When The Rain Stops (BXB)

Chapter 32

Rory gets home a little before midnight. So his parent're gonna kill him bad regardless. He's a little wet and his face's red from, whatever. Running, I don't know. There's no moon and the air's still wet.

The house's still dark. There's barely any power, I'm two seconds away from screaming because it's too hot and wet for this shit, and I have this, like, tiredness headache. I don't move because

I don't know.

I don't want this bullshit in my head, too. There's enough going on already.

"What're you still doin' up?" he mutters, but it isn't said, like, meanly. He kicks off his shoes.

I open my mouth. This annoyed, pained lump forms in my throat, and nothing comes out. And I slap him. As hard as I fucking can. And I think it's the best fucking slap I've ever done on someone's face, because the sound it makes is fucking amazing. And even though I slapped him with good reason, I feel like such shit. It happens so suddenly, like I blinked and it happened, but I don't know what other way for him to stop and really take in what he's done.

Before he has the chance to scream back at me, or hit me, or anything, I ask, "What is wrong with you?"

"The fuck was that?" he shouts.

"The fuck was that? You decided to go for a run in the middle of the night? Why? Be...because wh-why? Why?"

Rory rolls his eyes at me. "My reasons, Princess." He knocks his shoes to the side and pushes past me.

I grab his arm, but he whips it away from me. "Rory, do you know what you've done?"

"I don't care," he shouts, hanging over the stair railing. He takes the stairs two steps at a time. "I don't give two shits about their summer."

"What about ours?"

He stops midstep, both feet on different steps.

"What about ours?" It's like my head's a giant-ass empty room and it's just echoing over and over. I bite the inside of my cheek because fuck. FUCK.

Rory brings one step down, breath still heavy. His hands hang at his sides.

"Do you have any idea what you've done, Rory?" I ask again. I'm breathless and I hate it.

He whips his head towards me. He clenches his jaw, and his face softens.

I sigh. "Dude..." I shake my head. "Rory...look, I don't know what's goin' on with you and your mom 'nd dad, but...what was that?"

Rory's eyes dip away from me. Like a child being punished.

My breath gets heavier. I wanna cry. Shit. "I..I don't know, Rory. What the fuck happened? We were fine earlier. I don't..."

Rory looks away.

"This's my last summer here. Please. Please, Rory...I wanna remember this summer. Because we were...were together."

Rory wipes his face with his hands.

"What happened at dinner? I was...what was that?"

He doesn't say anything.

"You've been here for a couple hours and you still, somehow managed to fuck up the first day of summer."

Still nothing. Except now Rory's crossed his arms.