Unraveling

by Micalea Smeltzer

  “I don’t think so,” I laughed.

  “You’re right,” he said, motioning me inside. “If it was a dream, you’d be naked.”

  I gasped.

  “I’m kidding, Katy. Laugh, it won’t kill you,” he winked, walking into the kitchen. “I was just making a sandwich. Karlie should be down in a minute,” he pointed up stairs.

  He plopped down at the small kitchen table and took a monster bite of his sandwich. Swallowing, he said, “Sit down, Katy. Make yourself at home. Mi casa es su casa.”

  I pulled out the chair across from him.

  “I really hope you know what you’re getting into, taking Karlie shopping. She never goes, so when she gets the chance, she gets kind of crazy,” Jared grinned crookedly.

  “I think I can handle it,” I said.

  He took a sip of Mountain Dew. “I’m sure you can, you’re always so composed.”

  Maybe on the outside, I wanted to say.

  “Yeah, that’s me, cool as a cucumber,” I said, instead. Oh gosh, did I really just say that?

  Jared chuckled. “You’re funny.”

  “I wasn’t trying to be,” I said.

  “Oh, I know,” he winked.

  The sound of feet bounding down the steps had me turning around.

  “Hey Katy! I’m ready! Thank you so much for taking me with you! I know you didn’t have to!” Karlie said as she appeared.

  “Squirt,” Jared interrupted her. “Pipe down, before you scare Katy away for good.”

  “Sorry!” she blushed, grabbing a lightweight sweatshirt from the coat rack and pulling it on.

  “Come here, Karls,” Jared said, standing and pulling out his wallet.

  “No, Jared,” Karlie backed away. “You don’t need to give me any money.”

  Jared rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry about it, Karlie. I want you to get some nice things. You never get to go shopping. Take it,” he held out the wad of bills.”

  “No, Jared, that’s your money,” she shook her head.

  “Don’t argue with me Karlie Elizabeth, I mean it,” Jared growled, looking at his sternly.

  “Fine,” she took the money from him. She counted out the bills and her eyes widened. “Seriously, Jared, I can’t take all of this!”

  “Yes, you can. Buy something nice,” he leaned against the pale orange painted wall.

  “Really? Are you sure?” She looked up at him.

  “I wouldn’t offer it, if I wasn’t,” he grinned.

  “You’re the best big brother ever!” Karlie stretched up to her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “Thank you!”

  “You’re welcome, squirt,” he said, as she ran out the door.

  We heard a squeal and then, “Oh my God! Katy! Is this your car?”

  Jared chuckled and rubbed his face. “Despite her girlyness, Karlie is way more into cars than I am.”

  “I can tell,” I said.

  “What time do you think ya’ll will be back?” he asked.

  “Um… probably after dinner. I think Piper wants to eat at some restaurant in the mall.”

  “Okay,” he said, “just don’t stay out too late. It’s a school night for Karlie and she needs to go to bed.”

  “Don’t worry, Jared, I’ll have her home at a reasonable time,” I laughed.

  “Sorry,” he blushed, “I worry about her like I’m her dad.”

  “It’s okay,” I assured him.

  “Thank you for doing this, Katy,” he said, warmly, reaching out as if to touch my cheek. He let his hand drop to his side, sadness filling his eyes. It hurt to know that my reluctance was what put it there.

  “Really, Jared, I’m happy to do it. Karlie is awesome,” I smiled, trying to ignore what I saw in his eyes.

  “Katy!” we heard Karlie yell.

  “I guess that’s my cue to get my butt out of here,” I told him.

  “Be careful,” he said. “I’ll see you later.”

  ~***~

  “This is seriously, the coolest car, ever!” Karlie’s voice spiked a couple of notches. “It’s like a spaceship!” She petted the dashboard.

  “Thanks, it was a gift from my mom. I would’ve been happy with something less extravagant,” I mumbled, shrugging my shoulders.

  “What!? No!” She gasped. “I’d die and go to heaven if this was my car. It’s beautiful,” she rubbed the leather seat.

