“What’d it say?” I finally asked.
She shook her head. “I’ll tell you what it didn’t say. It didn’t say, ‘I’m sorry.’ It didn’t say, ‘I love you.’ It didn’t say, ‘You were the best friend I ever had.’ It didn’t even say, ‘I’ll miss you.’” Her chest shook as I watched a silent sob ravage her. “One sentence is all I fucking got. One sentence from my best friend in the entire world. And you know what? It wasn’t even about me.”
I didn’t move a muscle as her angry fists flew toward me, slamming into my chest while she screamed, “It was all about you!”
I had no need for my hearing aids or even sign language to know what she’d said. I’d read every excruciating word as she’d forced them through her lips.
Slate stepped forward, looping an arm around her waist and pulling her into a hug, but she fought ravenously, attempting to claw her way back at me.
“You! Quarry! You!”
I was dazed, watching her unravel, unable to process what the hell she was talking about. What was about me? It wasn’t until the fight had left her and she’d sagged in Slate’s arms that I became unstuck. Taking two giant steps forward, I was ready to pry her from his grasp if I had to. That was rendered unnecessary when she dove into my arms.
Till caught my attention from the ropes, signing, Take her to my office. She doesn’t need the whole gym watching this.
I nodded and moved through the opening he’d created by stepping on the bottom rope.
Liv dangled in my arms as I carried her. She wasn’t crying anymore, but her hands had begun to tremble as if the emotions were attempting to find a breach.
Once in Till’s office, I sat her in his chair then squatted in front of her.
“Tell me what’s going on,” I demanded.
“Why did Mia start texting me after we first met?” she spoke and signed with shaky hands.
“Uh…I don’t know.” I scratched the back of my head, confused.
Her sad eyes lifted to mine. “She didn’t say a single word to me at dinner that night we all went out, but when I left, she wouldn’t stop texting me until I finally gave in and responded. Why? She obviously thought I was after you. Why would she want to be my friend? I’ve never understood that.”
I laughed without humor. “I don’t know why Mia did half the shit she did. She was insane, Liv. Hell, the first time I met her, she walked up to me and declared that she was my new girlfriend. I laughed, but she only stood there confidently smiling. It was my first day at that private school for the hearing impaired Till forced me to attend. I didn’t want to even be there, much less date some girl who may or may not have a few screws loose. But she was so fucking funny and wouldn’t let up until she got her way. Needless to say, our first date was that Friday night.” I shrugged. “I don’t know why she wanted to be your friend, but I didn’t question it because it made her smile and it meant I got you back.”
“I don’t have a lot of girlfriends, Quarry. All the gossip and pretending to be someone you’re not is exhausting. I can’t handle the drama of it all.”
Using my thumbs, I wiped away the black makeup smudges under her eyes. “I can tell.”
“I’m serious.” She swatted my hands away. “But Mia wasn’t like that.” Swallowing hard, she looked back to the door. “I asked her a few years ago what had made her reach out to me and she had no real answer. She avoided the question by saying that she could just tell I was cool. I suddenly have this sick feeling that our friendship was formed on nothing more than the theory of ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer.’”
I barked a laugh, but her gaze stayed locked on the door.
“Jesus Christ, women are weird,” I mumbled at the ceiling before refocusing on Liv. “You seriously think she spent over three years being your friend because she was jealous? Liv, she liked you more than she did me half the time! Once, we got into a huge fight because I’d taken her to a nice restaurant for our anniversary and she spent the whole dinner texting you about your prom dress. She loved you!”
I was still chuckling when her tortured eyes met mine.
“‘Take care of Quarry.’”
“Huh?”
“That’s what my letter said. ‘Take care of Quarry.’ That’s it.”
My stomach fell.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
What the hell had Mia been thinking?
Then my stomach dipped even lower.
What if mine only said ‘Take care of Liv’?
I’d spent over a year obsessing over all the words I hoped she’d written. Just because I wasn’t man enough to actually read them didn’t mean I hadn’t envisioned what they would say a million different times. I’d drafted that letter in my head more often than I’d ever admit, but never once had it been about Liv.
The disappointment must have shown on my face, because she immediately said, “I’m sure yours is better.”
I wasn’t.