Coming Home

“Technically, yeah.”

“Oh my God. That’s horrible.”

“I know,” Leah replied softly, looking back down as she started working on the next hinge.

Holly sat there unmoving for a second before she shook her head, turning her attention back to the screwdriver. “As awful as that is, I don’t understand why he was so afraid to tell you that.”

Here we go.

“Well, that’s not the secret. I mean, that’s part of it, but…that wasn’t the part he was nervous to tell me.”

“Okay…” Holly trailed off, leaving the floor open for her to continue.

Leah cleared her throat softly before she said, “Da

“That’s not surprising,” Holly said.

“Well, he’s probably looking at jail time now,” she said, her hands working furiously on the task before her. She could see Holly out of the corner of her eye, her brow pulled together as she shook her head.

“Why the hell would he go to jail? Why wouldn’t they put away the animal who assaulted his friend?”

Leah smiled sadly; Holly was mirroring her exact line of thinking from yesterday.

She took a small breath to steady herself. “Because he’s dead.”

Holly finally looked up. “Wait…who’s dead? The guy who beat up his friend?”

Leah nodded.

Holly stared at her for what seemed like forever before understanding finally swept over her face, followed immediately by horror.

“It wasn’t intentional,” Leah said quickly, suddenly feeling extremely protective over him. “He was just trying to get him away from Bryan, but they went through a window, and the glass ended up cutting the guy’s neck. Da

Holly wet her lips before she looked down.

“He’s a good person, Holly. Probably one of the best people I know.”

Holly kept her eyes on her lap, rolling the screwdriver between her fingers. After a minute of silence, she said, “So, what did you tell him?”

“I told him I needed to think.”

She nodded slowly. “Do you know how long he’d be going away for?”

“He’s not sure. It’s manslaughter, not murder, but still...probably a couple of years.”

Holly winced before she picked up another screw and began working it into the shelf. “Shit, Leah. I mean, how can you…is there even anything to think about?”

“Of course there’s something to think about!” Leah snapped. “I care about him, Holly. He was only protecting his friend. You even said yourself it was understandable. It was a freak accident. It doesn’t change who he is, and it doesn’t change how I feel about him!”

Holly kept her head down as she said, “I’m not questioning his character, Leah. I get that he’s a good guy. That’s not what my issue is here.”

Leah exhaled, ru

“Okay, but you have to stop putting other people’s needs before your own.”

“But he is what I need,” she said, freezing as soon as the words left her mouth. She hadn’t realized how true that was until she had said it out loud.

“Leah,” Holly said softly.

“I don’t know what to do. I’m not sure I can do it again.”

“Do what again?”

“Lose someone,” she said, and Holly’s shoulders dropped as her expression softened. “I mean, I lost my mom. I lost Scott…or at least, I lost the person I thought Scott was.” She shook her head. “But both of those situations were out of my control, you know? I didn’t see them coming, so I had no choice but to deal with the aftermath. And I just keep thinking that here, I have a choice. I know what the future holds, and I can walk away this time. I can save myself the heartache.”

Holly sighed softly before she dropped her eyes and picked up the screwdriver, and Leah went back to securing the hinge. For a few minutes, they worked on the entertainment center in silence, the air heavy with unspoken words.

“This thing with you and Da

She looked up at Leah as she said, “I wish I could help you, but I don’t know what the right choice is, Leah. The only person who can figure that out is you. And you’re capable of doing it. I know you don’t think you are, but you need to stop doubting yourself. What happened with Scott wasn’t your fault. He was an opportunist. That doesn’t make you incompetent; it makes him an asshole.”

The corner of Leah’s mouth lifted in a smile as Holly said, “So you take some time to think about it, and you figure out what’s going to make you happiest, and then you do it.”

Leah kept her eyes on the floor as she nodded.

“And you know that whatever you choose, I’ll support you. No matter what happens.”

Leah smiled as she lifted her eyes. “I know. And thank you.”

“Of course,” Holly said. “You’re my girl, and I love you.”

“I know that too.”

Holly smiled before she looked down and tightened the last screw, and then she held up the board with the shelf she had just attached. She gri

Leah pressed her lips together, fighting the laugh she felt bubbling up in her throat, and Holly closed her eyes before she took a deep breath, putting the board back on the floor.

“The things we put ourselves through for love,” she sighed as she picked up the screwdriver, and Leah nodded, wondering if it was really the entertainment center she was referring to.

Leah turned the corner and popped her head into the main office, saying good night to the secretaries before she made her way out to the parking lot. As soon as she was sheltered in the refuge of her car, she dropped her head back on the seat and exhaled heavily.

It had been over a week since Da

But she thought of him all the time.

Work was the only thing that provided her with a reprieve; she’d gotten much better at putting on a happy face during the day, but as soon as she left school, her mind and her body began functioning as separate entities. Her body would be occupied with driving, or cooking, or cleaning, or getting ready for bed, operating entirely on autopilot as her mind surrendered to the thoughts of Da

She would imagine what it would feel like to be with him, reveling in the way he made her feel, the way he made her laugh, the way he touched her, the way they seemed to co

Leah opened her eyes and stared at her reflection in the rearview mirror. She didn’t want to go home, because she knew what was waiting there for her—another night of restless sleep after an endless battle of logic and emotion.

She sat up and started the car, pulling out onto the road and going in the opposite direction of her apartment.

She had no idea how much she would tell him, or if she would tell him anything at all, but at that moment, she just wanted to be with her father.