  “It’s definitely nice, I’m not complaining,” I smiled over at her and turned into the mall parking lot.

  It took fifteen minutes to finally find an empty parking spot in one of the garages. Any mall was packed on the weekends, but in a college town it was a hundred times worse.

  I called Piper and she said she was in Macy’s so Karlie and I headed in that direction.

  Karlie was in awe by everything we passed, and I felt sorry for her. She was in more need of girl time than me.

  “Oooh! Oooh! Katy! Look at this jacket! It’s so pretty!” she was stopped, gaping at one of the various mannequins stationed throughout the department store.

  “That would look great on you,” I told her, honestly. It was a yellow, hooded Anorak jacket.

  “You think? You don’t think the yellow would clash with my hair?” Karlie asked.

  “Not at all,” I fingered the soft fabric. “You should try it on.”

  “Okay!” she turned and began scanning the rack next to the mannequin for a jacket in her size.

  We were supposed to meet Piper in the fragrance department, but at the rate we were going, it would be nighttime before we made it there. So, I text Piper the section we were in and hoped she’d be able to find us.

  “Look at this, Katy!” Karlie held a loose black and white striped tank top with a red heart on it, in the air.

  “Nice!” I said.

  She ran from rack to rack, grabbing up different items.

  “This is heaven!” she cried at one point.

  A store clerk kept shooting us dirty looks but I didn’t want to ruin Karlie’s time. She deserved to be excited.

  While Karlie scanned through the racks of clothing, I stood out in the aisle, searching for Piper.

  Finally, I spotted her and waved her over.

  “Hey,” she said.

  “Hey, Piper,” I smiled. “Thanks so much for doing this.”

  “Not a problem,” she grinned. “Someone has to help you,” she waved her hand up and down at my attire.

  “What’s wrong with this?” I asked, plucking at my shirt.

  “Katy, you’re wearing jeans and a t-shirt, like always. You need some dresses and diversity in your style.”

  “Thank you for your complete and utter honesty,” I laughed.

  She put her hands up in defense. “I’m not the kind of person to lie to you, Katy. I’m not a sugar coater, either. I’m a no nonsense type of person.”

  “And that’s what I like about you,” I laughed. “We better go find, Karlie. I would hate to lose Jared’s sister.”

  Piper laughed. “That would be a pretty awkward conversation.”

  ~***~

  We found Karlie, who had decided against buying anything in Macy’s, before she looked anywhere else.

  Piper ended up playing personal shopper for the day.

  She dragged us from store to store, putting us in the dressing rooms and bringing us mountains of clothes to put on.

  This store was no different. I’d barely stepped inside, looking at a rack of sweaters, when she grabbed me by the shirt and dragged me to a dressing room.

  She swished the curtain closed and said, “Take off your clothes, I’ll be back in a second. Same to you, Karlie.”

  As promised, within minutes, she was shoving clothes under the curtain. “Try all of them on,” she warned.

  I grabbed up a dress and slipped it on. It was black on top with thin spaghetti straps. The bottom was a yellowish-green color and a little longer in the back so that it flowed.

  It looked amazing.

  I said to Piper, “Are you sure you s
houldn’t have a career in fashion?”

  I heard Piper giggle through the thin dressing room curtain. “My parent’s would kill me if I dropped out and went to school for fashion. Seriously, they’d hunt me down.”

  I laughed. “Piper, I’m sure that’s not true.”

  She sighed. “Oh, but it is. They wouldn’t hunt me down, but they would disown me. They won’t speak to my brother because he refused to go to medical school. Now, he works at a bar.”

  “Jeez,” I said. Her parents made my mom sound like a saint.

  I tried on the other things, and there wasn’t one that I didn’t like. I could hear Karlie oohing and ahhing over something, through the thin walls.

  I redressed in my own clothes and gathered up the others in my arms.

  “So, what’s the verdict?” Piper looked at the stack of clothes in my arms.

  “I want them all,” I smiled.

  Piper clapped, “I am good! I told you, you could trust me.”

