Read Online Siempre by Tessa Cárdenas - Free Book Online Page A

him.
    “It’s not your mom, but if you’re going to read it, I might as well be here to keep you from being stupid about it.” Alana sighed and picked up the phone herself to hand it to him.
    Lupe said you were already gone and you left rehearsal early. Are you ok? Did you get hurt? Can you just tell me if you’re ok so I can be pissed off at you instead of worried?
    “I have to answer him. It’s not fair.” Sean tilted the phone so Alana could see the text.
    “I can answer him for you,” Alana suggested.
    Sean ignored her suggestion. Anything she’d text would involve some kind of graphic removal of organs if she was in the mood to be nice. It took typing and deleting three drafts before he gave up and sent something simple.
    I’m ok.
    Lupe is bitching at me for texting and driving even though we’re not moving in this traffic, but that’s a shit answer. If you want to give me a better one when I get home, let me know.
    “He has no right,” Alana said after reading over his shoulder.
    “He kind of does, if you want to get technical about it. He didn’t do anything wrong because he never said he wasn’t seeing anyone else, and I stood him up with no explanation.”
    “Technicalities are fucking nothing. But if you want to argue with me, I’m just going to appeal to the part of you that doesn’t want him to crash his car and die and point out that you really can’t keep texting him while he’s driving. Because Lupe and Michael might die too, and they really don’t deserve that.”
    Sean let his phone fall back to the bed and shifted to turn away from her. Jaime was right. He knew in his head that he was being an ass, but if he called Jaime, it wasn’t really going to get any better.
    “I have to face him eventually.” Sean mumbled it, but Alana answered anyway.
    “The offer still stands to have me tell him off without you ever having to talk to him again.”
    Sean nodded and let himself zone out as she rubbed his back.
    When he woke an hour later, he didn’t remember falling asleep, but Alana wasn’t with him in the bed anymore. He heard movement in the kitchen and turned to face the door when it creaked open.
    “There’s food,” Travis said. “Eat regular meals, and I’ll leave you alone until Monday.”
    Sean glanced at the table by his bed, but his phone wasn’t there.
    “It’s in the living room. We didn’t want it to wake you up, but he called,” Travis said as he leaned against the doorframe. Sean tried to ignore the jump in his chest that came from knowing Jaime had at least called, but even Travis probably read it on his face.
    “I need to call him back.” Sean waited for Travis to argue, but he nodded instead.
    “You should wake up and eat first.”
    “You’re not going to argue?”
    “I’m going to argue if you call him and say everything is fine. Otherwise, I agree you should call him and tell him how he fucked up and dump his sorry ass.” Travis shrugged. “You sulk longer if you don’t have closure.”
    “I hate you.”
    “Get up. There’s sandwiches and soup.” Travis turned to leave, and then seemed to think better of it and turned back. “Do you want me to send Alana home?”
    Sean shook his head as he got off the bed. At least she’d be annoying enough to distract him, plus she’d override Travis’s TV choices and let Sean watch as much shitty TV as he wanted.
    Travis gave up his phone after he’d eaten. There was one missed call, but no voice mail because Jaime didn’t know Sean wanted to be with him, but he knew Sean hated checking his voice mail. There was one last text instead.
    That was my last call until you feel like calling me. I’m just going to assume I should drop Lupe off at rehearsal Monday and go study somewhere else.
    Sean stared at his phone for a minute before getting up and going to his room. Alana got up, but Sean assumed Travis stopped her from following because no one kept him from closing the door. He hit the button to call back