Katie Ashley - Strings of the Heart

“You’re welcome.” I flicked my gaze over to Allison who was now busying herself with feeding the twins some sort of rice cereal. “So I’ll see you guys later.”

“Bye, Rhys,” Abby said, as she went over to bestow kisses on the twins’ cheeks.

I caught Allison’s mournful gaze one last time before I started off the bus. It told me all I needed to know; that the words she’d just said were a total lie. Deep down, I knew they were for me as well. But what the fuck else were we supposed to do?

Three months ago a perfect storm had destroyed everything we had once been to each other. A homesick girl all alone in Savannah, my parents’ loveless world of perfection and excess, and a bottle of silver tequila became the ingredients that fed the storm that forever changed our lives. And now like the strings on a once finely tuned instrument that had bowed under the tension, we were broken, if not ruined.

Three month earlier

As I lounged on the wooden railing of the wraparound front porch, I fought the urge to cry for the millionth time today. Nibbling on my bottom lip, I brought my legs up to rest my chin on my knees. In my hand I held the item that had set off my emotions yet again—my phone. Just as I was trying to delve into my assigned reading of a tome on the life of Coco Chanel, my phone had dinged, alerting me of a text. For most people, a picture of twins sporting matching onesies wouldn’t necessarily cue the waterworks. But in my case, it was just a tangible symbol of the homesickness that cloaked itself around me like a heavy coat.

At her baby shower, I had gotten my sister-in-law, Abby, a joke gift to go along with the other presents I’d bought my soon-to-be niece and nephew. They were a pink and blue onesie with the words: Watch your language, asshole. I’m a baby! I had done the embroidery myself. Considering the mouth Jake had on him, coupled with his bandmates, I knew the twins were going to be exposed to a plethora of four letter words. Abby had squealed over the onesies, and even Jake had found them funny.

I’d forgotten all about the onesies until the picture had come through via text of my almost one-month-old niece and nephew sporting them with Jake giving a double thumbs-up over their heads. Immediately an agonizing burn tore through my chest, and I wanted so much to be back home where I could hold them in my arms. Although my older sister, Andrea, had married two years ago, she hadn’t had kids yet, so Jax and Jules were my first niece and nephew. It wasn’t just the fact that I loved babies and children that made me want to be around them. It was more the fact that I was so very close to my family, especially Jake, that I needed to be with them.

So it didn’t help that I found myself almost three hundred miles away in Savannah. Not only was I so far from the twins, but the rest of my family, my friends, and everything I held dear in the world. I’d decided that instead of attending the satellite campus for the Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta, I needed to go four hours away from home to gain freedom and independence. With ten and twelve years between me and both my half-siblings, I’d grown up pretty spoiled, not only by my parents, but by Jake and Andrea as well. I’d lived in an almost cocooned world of safety and comfort for almost twenty-one years. There was a part of me that felt to truly mature and grow as a person, I needed to clip the strings that were tied so tightly to my parents. I needed life experiences outside of the comfortable suburb I’d grown up in. Looking back now, I had been utterly delusional.

Practically the moment my parents’ SUV, coupled with a U-Haul, left the driveway of my new home, I realized I’d made a huge mistake. Now two months later, my misery still hadn’t dissipated. Of course, it also didn’t help I was licking my wounds from a breakup with my boyfriend of six months right before leaving home. So now I was in a strange city without my friends, family, and a boyfriend. More than anything in the world, I wanted to be back home where everything was familiar and comfortable. In the end, I guess you could say I wasn’t a big fan of change.

A lot of people in my situation would have just accepted defeat, thrown in the towel, and gone back home with their tail between their legs. But I wasn’t that kind of person. Tenacity resided in my DNA, and I was determined to see at least this semester through. Then, and only then, would I allow myself to pack it up, move myself home, and transfer to SCAD-Atlanta.

Although seeing the picture of Jax and Jules had tested my resolve on seeing things through. They were already growing so fast. I’d flown up the weekend after they were born, but since Jules was in the NICU, I didn’t get to see that much of her. Now that they had been released from the hospital, I wanted a chance to snuggle them both.

Knowing that Abby was waiting on a reply, I quickly texted OMG, J & J look so cute. Would give anything to be holding them.

Her reply came right back. Next weekend that u can get free, Jake & I want to fly u up 2 see them.

A strangled cry came from deep within my throat when I read the text. With shaky hands, I started texting back my thanks. I was wishing I didn’t have to work the next day, and I could actually get away. Abby promised to FaceTime with me and the twins soon. I was so thankful that Jake had married such a sweet and caring woman. She had embraced me as the sister she’d never had, and it meant so much.

Long after Abby had texted a final See u soon! I remained unable to focus on my assigned reading. Instead, I sat with my head in my hands fighting the urge to cry. Just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse, three little words caused my entire world to tilt and spin on its axis.

“Hey, Allie-Bean.”

Jerking my head up, I peered down the porch to the top of the stairs where he stood. “R-Rhys?” I stuttered.

He grinned. “Yes, it’s me.”

“But what are you—” In a rush to see him, I tried sliding off the railing. Instead, I made a total ass out of myself by getting my legs tangled together and falling off the side. Thankfully I only fell into the shrubs that ran the length of the porch. “Oomph,” I muttered, as I tried clawing my way out of the greenery that was scratching my bare arms.

