One night.
That's all it took for August's life to turn from the girl everybody wanted to be, into the pile of shit dog owners refuse to pick up.
She had the perfect life.
Dating her best friend since childhood.
Straight A student, guaranteeing her...
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"I'm sorry," he says, closing the door behind him. He sighs, running his fingers through his hair, making the front stick up in wild directions. "I don't know what I was doing."
His shoulders are tight and multiple lines of worry adorn his chiseled face, a far cry from the guy who wore that confident smirk and mischievous glint minutes before.
Although we didn't really get off to the best start, with his desperate housewife joke and the unwanted dirt shower, the thought of adding someone else to the 'miserable because of me' list made my stomach sink to the floor.
A fairly large number of people, including my own parents, have already made their home there and adding another person would just be the cherry on top.
Even if he is Emily's brother, being with him was refreshing in a way that was hard to describe.
Nothing to apologize for.
Nothing to forgive.
Somehow, it made it easier to breathe.
And I wasn't ready to give that up just yet.
"You know," I pause, wanting to steer us away from the nasty turn we took towards shitty. "I'm pretty sure you're trying to get me killed tonight. First you almost run me over and now this, I'm just lucky to be alive at this point." I try to keep a straight face, but the smile in my voice betrays me.
The two dimples that I have grown to adore appear on his cheeks, as I let out a breath of relief I didn't know I was holding. Part of me, thankful that my awful joke didn't go to waste.
"I still might give you chocolates," he teases back. The worry still lingers behind his eyes, but you could see he was trying to move past it.
I let my smile grow when he graces me with a full set of teeth. Our laughter fills the tight space and I can't help but relax along with it.
It almost felt like if he was my clean slate among all these bitter endings.
Aliyah constantly reminds me of how thrilled she is that I'm back, but I don't miss the subtle glances she takes when she thinks I'm not paying attention.
We're both walking on thin ice, while begging it to crack.
We both have a lot to say, but no way to say it.
And, with Ian, it felt easy.
We pass the time with mindless chatter and his taunting remarks, as he begins the route towards my house, already knowing the direction.
You could tell he was preoccupied, glancing at his phone every chance he got, but, for the most part, the heavy cloud that had hovered over us had mostly dissipated.
"I am sorry, though," he continues, while waiting at a red light. "I have a theory that I've been anxious... wanting to test, but maybe I shouldn't have tried to prove it without your consent." He shakes his head, but the curve of his smile continues to linger on his lips. "Although I only grabbed your hand, you practically assaulted my face."
