I Hate You

Chapter 14

"What are you doing here?" I ask bewildered.
"Awe. You don't want to see me?" He says with a mocking puppy face.

I roll my eyes and give him another hug, "j-just it's surprising that- you're here."

"I know what you mean. you don't need to stutter to get my attention." I slap him on the back of the neck, but I keep hugging him.

"honestly, the last person I thought I'd see is you here." he says, pulling away from the hug.

I shake my head, "I'd thought the same. but I guess we were wrong."

We look into each other eyes and it warms me with happiness. we knows everything about me, my mother. and when he moved away for fourth grade I never thought I'd see him again. but here we are, looking in each other's eyes. worrying about nothing except for each other when I hear someone behind me.

"Ahem."

I turn around and see Cole stand there. oh my god. I totally forgot that he was here with me. 

"Oh crap, "I say just realizing that I completely forgot about Cole, "Cole this is Riley, my childhood friend. and Riley this is Cole, my friend."

"Riley's just saved up for Robin here," he says nudging me with his elbow" , but everyone else calls me R." taking in what he said, I look down at the ground and wait for the blush creeping up to my cheeks to subside.

"Nice to meet you, R." Cole emphasizing the letter R, in distaste. I roll my eyes and turn around to Riley again.

"so, what are you doing here?" I say, trying to understand why he's here in the first place.

"oh, um. My mom got diagnosed with an illness and you know how my dad is. so he moves us all the way here from Washington to get what he calls the "best doctors." so I had no choice but to follow them here." Riley says using air quotes for best doctors.

then I feel a sudden pang in my heart. whenever my mom wouldn't come home at night, his mom would always bring me over to her house. I guess you could say, they were another  family for me.

"I'm sorry to hear that. no ones deserves to go through what she's going through." I know how Riley can be. he likes to hold his feelings in, so I won't nag him for something we doesn't want to tell me. I guess we're both similar in that way.

Riley tries a weak smile and nods. "well I better not be bothering you guys. I have to keep loading my stuff in here anyways." he says, patting me on the shoulder, "nice seeing you again."

"yeah, you too." he walks away from me before I get to say anything else. leaving me stunned.

"well, I guess we better order some food before it gets too late." Cole says, grabbing my arm towards the direction of my apartment room.

I look over at him and smile, "it's never too late for food." but no matter what I say or do, Riley's going to be in the back of my head until I get to properly have a conversation with him.

........

"So how do you know him in the first place" Cole finally asks me after our chick fil a delivers itself to my door. 

we're still on the couch, in front of the tv. me skimming through what movies are on and Cole leaning back and enjoying his food.

"oh well. we went to the same school for kindergarten until 3rd grade. at that time we were inseparable. we would do everything together, eating lunch, doing homework, doing chores, everything. but then he told me he was moving, so that was when I could stand to see him again. well at that time we didn't have phones so we could still stay in touch. but my mother never bothered with those sorts of things, so I just considered that the last time I'd ever see him again." I say calmly, not wanting to remember the hurt I felt that day when I found out, "well, until now."

Cole nods, I'm guess soaking it all in, like with all the new information he gets. we've only known each other for one year, yet it feels like we've known each other for my entire life. we knows about my mother, but he wasn't there to experience it, like Riley was. 

but there are some things, you don't want people to know. and my mother's one of those things, I don't want anyone to know.

I finally find an interesting movie to watch and click on it. Cole will definitely have more questions to ask me, but not tonight. today's been too rough for me, too long. 

and yet I ask myself a question: Why is he really here? 

It can't be a coincidence we're living in the same apartment, 3 doors apart.

and why is he here now? of all moments. 

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Do you think he's here just for his mother? Or is he here for Devan too?

Watcha think of this chapter?

Haha, sorry. Too many questions.