“Hang on. Let me help,” Rhys said, leaning over the banister.

The last thing on earth I wanted was for him to help me out of the mortifying situation I found myself in, but when I realized I was getting nowhere fast, I relented. I grasped his hands and let his strength pull me back over the railing. Once my feet were back on solid ground, I went to readjusting my top and jeans.

When I thought I was thoroughly put back together, I finally looked at Rhys. “Thank you.”

“You’re more than welcome. It’s not every day I get to save a damsel in distress.”

I laughed. “You seem to be saving me more times than I would like to admit.”

A genuine smile stretched across Rhys’s face. I knew, that like me, he was thinking back to that first weekend we had ever spent together. “At least these shrubs seem a little less dangerous than that downed tree.”

“That is true.” Rhys snickered for a moment, which caused me to throw him a puzzled look. “I’m sorry. I’m just having a shrubbery moment from Monty Python.”

“Monty Python?”

His eyes widened as he held up a hand. “Don’t tell me you’ve never seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail?” When I shook my head, he tsked at me. “We’ll just have to remedy that one ASAP. You can’t go through life without the cheeky, sarcastic humor that is I.”

I smiled at his enthusiasm. “Sounds good to me.”

Sweeping his hands to his hips, he asked, “So how are you, Allie-Bean?”

My response to his very general question was to burst into tears. I detested my out-of-control emotions, but the very fact he was standing before me today, not to mention partially rescued me, was just too much. Regardless of other boyfriends over the years, I had never stopped loving Rhys. He was the ideal man that no other guy could ever live up to. He was the dream I hoped to one day come true.

Even though his reflection was wavy, I could make out his concerned expression. Good lord, was it possible for me to do anything else mortifying in front of him? Swiping the tears from my eyes, I said, “I’m so sorry.”

“Do I need to go?”

“No!” I shouted a little too quickly. At his raised brows, I tried backpedaling. “I’m sorry for flaking out on you. It’s just been a hard day.” After a mirthless laugh, I added, “Actually, make that a hard two months.”

“Jake mentioned you were a little homesick.”

“He did?” Immediately my heart plummeted into my stomach. Of course Rhys hadn’t come to see me of his own volition. That would have been far too much to hope for. He had been coerced by my well-meaning brother, which crushed my hopes and dreams.

“Yeah, he asked me to check in on you when I got to Savannah.”

“When did you get in to town?”

“Just this morning.”

“And you came so soon?” I couldn’t help asking while trying not to let my traitorous heart get too excited.

Rhys smiled. “Of course I did. Jake’s my family, and that means you’re my family, too.” He patted my cheek. “Truth be told, I couldn’t bear the thought of you homesick and miserable.”

“That’s so sweet,” I murmured.

Cocking his head, Rhys said, “Well, it would be pretty unchivalrous of me to say that you’re a good excuse to get out of the house and away from my fucked-up family, right?”

“Just a little.”

“So I guess the crying jag there tells me all I need to know about how you’re holding up?”

I sighed. “Yeah, pretty much.”

Fiddling with his collar, Rhys said, “Jake also said you’d just been through a break-up.”

I swept my hands to my hips. “Was there anything Jake didn’t tell you?”

“He just said you were homesick on top of the fact your boyfriend broke up with you because he didn’t want to do the long distance thing.”

With a laugh, I replied, “The long distance thing is just what I told my parents and Jake. There was more to the story.”

“Oh?”

“Since you’re Mr. Inquisitive today, I’ll give you the full scoop. Then you can decide if you’ll report in all the details to Jake.”

Rhys chuckled. “All right, Miss Sassy, hit me with it.”

“Mitchell didn’t think our sex life was adventurous enough, so he wanted me to start going to this private sex club his father belonged to.”

Rhys’s usually tan skin paled, and he staggered back. “Fuck me, I didn’t need to know that.”

“Well, that’s the truth about what happened. We actually broke up a few weeks before I left, but I figured my parents could handle that story better. I mean, if Jake found out, Mitchell probably wouldn’t need to worry about his sex life because Jake would render him dickless.”

After staring in disbelief at me for a moment, Rhys finally threw his head back and howled with laughter. “Yeah, you got that one right. Of course, I’m tempted to find this asshole myself. Who the hell does he think he is trying to corrupt you like that? He should be happy some beautiful girl wanted to waste her time with him at all.”

My heart beat wildly like a jackhammer in my chest at his words. “Thank you. He really was a decent guy. I just didn’t know there was all that seedy stuff below the surface.”

“Don’t let a jerkoff like that bring you down. You’re better than that.”

“That’s sweet, Rhys. Thanks.”

“And now I think it’s time for a conversation change. Somehow I feel like I fell into the Twilight Zone by standing here talking about sex with you.”

With a scowl, I countered, “I’m almost twenty-one, Rhys. I’m not a baby anymore.” I’m sure my petulant tone did nothing to prove my point. All I needed was to stomp my foot, and I would look like I was throwing a tantrum like a toddler.

“Okay, okay, you’re not a baby. That has been fully illustrated to me today,” he replied, with a grin.

“Good. Now we can officially change the subject.”

Rhys glanced around the porch. “So this is a really nice place. I expected you to be in some of those converted hotel room dorms or any of the other shitty housing for college students.”

I laughed. “I lucked out on finding this place in a Craigslist ad of all things.”