A Wolf's Tear

thirty: honesty

Selena gathered her belongings as Lively instructed her. There was a heavy ball of ache just hanging on her chest, pulling her down. Dejection marred her every movement, clinging to her like a burdensome shadow.

After her talk with Nathaniel, she was both hopeful and filled with despair. She didn’t know how to explain it but she needed to say something to him and now that she was leaving, she lost her chance.

Her fingers clasped the handles of her bags and handed them to Winston. He glances at her and smiles sheepishly.

Selena stood in front of the doorway and looked around the room making sure she didn’t leave anything behind.

A minute later of pondering and weighing her choices, Selena closes her eyes and headed for the door. She was happy that Nathaniel wasn’t there for her departure, otherwise, she might end up crying all over again.

Before she left, she made sure to pass by Francis first and told him everything she knew. But his aloof reaction caused Selena to shut down. It was clear to her that Francis’s pride was getting onto him. His indifference towards the situation was proof of that.

She apologized to him, giving him a pat on the shoulder and a kiss on his cheek.

Guilt ate her up when she left him. But she couldn’t stay there for long knowing Talon would be coming and Nathaniel was just one call away.

She hops in Winston’s truck along with Lively. Both of them remained relatively quiet in the whole drive and she was tremendously thankful for that. Though frankly, Selena felt saddened by how she was affecting the air inside the vehicle. Lively’s bubbly personality and unfettered public display of affection for her husband were dulled down all because of Selena sitting in the back seat.

She wanted to say something about it but ultimately decided not to. She was afraid of making the situation more awkward and instead soaked in her grief.

She rolls down the window and stared outside, letting her eyes be blurred by the speeding vehicle. The green foliage of trees seemed to evaporate, mixing with the blue sky, resulting in a kaleidoscope of colors that blinded her. It forced her to shut her eyes.

She wasn’t feeling well and was on the verge of vomiting all over Winston’s backseat.

Her mind wandered off to different scenarios, pulling her to the edge of insanity. She dared to ask if she could have handled everything differently with her brother. Despite how much angry she felt and how many lies she was prepared to tell herself, Selena loved everything about her family.

Now, she felt insignificant to the person that made her feel loved.

In her state of perpetual anguish, she failed to notice that the car had stopped. Lively reaches for her, bringing Selena out of her distressed stupor. She glances forward, seeing Lively and Winston worriedly stare at her.

“Honey, are you alright?” Lively gently squeezes her knee.

She smiles a small, fleeting smile but she was sure no one was at all convinced that she was fine.

“Just barely hanging on.” She grimly muttered.

Winston was mortified, immediately staring at his wife. Lively grimaces and sighs heavily.

“Don’t say that, Selena.” She scolded, although in a kind and calm way. “Let’s talk inside the house.”

She nods and exits the car before the couple.

‘Fuck.’ Was the only word in her mind at that moment.

Acting like a spoiled child and causing a weird tension in the air was not what she wanted to happen. She was already causing them trouble despite her only being there in less than a minute.