The Choice (a Painful Past)

153

I shook my head, feeling bad for the girl who had taken my place.

"What are you looking at? Can I help you? Probably not, since you let other guys go to my son's birthday party, but I couldn't even go." He snapped at me, from their ride, about 5 parking spots away.

I didn't say anything, but the rage started to build. He might have gotten me to take a lot from him, just to get him to shut up and not rock the boat, but never when Ben was brought into it. When Ben was brought into the mix, I tended to snap.

I was leaning against the car, so I pushed off of it with my hands, and stalked towards him. He scoffed and got behind the steering wheel but left the door open.

"How dare you!" I screamed at him.

"How dare I?!" He yelled back, stepping out of the car. "You're the one who invited other men to be there for MY son! I had to work, Callie. When I told you that I had to work, you should've rescheduled it. Instead, you just let other guys step into my place. That's fucked up. A real shitty move on your part."

I stopped short, just a few feet away from him.

Was he right?

Did he tell me that he had to work?

"You didn't say that you had to work." I replied, already feeling the guilt, that I knew I shouldn't.

"Yeah, I did. I sent you a text, right after I told you that I couldn't make it." He retorted, angrily.

"I never received a text. Show me where you sent it." I demanded.

"I don't have to show you anything!" He exclaimed.

"And I don't have to tell you anything!" I exclaimed, right back.

"I have the right to know if you're going to introduce other men to MY son!" He yelled.

I automatically stepped back, as he got out of the car and stepped towards me.

"THAT WAS A SURPRISE!!" I screamed, feeling my throat tear under the pressure. "I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT IT!"

He scoffed again and nodded. "Yeah, right. I'm sure you didn't. I saw the way you two were acting in there. Callie, the one who hated sex, but now probably gives it away to anyone."

"Watch your mouth." A venom filled voice said.

I looked to my right and was surprised to see Colby standing next to me.

When did he get there? His stance was rigid, his jaw was clenched tightly, his hands were curled into fists at his side, and his eyes were blazing. I could feel pure hate boiling off of him in waves.

If it had been anyone else, I would have run for my life. As it was, I looked back at Will, daring him to do something. Anything.

He would've been able to hurt me on my own. I knew that my family would retaliate and possibly kill him, but that wouldn't stop him from hurting me, if he thought he could get away with it. With Colby standing beside me, I felt strong again.

Like I could take on the world, if I had to.

"Yeah?" Will spat at him. "What are you gonna do about it? Just because you grew a few more inches, doesn't mean that you're not still that stupid little band dork." Even as he said those words, Will got back into his car and rolled his window down.

"Keep fucking talking and find out." Colby growled, taking a step towards their car.

Will revved the engine and laughed, sadistically.

"Whatever. Take my leftovers. That's all you ever wanted anyway." Then, he flew out of the parking lot, squealing tires.

"I hate that guy. What did you ever see in him? Fucking dickhead." Colby muttered, as he watched the car drive away.

"Something that was never there." I replied, quietly.

"Come on, let's get going." He said, after a few moments of silence.

He took my hand and led me to the car. It didn't feel romantic or anything like that. It was more just a friend trying to comfort me.

My car door was still standing open, so I slid into the seat and closed the door, while Colby got in on his side. He left the music off, as he navigated the traffic. That made me nervous.

Was he angry with me? I tried to think of anything that I had said, or done, that might have upset him. Other than getting with Will all those years ago, I couldn't think of anything.

We drove in silence, until we made it back to our home town.

"Do you need to go home to get your car, before you come to the hotel? I know you said that you wanted your own ride." He finally said.

"Um," I hummed.

I wasn't sure. I needed my car, so that I could go home when they got too drunk for me to stand them. But, then again, I felt like I needed a fucking drink myself.

If I was going to drink, then I didn't need my car.

"No. We can just go to the hotel. I'll need to call my mom and let her know though." I replied. "And Denise."

He nodded, without looking at me, but I could swear that I saw his lips quirk up a bit. "Okay. If you get ready to go home, we can call you an Uber or something." I laughed, loudly. "What's so funny?" He asked.

"We don't have Uber here, Colby. We don't even have cabs here. You know that. In the next town over, but not here." I giggled.

"Well shit." He laughed. "I always forget just how far behind the times this place is."

"I'll just have to get a room, or something, for the night. You can take me home in the morning." I said, shaking my head. "If that's okay with you, I mean."

"Oh yeah, that's fine. I'd love to have you stay the night. I mean, you know, to have fun with. Shit." He replied, exasperatedly. "You know what I mean, Callie! Stop laughing!" I had been laughing a little, but when he said that, it set me off into one of those gut busting, unable to breathe, type of laughs. "It wasn't that funny!" He exclaimed.

"Sto-sto-stop!" I stuttered out.

He started to laugh at me not being able to catch my breath then.

"Wooo, woooo," I started letting out that sound to try and stop the laughter.

My ribs ached and my stomach felt like I had just finished a hundred crunches.

"Best workout ever." I whimpered, as I wiped the stray tears from my cheeks.

"Nice of you to get such a kick out of my discomfort." He chuckled.

"I couldn't help it." I said, grinning at him. "You just sounded so lost."

"Yeah, yeah, eat it up." He replied, as he turned into the only hotel in town.

"Oh, I am." I quipped, earning a smile from him.

He parked the car and killed the engine, then looked up at the second story.

"Room's up there. 204. Doesn't look like anyone is here yet. You ready?"

"Almost," I answered. "But first, I wanna thank you for today...and for tonight. With Will. I don't know why he still has control over me but thank you for standing up for me. I really appreciate it."

He bristled at Will's name, but only for a second, then he looked at me and smiled gently. "You don't have to thank me. I've always got your back, Cal. Always." He held my gaze in his, until it felt like the oxygen was disappearing from the inside of the car.

"Okay." I said, looking away and grabbing my purse. "204. Let's go."