  “Karlie, how’s it going in there?” I asked through the curtain.

  “I love everything!” she squealed. “From now on, I’m only going shopping if Piper is with me. Not that I went shopping before, but seriously Piper, you’re amazing. This stuff is so me!”

  “Thank ya, thank ya very much,” Piper bowed.

  I giggled, “Stay with Karlie, I’m going to go check out.”

  “Sure,” Piper smiled.

  I ended up with five heavy bags, plus the three I already had from other stores. When today was over, my bank account would be completely depleted.

  I chuckled to myself. I guess my mother would be pleased that I was buying something other than groceries. My lack of ‘care’ for myself, as she liked to call it, was always a topic of discussion in the last two years.

  Karlie bought what Piper had picked out for her and then we were on the move again.

  ~***~

  Exhausted from all the shopping, we headed into one of the many restaurants in the mall. I honestly, had no idea that shopping could be so tiring. But my legs were killing me and my arms hurt from carrying all the bags.

  There was a short wait, but soon they were leading us back to a booth.

  Karlie slid in beside me and Piper was across from us.

  Shopping bags were stacked next to Piper, with more between Karlie and me.

  “Well,” Piper laughed when a bag fell over on top of her, “I’d say today has been very productive.”

  “Looks like it,” Karlie giggled. “Thanks for letting me tag along.”

  “Not a problem,” Piper said, picking up her menu. “I think you’re pretty cool and I want your hair.”

  Karlie snorted and flicked a bright orange red. “I think Jared just about busted a vein in his forehead when he saw what I had done, but I love it. I think your hair is pretty awesome too.”

  “I’m thinking about changing the pink to purple… or maybe blue. I don’t know,” Piper said, scanning the menu.

  “Why? The pink looks amazing. I like how it gets darker and then lighter on the ends.”

  “Hmmm, I guess I’ll leave it,” Piper smiled at Karlie.

  I was relieved that they were getting along so well. I was a bit afraid that Piper would be a little irked by Karlie, but instead they were getting along like they’d known each other for years.

  I could tell Karlie was soaking in the girl time.

  I laughed and joined the conversation throughout dinner.

  For once, I didn’t feel like I was standing on the outside looking in. I felt like I belonged.

  18

  “Your brother is going to kill me,” I looked at the clock in my car. It was after nine and I knew he’d be pissed we had been gone so long.

  “He’ll get over it,” Karlie shrugged like it was no big deal.

  “That’s easy for you to say, he won’t be mad at you,” I sped down the road.

  Karlie snorted. “He’s always mad at me about something, he acts like he’s my dad. Trust me, if there’s anyone Jared could never be mad at, I think it’s you.”

  “I think it’s really great that Jared cares for you the way he does,” I said.

  “Yeah, it is. I’m just happy he’s turned out to be who he is. He’s a great person, but having gone through what he has,” she shook her head. “It would have completely ruined most people, but not, Jared. He had a phase during his teen years where he was really rebellious and that was when Dan got him into fighting at the gym.”

  I was curious to know more, but I knew Karlie wouldn’t let anything about Jared’s past slip.

  Plus, for whatever reason, I thought of our deal.

  Jared’s voice echoed through my head.

  “I’ll tell you about my past, when you tell me about yours. I won’t push you to open up to me, Katy. I’m not like that. I’ll give you time, all the time in the world. But in the meantime, I want you to give me a chance, because I think we could turn out to be something great.”

  A smile lifted my lips when I thought of his words.

  “Katy!” Karlie screamed suddenly, but it was too late.

  I closed my eyes and braced for impact.

  I felt the car hit the deer and skid out of the lane.

  My eyes popped open and I tried to right the car, but I couldn’t.

  A car in the other lane, slammed into the driver’s side door.

  Pain laced through my arm as the airbag exploded in front of me.

  I could hear Karlie screaming and I reached out to take her hand, to comfort her, not even thinking about what kind of reaction the physical contact might cause me, but my hand never found hers.

  The pain was too much and I finally succumbed to the numbness.

