Falling for my Best Friend

Racing to the Rescue

Kilian

After Gael and Declan drop me off at home, I'm not even sure how to feel. I walk in the front door to find my brother on the couch with two random girls that are scantily clad. Probably just the next in Nolan's long line of conquests, I hate the way he treats girls.

The blonde one smiles at me when I walk in and says, "Hey, handsome," in a flirty tone.

Not interested. Even a little.

"Hey," I huff trying to sound as disinterested as possible before I head toward my bedroom.

I wish I could say it's a comforting space but it's passable at best. A full sized bed with a run of the mill navy blue comforter. When I was younger my mom and I spent a lot of time picking everything out and organizing things. It used to bring me comfort to be in here with her influence but now this whole house just makes me sad.

There are too many terrible memories here, too many bad feelings stored up in the wall. I've had the same room and blanket since my mother passed away. I don't want to live in the past but I've also never had the heart to change it.

Before I can relax, I lock the door behind me because I can't be bothered with any of Nolan's shit tonight. Or either one of his friends.

I slump down on my bed and stare at the ceiling. Now that there is finally some quiet, memories of the last few hours flood into the front of my mind. The way that I freaked out and raged at my bike was embarrassing. Everytime I think about it I cringe. I feel like I made a fool of myself, and now there is no way that the guys can't tell I have feelings for Wren.

How did everything fall apart so quickly? Should I just man up and tell them how I feel? If I do that now, it's going to be so complicated. This is going to have to wait until at least after homecoming. What if after homecoming is too late?

It's okay, at the end of the day what I want is for Wren to be happy and if Gael makes her happy I'm going to have to live with that. He's a good guy and at the very least wouldn't completely cut me out of Wren's life. This can work out, it has to.

I'm jolted from my thoughts by a loud ping from my phone. A text from Wrenny, I can't help smiling at first but once I see what it says, shivers run down my spine. Is she okay? I feel like I've been wondering that way too much tonight. I wish she could just get a break.

If she needs me I'll be there, I don't know why I'm even waiting for an explanation. I'm standing up before I can even finish my reply.

"Come please," she says.

In a minute, I'm up and out my door. Nolan said something to me as I ran past the couch but I didn't register what it was. I feel like I can't get to my bike fast enough. After letting her know that I'm coming I tear off on my bike. It's a short ride to Wren's but tonight it feels like an eternity.

All the worst thoughts are ping-ponging around in my mind. I don't think this is just about Gael or Homecoming anymore, she wouldn't text like that unless it was serious.

What did her mom do now? What about her dad? She said she was losing it, is Quinny okay?

Just then I remember the creeper that was at her house before the game and panic. If he touched her I'm going to kill him and I'd be happy to go to prison for the rest of my life if that's what it came to. Thinking about that makes me angry, now I'm livid and I'm scared. I can tell that my heart is beating fast, whether it's from my intense pedaling or my anxiety I'm not sure. I'm betting on the latter though because I'm shaking a little bit.

After I pass the entry sign for Wren's neighborhood I know that I'm getting close but that just makes me pedal faster. When I turn the corner I see her in the driveway, she's still in her clothes from earlier but it's dark and I can't make out her face.