Meant To Be (Cash Wheeler x Reader)

Chapter Fourteen

"I'm such a prick." He didn't know why he said it out loud, no one was there to hear it, but he felt like he needed to. His bed had never felt so empty before, like it was at least two sizes too big for him alone. Cash glanced over to the side you had usually slept on, and felt the tears spilling over again. Through his now blurry vision, he looked at the photos he had on his nightstand - the one from the book club meeting, and a newer one the both of you took in his backyard a few weeks ago. He smiled brightly into the camera while you had your eyes closed and pressed your lips against his cheek.
God, he missed your lips. He missed your eyes. Your laughter, your voice. The way you brushed your nose against his. The way you skipped around the house and laid down to cuddle with Pawla. He just missed everything about you.

As if on cue, Pawla waddled into his bedroom and looked at him, sprawled out on the bed. She was probably disappointed they hadn't gone out for a walk yet, but Cash didn't think he was able to leave the bed right now, despite the sun illuminating the room for several hours already. It must have been passed noon, he thought, but was too lazy to check his phone for the time. There was no reason to grab the phone anyway, you wouldn't have texted him, you wouldn't take his calls.
Not that he hadn't tried to contact you, he had. But after the fifth call, when he felt relieved you finally answered, you just told him to stop. That you were serious about needing some time away from him.  As much as he hated it, he respected your boundaries. Although it took all of him to not just drive to Jacksonville and knock on your door. He turned to face his beloved bulldog and patted her head. "You miss her too, right?" A loud snort came as reply, more likely a reaction to his touch, but Cash took it as a yes to his question.

When he heard the doorbell, he contemplated not opening it. It wasn't you, so why get up at all? Then he remembered that it was Tuesday...and Dax wanted to come a day early to talk to him. It felt unreal for a moment...had three days passed and he only got out of bed to use the bathroom and to feed and walk Pawla?! He hadn't done anything else since you left.
His phone started ringing, and he knew it was Dax calling him from his front door. He reluctantly got out of bed, didn't bother to put shoes on and shambled down to open the door for his best friend.
As soon as the two men came face to face, Dax pulled him into a bone crushing hug. He was actually shocked at how bad Cash looked: pale as the moon, dark circles under his puffy eyes, hair a complete mess, pointing in all directions.
It hadn't been this bad when he broke his jaw, it hadn't even been this bad when he cancelled his wedding. It had never been this bad, he thought.
"Hey." It was nothing but a small whimper that left Cash's mouth. He pressed his eyes shut, trying to hold the tears in, but didn't succeed.
They stood in his doorway for quite some time, until Dax decided to speak. "Did you eat something today?"
His friend just shook his head against his shoulder. "Come, I'll make us something. You need to eat." Then he moved past Cash and dragged him along, into his kitchen.
As Dax stood in front of the oven, about to be done with making scrambled eggs, the other sitting at the kitchen counter, he decided it was time to start talking about what happened after your fight.
"So, did you call her after she left?" he asked while putting two plates on the table, and then holding the fork in front of Cash's face to gently force him to start eating.
He hesitantly took the fork and poked the food with it. "Yeah...she didn't answer the first few calls, and when she finally did, she told me she needed time away from me. To think."
Dax looked at his friend while chewing down some of the eggs. "You don't really think she'll leave you, do ya now? I mean, she loves you. You know that."

"But she doesn't know I feel the same about her...She thinks I want Lindsay back." He swallowed hard, trying to hold down the bitterness that he felt rising in his chest.
"Have you, by any means, talked to Linsay again?" As soon as Dax saw the surprised expression on Cash's face, he raised his hands in defense. "Hey, come on, I gotta ask. We haven't talked about Lindsay for a year. And now she is suddenly back, ruining your relationship with Y/N...so have you talked to her?
"No! Why would I? Only when I saw her at the mall. When Y/N was with me. And even then, only because I didn't see her coming. Otherwise, I would've dodged her."
Dax didn't answer verbally, but smiled at Cash. Then he, once again, motioned for the other to start eating, which he finally did. Not much, but it was better than nothing at all.
When they finished eating, Dax thought about what the whole situation. "So, what do we do now? Are we trying the classic, flowers and chocolate? I feel like that wouldn't work though...What about I talk to her tomorrow? If she doesn't want to see you, maybe I can do something..."