  ~***~

  I felt like I was sinking.

  Sinking deeper and deeper, with no clue which way was up and down.

  I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t see.

  All my senses seemed to be missing.

  Everything around me was just a blank, black, void.

  I sunk deeper into the depths and then there was no more.

  ~***~

  Yelling.

  Someone was yelling.

  Really loud.

  And my head hurt.

  I wish they’d shut up.

  What was that annoying beeping sound?

  Was my alarm going off?

  Slowly, my eyes peeled open and I gasped when I took in my surroundings.

  The beeping got louder with the racing of my heart, so did the yelling.

  No one was in my hospital room, but I opened my mouth anyway and said, “Karlie?” I tried to yell it, but my voice came out crackly and barely above a whispered. “Karlie?” I tried again.

  Out in the hallway, the yelling came closer and I recognized the voice.

  “Katy! Katy!” Jared yelled and he sounded like a mad man. “Katy! Someone tell me where Katy Spencer’s room is! Karlie-” this time he sounded relieved. “Where is she?” I heard him ask.

  A second later the door to my room burst open and I flinched, ready for the yelling and hatred to pour off of Jared, for getting in a car wreck with his sister.

  Instead, his voice cracked and a tear slipped down his cheek, “Kitten?”

  My lower lip trembled. I needed him.

  “Oh baby,” Jared said, falling to his knees beside my hospital bed. “Karlie called me, oh God, I’ve never felt like this in my entire life. I think my heart stopped when she told me you were hurt.”

  “Is she okay?” I asked, my voice cracking.

  He reached for my hand but just before he touched me, he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

  “She’s fine, just a scratch on her cheek from a piece of glass. She didn’t even need stitches, she’s just shaken up, that’s all. You, on the other hand,” he laughed humorlessly, “are hurt. Three bruised ribs and your wrist is broken. You’re going to be sore for a while.

  I met his eyes. “The scars and bruises on the outside, in no way, compare to the ones on th
e inside. It’s the scars you can’t see that hurt the most, Jared.”

  He reached out again, to touch my cheek. His fingers hesitated, millimeters away. “I need to touch you,” he choked. “I need to make sure you’re really alive.”

  “Touch me,” I whispered.

  He gasped, eyes wide.

  “Touch me,” I repeated.

  His fingers lightly touched my cheek and he moaned. “God, your skin is so soft.”

  I leaned my cheek against his fingers so that more of him was touching me and soaked in the heat radiating off of him.

  Nothing had ever felt so good as Jared touching me.

  This, in no way, compared to the night at the club where he held my hand.

  This was a hundred, no, a thousand times better. It felt so intimate, when really, it was a just a simple gesture.

  He moved his fingers, skimming them along my jaw line, and I moaned in pleasure. My cheeks instantly flared red.

  “Don’t ever be embarrassed by your reactions to me,” Jared breathed, his face near mine. “I want to hear what I do to you. I need to know that you’re as affected by me, as I am by you.”

  He leaned his forehead against mine, barely touching. I flinched at the sudden contact, but then realized it felt really good. Maybe, that’s what I had been afraid of, since Preston raped me. Maybe, I’d become afraid of someone touching me and actually liking it, because in the back of my mind I felt like I was ruined.

  “Please, don’t stop touching me,” I begged, my voice barely a whisper.

  “Trust me, kitten, I never want to stop touching you,” he rumbled.

  The doctor came in and cleared his throat.

  Jared pulled away and I reached out for him.

  “Hold on, kitten,” he crooned, grabbing a chair and positioning it beside my bed. He reached for my hand and intertwined our fingers.

  The doctor glared at Jared. “Only family is allowed at this time.”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Jared said, jaw set and I knew he was giving the doctor his steely eyed gaze.

  The doctor huffed, obviously exhausted and not up for a fight. He gripped the end of the hospital bed tightly in his hands, like it was the only thing keeping him standing.

  “Ms. Spencer, you’re a lucky lady.”

  “I don’t call three bruised ribs and a broken wrist, lucky,” Jared growled.