Life After by P.A Warren Read Free Book Online Page B

over his lips. Great, just what I don’t want, his pity. Groaning, I decide to stay put since I’m unable to go anywhere fast. Turning back to the TV, I try and ignore him the best I can. Unfortunately, he doesn’t make that easy. He won’t leave me in peace. I can acutely feel how close we are to each other. I can smell his cologne and it smells so good. Why do guys always smell really good?
    I want to move closer to smell it but that would be very weird, although I think I may have already passed the weirdness factor for the day, sniffing him might put me on his crazy list. Pausing the show I tap my fingers on the remote. “Okay, I can’t do this anymore. Tell me about yourself or something to get this awkwardness gone.” Glancing over at him chagrined I add, “Please.”
    He stretches out his legs and puts them on the coffee table shoes and all crossing feet and puts his hands behind his head.
    “Comfy?” I ask him drolly while crossing my arms over my chest.
    Nodding he grabs the remote and starts flipping through channels.
    “Okay, I’m Averdeen Pope, but you can call me Avery, Aberdeen’s a family name and not one I really shout out that I have. I’m nineteen and I’ve been living here for about a year.  Andrew’s my brother. I’m going to school to be an EMT and I work at a coffee shop part time. Um what else? This is random but I like to fish, I know I don’t look like one of those guys that fish but I take it pretty seriously.”
    I scrunch my nose up. Up until last week I had barely seen Jenny, and I didn’t know about Andrew. “You’ll have to forgive me for thinking the worst of you. I’m not myself lately. And thanks for catching me…earlier
    “You really think I look like a serial killer?”
    I shrug lifting myself up onto the crutches and head to the kitchen.  Leaning on the counter I cover my face with my hands. Gosh, I’m so flustered I can’t believe I talked to him that way. Grabbing a soda from the fridge I open the cabinet looking for a cup and find all of them on the top shelf.
    Hearing footsteps behind me, a well defined tattooed arm crosses my vision and pulls down two glasses, I shiver at his close proximity. At five feet I’m vertically challenged; add the crutches and this may as well be an Olympic sport. 
    Clenching my fist I hold back hitting the counter, I’ve embarrassed myself back in the living room and wanted to get away from Avery but he had to follow me into the kitchen. I’m not incapable of getting a drink or a glass. Not that he would know that since I’m like a bumbling idiot around him, but whatever. The point is I am not an invalid.
    Avery opens the fridge and pulls out the soda and pours it into both glasses, gently pushing one glance my direction... I’m still standing there like an idiot with my mouth hanging open trying to think of something to say anything for that matter. Taking the glass I thank him begrudgingly. “Look, I’m sorry for being rude. That’s not me at all. I haven’t been myself lately but my mama didn’t raise someone that acts like that and she would be disappointed in me today.”
    He shrugs, “It’s no biggie. I get it.”
    “You do?”
    Nodding, he joins me, leaning against the counter and doing a once over of my features. 
    “You have no idea.” He grimaces and we stand there in awkward silence. “So do you want to talk about why you were screaming?”
    Looking away I squirm. What I really want to say is, Hell no I don’t want to talk about it, however I refrain, biting my tongue, hard.
    “Look I appreciate you trying to help but I don’t want to talk about it period.” There I went again from zero to bitch in ten seconds flat, Geez Hadley chill the heck out. Twirling my ice in the cup and watching it swirl it gives me a minute to gather my thoughts. “So what’s up all the black?”
    He seems flustered and I can’t help but feel triumphant. Good. Take that. Now you know how I feel, it makes me somewhat