After Alice’s brothers chased me off their property and threatened me with a PFA, I wandered the park until dark. And then I couldn’t figure out what to do next, so I sat down next to the fountain to watch fireflies. I have no idea what time it is. My phone is in my car, double parked where I screeched to a halt outside the Peterson house.
I hear someone approaching, but don’t look up. The massive forms of my brothers come into my line of vision, and I grunt by way of greeting when they sink down into the grass next to me. “Been looking for you, bro,” Thatcher says. “Gran is beside herself. You were supposed to take her to dinner today.”
Shit. What day is it? “Is today Tuesday?” I look from one brother to the other. “How did you find me?”
Ty slaps a hand on my leg. “Listen, Timber. Juniper told me what happened during the Cavs meeting, and then she told me you holed yourself up in your office covered in blood, and then she told me you tore out of there muttering to yourself about some plan of action.”
“Why the hell is Juniper calling you with that information?”
Ty lets out a long breath. “She’s my lawyer and she’s worried about you and she knows I’m your brother, dude. And we all know you’ve been fucking Alice Peterson. And I know your car is parked half-assed in front of her driveway because I went over there to move it for them.” I close my eyes, but Ty keeps talking. “AND we know her family thinks you’re a fucking lunatic. Thatch, does that cover everything?”
Thatcher grabs hold of my other leg. “Almost, baby bro. I believe the Petersons said something about a shotgun, owing to the fact that our brother Timber seems to have gotten Alice Peterson pregnant.”
“Right.” Ty starts talking again. “So. Talk to us, bro, and then we’re taking you home to get cleaned up.”
Thatcher hands me a bottle of water, and I suck it down gratefully. And then I tell them all of it, starting with my inability to stay away from Alice since the first second I saw her. I tell them how she has consumed my thoughts, how good it felt to have her at my apartment. How terrified I’ve felt since the minute the doctor said she was pregnant and I realized it was my fault.
Thatcher puts his arm around my shoulder. “Tim,” he says. “You’ve been on watch for a long time, man.”
“On watch?”
“Yeah. On watch. Watching out for us, day and night, around the clock. Since mom died. But from what I’ve seen and from what you’re saying, it sounds like Alice helps you let your guard down.” I nod. “It’s ok to let your guard down, Tim-bo. You know that, right? You don’t have to be the one in control all the time…”
And then we sit in silence for awhile until they help me to my feet. Ty climbs into the driver seat of my car and I start to protest, but they push me into the back seat. I fall asleep and don’t wake up until we pull into the garage in my building. My brothers walk me into my apartment. It really is a sterile, empty shell, just like Alice said. Thatcher procures a six-pack and my brothers camp out on my couch while I shower. I don’t even like being in my fancy shower without Alice. Nothing feels right. I’m worried I fucked everything up with her and she won’t ever come back.
I walk to the living room after I shower. Ty hands me a beer and looks at his watch. “We keeping you from something, Tyrion?” Thatcher doesn’t let anything slip by.
Ty shrugs and looks around my apartment. “This place sucks, Tim.”
I frown. “What do you mean by that?”
“Do you even live here? There’s, like, nothing here. Just furniture.”
“I’ve got pictures of you clowns,” I say, pointing to the wall across from us. But he’s right. That’s the only personal touch in the whole place. I really don’t spend much time here, and once I took Alice's bag to her house, all the little things she had set around this weekend were gone, too. I take a long swig of my beer. “I fucked up, guys.”
Thatcher doesn’t look away from the TV. “We know, bro.”
We sit in silence for awhile and eventually I fall asleep. I wake up to the sun streaming in the windows.
Alone.