more items that I do not think will fit in my car.

I decide to call Drew to tell him about the apartment and to see if he can help us move. He doesn’t answer, and it sends me to voicemail. I shrug, throw my phone in my purse, and get back to packing. Lauren’s dad has hired a truck to move our belongings so I guess I did not actually need Drew’s help. I really just wanted to talk to him, but I’m sure he is busy at work.

By the time it’s dark out, we have all of our boxes in our new apartment. We spend the evening drinking wine and unpacking. We talk about the past three years and how we both have changed. I am so glad I have someone like Lauren in my life. We giggle as we find old pictures and remember when we first met. It’s only when she stands and yawns, saying she is going to bed, that I realize Drew has not called or texted me.

It is getting late. I have never known him to work this late. Then the surge of panic goes through me. What if something happened to him? I do not know what I would do if anything did.

I knock on Laurens door and she answers half-dressed, “Sorry, but I haven’t heard from Drew since early this morning and I tried calling him. It’s getting late and he never works this late. What if something happened? I don’t know what to do.”

She stops me in my rant. “Breathe, Kara. I am sure he is fine. Try calling him one more time, or go to his house. He might have passed out when he got home. Just see if his car is there.”

“Yeah, okay. I’ll do that. Thanks!” I say, but I’m already walking away to get my keys.

I hear her yell, “Be careful!” as I close the door on my way out.

I call him one more time, straight to voicemail again. I am so scared that something horrible has happened. I have always said things can never be
this
good, something always has to go wrong. It’s freezing out and I forgot my jacket, but I don’t care. I am not cold anyway because the adrenalin running through me is enough to keep me warm.

I am amazed that I made it to his street in half the time without getting pulled over. I pull into the parking lot next to the center and let out a breath I did not even know I was holding. His car is here, I suck in another chilly breath … there is another car here, too. Maybe one of the guys that work out here left their car … yeah, right. I know that is not Kenny’s car, and it’s too late for anyone to be training so there is only one thing that car could be here for.

I go to put the car in reverse because I don’t want to know. I am not strong enough to handle this. Everyone has a short relationship throughout college.
You have to learn to let go.
Hmmm, where have I heard
that
before?

I sit in my car, debating whether I should leave or face the problem. All the things he taught me … to be strong; to stop letting people run over me; to take control, if not for myself then for my future. Well, looks like my future with him just went to shit. He wanted me stronger? Here I am.

I walk with confidence. Oh, who am I kidding? I am pissed. He ignores me all day, no phone call or anything, and now has somebody else at his apartment at eleven o’clock at night? Not going to fly.

I make it to his door before I realize where I am. My hands are shaking, my nerves are shot. Then I get frantic. Would he really cheat on me? Here I was worried about his safety while he is getting it on with some bimbo. This irritates me even more since he is the one that wanted to wait. Now I know why! That was enough encouragement to knock … no, beat on the door.

When the door swings open, there’s a poor, skinny woman standing there. I am taken back when I see her. She has dark circles under her eyes, and looks to be way older than she really is. She is wearing some slutty clothes, but she looks like she would be pretty if she cleaned up a bit.

My eyes finally make it back to her face, where her brows are raised, and grimy hands on her boney hip. She is much older than I thought. “Hello?!” she says, as she waves her dirty hand in front of my face.

“Who is it?” I hear his voice holler from his bedroom!

I have no idea where I got the balls to do what I did next. I push past the skanky woman and walk directly to his bedroom. When I come around the doorway, he is putting on a shirt. I freeze.

He’s pulling the shirt over his head so he can’t see who is standing there when he says, “Who was at the …” He stops when he sees me.

“What the hell, DREW?” I shriek.

A look of panic covers his face. “What are you talking about, baby?”

“Oh, do not even play those fucking games with me! You have ignored me all night! I come here to make sure you are okay, find another car in the parking lot, and then some woman answers the door!”

I want to leave; I should leave, but I want to know what the hell he has to say for himself. He exhales. “Baby, it is not what you think. She is my …”

I don’t let him finish, and throw my hands up. “I can’t do this, Drew.” I turn and walk away.

He follows into the living area and I note that the skank is nowhere in sight, but the bathroom door is shut. Hmm …

He grabs my arm to stop me and I jerk away from his hold. I cross my arms and glare at him. He is running one hand through his hair, the other hands on his hip. He extends his hand, trying to reason while he talks. “Will you give me a minute to explain?”

I look up at him through my lashes and give him a stern nod. Then I look back down, focusing on the wood grain in the floor. “Will you please come with me?” he pleads.

I gesture with my arm and he starts to walk towards the front door. I follow him down the metal stairs, and he keeps walking until he gets to the main fighting ring in the middle of the massive room. He leans back on it, crossing his legs and arms. I just stand there waiting. He should be the one talking.

He takes a deep breath. “She is my mother,” he says, somewhat embarrassed. I look at him in utter shock. “I know I should have called you. I’m sorry. I just didn’t want you to have to see this. She is a drug addict and a drunk. She only comes to me when she wants money. I have been trying to call rehab places all evening and talk her into going, again. I didn’t mean to ignore you.” He goes on to explain his mom’s situations that she gets herself into and how he has to help her.

He was not cheating on me. He was trying to help his mom. I deserve all the guilt of accusing him and the hurt of thinking he was capable. “I just assumed … Oh, Drew, It is me who should be sorry!” I look down, feeling tears prick my eyes. Geez, again? I feel so lousy. I know what a good guy he is, yet I put him down.

He takes a step towards me, grasping my chin and making me look at him. “Don’t cry, sweetheart. I’m sure I would have assumed the same if things were reversed … even though you should know by now that I would never do that to you.” He kisses my forehead. “I love you.”

That is when I break into a full blown bawl bag, “I-I’m s-sorry.” I fall into his strong arms, laying my head on his chest. Twenty minutes ago, I thought I would never get to be in this spot again and that makes me cry harder. He stays quiet and just holds me.

When I am able to talk, I tell him, “It has been a very emotional day. Lauren and I moved into an apartment downtown and I wanted you to be the first one to know, but you wouldn’t answer your phone. Then I was scared that something had happened to you …,” I say, as I wipe the last of the tears.

“You don’t have to explain yourself, and I know about the apartment already. Lauren told me yesterday. I am happy for the both of you, even though my bed is always available.”

“It still is?”

“Always, baby, always,” he mumbles, as he pulls me back to him.