Page 29 of The Lucky One

Kiki yawned but her eyes stayed shut. It wasn’t fair of me to steal first her bed and now her sleep. So I swooped her into my arms—she made a gurgling sound but held on to my chest—set her carefully onto the bed and tucked her in under the blanket. She snuggled into the pillow without opening her eyes. She looked so peaceful and content. I let my finger wander over her rosy cheek.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

And then sneaked out to the balcony, down the tree, to my car.

Inside, I let go of my breath. What the fuck had I done?

I crossed my arms over the steering wheel and leaned against them, mind racing with jumbled emotions. I had always respected Kiki as Jon’s girlfriend. Sure, I thought she was pretty, but never in my life did I think we could be more. Which we weren’t... We just happened to connect because we got broken by the same people. Nothing wrong with two friends comforting each other... right?

I plunged the key in the ignition. Except for a weak rumbling sound, the motor didn’t rev up to its usual snore. Had I left the lights on? No.

I tried again. And again. And again. Rumble.

“Fuck!”

I slammed my hand on the steering wheel. A broken-down car—exactly what I needed to add to my list of problems. Cursing under my breath, I decided to leave the car behind and head home on foot. I was still in my sweats—I’d make a jog out of it.

The jog turned into a brisk run as I navigated the familiar streets of Boonville. The same streets Jon and I had explored countless times, searching for parties or places to hang out. The early morning sun fought through the clouds, and I could feel the sweat building on my skin. Today was going to be warmer than usual. Perfect with spring break happening soon. The Fam had talked about a road trip to Gulf Shores, but we hadn’t planned it, so who knew if it was still on. We weren’t hanging out lately, everyone invested in their own situations.

I was crossing at a red light when a black van sped straight at me, almost running me over. Panic surged through me as I realized it was the same van from last night. Some guy with black shades on. Last night wasn’t a coincidence; he was after me. How had he managed to track me down again? Boonville wasn’t huge but it wasn’t tiny either. I picked up the pace and sprinted, heart hammering in my chest.

I jumped over a wall and found myself in the Walmart parking lot. I hustled across the parking lot past folks gearing up to buy next week’s meal prep, darting glances over my shoulder—no black van in sight—and went inside, straight to the aisle with the cold drinks. I grabbed a Dr Pepper and made my way to the cash, mind reeling. A feeling in my gut told me that this chase was far from over.

“Paul!”

The cashier looked oddly familiar, a girl with dark hair and a snake tattoo dancing on her neck. Despite the edgy style, there was a warmth to her expression.

“I’m Natalia. My boyfriend is Dave? We met a few years back. Friends of Jon’s.”

I nodded. Jon had this second friend group he hung out with. I never understood why he kept us so separate. “Sorry, rough morning. How you doing, Natalia?”

Natalia scanned my drink. “Oh, you know, same old. But I made a new friend. You know her: Emily.”

I froze. “My Emily?”

So Emily was friends with Dave and them now. I should’ve figured Jon wouldn’t take her to hang with the Fam while I was in Germany.

“Right...” Natalia gave me an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I forgot you were the other guy.”

“The other guy?” My voice spiked, drawing the attention of the shoppers in line.

“Well, the guy she had a hard time letting go of to be with Jon? It wasn’t easy for her.”

I let out a loud snort. There was a perspective where I was the other guy?!

“I got to go.” Throwing down a bill, I grabbed my drink and strode away. I didn’t want to hear it. The only perspective I wanted to know was Emily’s, and if she didn’t want to talk about it right now, I’d find a way to get her to tell me eventually.

“Hold on, your change!” Natalia called after me, but I was already out the glass doors.

I glanced around for the van as I exited the parking lot, but it seemed I had evaded them. To regain my strength, I decided to walk the rest of the way through the shade of the trees.

Jon’s neighborhood.

I could take a different route, but it would be way longer. He didn’t want to see me? That was his issue, not mine.

I was done waiting for him to call. When I reached his place I strode up to the door and banged my fist against it. My breath hitched as I waited for someone to open, but all was quiet. I tried again but nothing happened.

Annoyed, I turned to leave, tossing my empty Dr Pepper in a trash can on the corner.