the boy on the bridge ✔️

49. sorry boy

Chapter 49 — sorry boy

Unlike the previous time, Josh marches straight to the front porch and rings the house bell, and rings it again just in case. Only a few seconds must have passed, but the lack of response pushes Josh to ring the bell again, but is stopped midway as the door was answered by Jules.

"Josh!" she is surprised to see the blond standing there, and immediately proceeds to hug him.

"Jules, nice to meet you again," Josh greets, looking over her shoulder.

"Although it's not me you wanted to meet," she comments, noticing his wandering gaze.

"Oh no, I-," the blond flushes pink, but Jules just waves her hand at him.

"I know — I was a lovesick teen once too,"

That remark earns her a yelling from inside — from the voice Josh guesses it to be Garcia.

"I'm still lovesick, but I'm a woman now, woman," Jules yells back, and Josh can't help but chuckle. Jules turns to him and rolls her eyes in an exaggerated manner, dragging a finger across her throat as Garcia continues yelling something, "Anyways, Elliot is not here, darling,"

"Oh?" Josh quirks an eyebrow, "I actually went by the bakery too, and it was closed,"

"No, he just left about ten minutes ago," she informs him, "Said he was going to see you actually. Why don't you try calling him?"

"I did, but he's not picking up?"

Jules rolls her eyes again, shaking her head, "Must have left it in his room — I swear he doesn't even know what a phone is for, that boy,"

The blond just nods in agreement, chuckling awkwardly, "It's okay — I think I know where he'll be,"

Elliot has never not attended his call before, and all his texts would be reply within minutes — this is the first time he is getting zero response, well this and that night on Thanksgiving. Josh had tried calling him yesterday to check up on him, but he didn't pick up. All he got was a rather ominous message saying that Elliot wouldn't be going to the bridge since he wasn't feeling too well and that he'd just see him the next day.

Josh wanted to drop by his house and check on him anyways, but feared that he might come off as clingy or intrusive. He picked his phone up to call him again, but backed down and just sent him a message saying okay. And then muffling his head against his pillow, he screamed.

Why couldn't he just say the things he wanted to tell him?

The boy basically told him his most traumatic life experience and how he lost his twin brother and Josh was just being a total jerk, cowering away into his awkward self.

This is exactly why he didn't tell you. Can you blame him?

Josh scowled at himself, as if he needed more affirmation about how much of a wreck he was being.

It turned out to be a good thing that Elliot told him that he wouldn't be going to the bridge last night, since he had to deal with his father who showed up drunk and behaved in a very uncharacteristic manner.

And then today, the first thing Josh did upon waking up was call him — he didn't pick up. It's okay, maybe he hadn't woken up yet. One hour later, another call — no answer. It's okay maybe he was in the bathroom, or having breakfast. Josh left a message, no reply. A few hours later, he tried again and then again and again. He didn't answer. And that's how Josh found himself at his house, but Jules answered the door and to his surprise told him that he had went to see him.

Josh calls Josie to see if Elliot had gone to his house while he was here. He hadn't.

The bridge, the blond immediately thinks and drives there.