Bulletproof Love
Just Give Her Back To Me
Tony’s P.O.V
“Where the fuck are they!?” I yelled at Jaime, frustrated with how he’d been beating around the bush throughout our entire conversation.
“They…uh…just went to visit their…uh…parents in…uh…Boston,” his voice nervously trailed off at the end of his sentence.
“They’re where?” I asked. I knew fully what Jaime said, but I could barely believe my own ears, and I wanted him to repeat himself.
He sighed. “They’re in Boston, Tony.” He collapsed onto the couch in defeat, ending our argument.
I sat down next to him and buried my face in my hands with my elbows resting on my knees. I’d known something was up three days ago when Jaime called Dylan to ask her where she was, but he returned with supposedly no answer. I knew she told him, I just knew it. But why couldn’t she just tell me? I asked myself. My head spun in every which direction. I couldn’t handle her being so far away from me, on the other side of the country, in a completely different time zone. “Why did she leave?” I said out loud, not expecting a response.
But Jaime gave me one anyway. “She said it was to keep herself and Drew and Micah safe, man,” he admitted.
“Why didn’t she take Ashley then?” I asked, finally looking up.
“She knew that we were here to protect Ashley.” Jaime sighed again.
“But I could’ve protected her.”
“I know, Ton-“
“No, Jaime.” I stood up. “I could’ve protected her. I would’ve been with her every second to make sure no one touched her, or no one saw her who wasn’t supposed to. I would’ve held her, I would’ve loved her like someone should. I do love her. I want to help her. How the hell am I supposed to do that when she’s so far away?”
“Tony,” Jaime stood up and put his hand on my shoulder, as if that would steady my emotions and my thoughts.
“I gotta call her, man.” I turned abruptly and bounded up the stairs to my room, slamming the door behind me. I made my way over to the nightstand and picked up my phone before dialing Dylan’s number; I knew it by heart.
She picked up on the fifth ring, like she had to think about whether or not to answer me. “Hello?” It was the first time I’d heard her voice in three days, and I missed it. I missed how tender it was, and how every time I heard it my heart was set on fire.
“Why did you leave?” I had no intention on beginning the conversation that way. I’d planned to maybe ask her how she was doing, and make sure she was okay. But I guess I was so caught up in the moment, and so pained at the time, that I couldn’t figure out how else to do this.
“Tony-“
“Dylan I need you. Please, come back.” At this point, it was difficult to remain strong.
I heard Dylan sigh in my ear. “Tony I can’t do that right now.”
“Well then don’t do it for me. What about your tattoo shop? You love that place. And what about Ashley? How is she gonna react when she finds out that you ran away from her problem?”
“Tony. I didn’t leave permanently. I completed my unfinished projects at Inks before I left. And as of Ashley…she has you guys to protect her. Drew doesn’t have that. I’m here as a support system.” Her voice was calm and relaxed, but tired. I could tell she hadn’t been getting enough sleep, and it only worried my further.
“Well when are you coming back then?”
“As soon as Jack is caught.”
“What about Jerry?”
There was a pause. “We haven’t figured that out yet.”
“Do you see how flawed this plan is, Dylan? The victim in this situation is Ashley. If you were such a ‘support system,’ you’d be here helping her. If you would just come back and let us help you, this could all be over by the end of the week.”
Another pause. “I’ll see you later, Tony.”
I tried to respond, but the line went dead before I could. I slammed my phone down on my bed in exasperation, and my body went down with it. I didn’t know when I’d see her again, or when I’d even talk to her again. I thought back to the days when we were enjoying each other’s company; before things got complicated. Like that morning at the lake, or the time we were making out on her couch. I wanted all that back, and I never knew how much it meant to me until it was gone.
I looked at my watch. It was 9:54 p.m, meaning that I could go to sleep, which was all I wanted to do. I stood up, turned off the light, and stripped myself of all my clothes before crawling into my bed.
“Where the fuck are they!?” I yelled at Jaime, frustrated with how he’d been beating around the bush throughout our entire conversation.
“They…uh…just went to visit their…uh…parents in…uh…Boston,” his voice nervously trailed off at the end of his sentence.
“They’re where?” I asked. I knew fully what Jaime said, but I could barely believe my own ears, and I wanted him to repeat himself.
He sighed. “They’re in Boston, Tony.” He collapsed onto the couch in defeat, ending our argument.
I sat down next to him and buried my face in my hands with my elbows resting on my knees. I’d known something was up three days ago when Jaime called Dylan to ask her where she was, but he returned with supposedly no answer. I knew she told him, I just knew it. But why couldn’t she just tell me? I asked myself. My head spun in every which direction. I couldn’t handle her being so far away from me, on the other side of the country, in a completely different time zone. “Why did she leave?” I said out loud, not expecting a response.
But Jaime gave me one anyway. “She said it was to keep herself and Drew and Micah safe, man,” he admitted.
“Why didn’t she take Ashley then?” I asked, finally looking up.
“She knew that we were here to protect Ashley.” Jaime sighed again.
“But I could’ve protected her.”
“I know, Ton-“
“No, Jaime.” I stood up. “I could’ve protected her. I would’ve been with her every second to make sure no one touched her, or no one saw her who wasn’t supposed to. I would’ve held her, I would’ve loved her like someone should. I do love her. I want to help her. How the hell am I supposed to do that when she’s so far away?”
“Tony,” Jaime stood up and put his hand on my shoulder, as if that would steady my emotions and my thoughts.
“I gotta call her, man.” I turned abruptly and bounded up the stairs to my room, slamming the door behind me. I made my way over to the nightstand and picked up my phone before dialing Dylan’s number; I knew it by heart.
She picked up on the fifth ring, like she had to think about whether or not to answer me. “Hello?” It was the first time I’d heard her voice in three days, and I missed it. I missed how tender it was, and how every time I heard it my heart was set on fire.
“Why did you leave?” I had no intention on beginning the conversation that way. I’d planned to maybe ask her how she was doing, and make sure she was okay. But I guess I was so caught up in the moment, and so pained at the time, that I couldn’t figure out how else to do this.
“Tony-“
“Dylan I need you. Please, come back.” At this point, it was difficult to remain strong.
I heard Dylan sigh in my ear. “Tony I can’t do that right now.”
“Well then don’t do it for me. What about your tattoo shop? You love that place. And what about Ashley? How is she gonna react when she finds out that you ran away from her problem?”
“Tony. I didn’t leave permanently. I completed my unfinished projects at Inks before I left. And as of Ashley…she has you guys to protect her. Drew doesn’t have that. I’m here as a support system.” Her voice was calm and relaxed, but tired. I could tell she hadn’t been getting enough sleep, and it only worried my further.
“Well when are you coming back then?”
“As soon as Jack is caught.”
“What about Jerry?”
There was a pause. “We haven’t figured that out yet.”
“Do you see how flawed this plan is, Dylan? The victim in this situation is Ashley. If you were such a ‘support system,’ you’d be here helping her. If you would just come back and let us help you, this could all be over by the end of the week.”
Another pause. “I’ll see you later, Tony.”
I tried to respond, but the line went dead before I could. I slammed my phone down on my bed in exasperation, and my body went down with it. I didn’t know when I’d see her again, or when I’d even talk to her again. I thought back to the days when we were enjoying each other’s company; before things got complicated. Like that morning at the lake, or the time we were making out on her couch. I wanted all that back, and I never knew how much it meant to me until it was gone.
I looked at my watch. It was 9:54 p.m, meaning that I could go to sleep, which was all I wanted to do. I stood up, turned off the light, and stripped myself of all my clothes before crawling into my bed.
Plot twist! Dx
3/17/14