But instead, Blake turned on his heel and headed back in the direction of the football field.
Chapter Fifteen
Blake pushed past Ruby on the stairs at home, not even acknowledging her presence.
“Hey,” she called out, rubbing her arm. “That hurt.” It hadn’t really, but she wanted to shake him up a little.
He didn’t reply. Didn’t even turn to check if she was okay. He just headed toward his bedroom, slamming the door behind him once he reached it. With a sigh, she continued up the stairs and went into her own room. Ever since their confrontation about Drew the previous evening, her emotions had been all over the place, going from totally getting where Blake came from and feeling extremely guilty for inflicting more pain on him, to being really annoyed with him and wanting to drag him out of his rigid, narrow-minded, unforgiving perspective.
It wasn’t like she had asked him to be best friends with Drew again, or for him to act like nothing had happened between them. All she wanted was a chance to explain everything and for him to realize that it didn’t change the fact that he was her brother, and she adored him.
Pointless.
All this fighting was pointless, since Drew no longer wanted to see her. Blake would get over it, and in the meantime, she would keep her distance from him. Just like she’d intended to with Drew. She’d immerse herself in her studies and forget about everyone else, because her time with Drew had definitely affected her grades. And not in a good way.
She glanced around her room. It was small and oppressive. She needed to get out of there, to breathe in some fresh air. She checked her reflection in the mirror. After combing her hair, putting on some lip gloss and pulling on her jacket, she ran downstairs and poked her head in the kitchen where her mom was cooking.
“I’m going out for a walk, Mom. No dinner for me, thanks.”
She knew she was treading on thin ice by wanting to boycott dinner, but she just couldn’t hack sitting there as a family pretending everything was okay when it so obviously wasn’t.
“But—”
“I’ll explain later,” Ruby interrupted.
She ran down the hall and bumped into her father who had just come down the stairs.
“Sorry, Dad.” She went to step around him then caught sight of the blank expression in his eyes. “Come on.” She took hold of his arm and guided him into the lounge and to his chair, which stood next to the couch and directly in front of the TV.
She crouched down in front of him. “Do you ever think of what it was like before your accident?”
He frowned. “What’s the point?”
“To realize that it wasn’t perfect then, either. I’m sure you had problems that you dealt with. But this. For nearly twelve years, since the accident, you’ve acted like it’s the end of your life. And it isn’t.” She’d never confronted her father before. But seeing Drew headed down the same path had jolted something in her, made her want to at least try to shake her father back into the land of the living before it was too late.
“What do you know?” he muttered.
“Plenty. I know that you’re destroying Mom. She does everything for you, and more. And you never show any gratitude.”
“What do you expect me to do? Jump up and down and kiss her every time she makes my dinner?” Anger flashed across his face.
His words might have been negative, but it surprised Ruby how animated he was. She couldn’t remember seeing him show that much emotion since the accident. It encouraged her to go on.
“Of course not. All I want is for you to try and live your life instead of wallowing in self-pity and being so self-absorbed that you are oblivious to the feelings of those around you. Just like Drew.”
She could bang their heads together.
“What’s Drew got to do with it?” Her fists clenched in frustration at the blank expression on his face. He so didn’t get it.
“The pair of you are so similar, I could scream. And while I’m at it, I don’t suppose you’ve been taking the new anti-depressants the doctor prescribed, have you?”
“What’s the point?”
“What’s the point,” she mimicked. “The point is so that you start to feel better. That you start to have a life.” She locked eyes with him, until he broke the stare and looked away. She jumped up. “I’m so tired of the pair of you.”
She strode out of the room and to the front door. As she stepped outside a gust of wind blew. She shivered and wished she’d picked up her scarf and gloves on her way out. For a moment, she debated going back to get them, then decided that if she walked fast she’d soon warm up. She opened the wooden gate, stuck her hands in her pockets, and stepped onto the sidewalk.
Without thinking, she started to walk in the direction of Tiffany’s house, then realized she didn’t want to see her friend. She just wanted to be alone to try and process everything that had happened. So instead she decided to go to a nearby park. She turned and stepped out onto the intersection.
“Ruby, watch out!” a voice shouted from somewhere behind her.
She froze and heard the car before she saw it. It whizzed past, and she felt a sharp, agonizing pain as it clipped the side of her body, twisting her around. As if in slow motion, she was knocked sideways off her feet, arms flailing, and thrown a few feet into the air. She landed on her arm, and then her head shot backward, cracking loudly against the asphalt.
Pain ricocheted through her entire body, and she fought to catch her breath. In the background, she heard the sound of screeching brakes. She attempted to lift her shoulders off the ground, but the pain was too intense. She dropped back and closed her eyes, allowing everything happening around her to drift away.
“Ruby, are you okay? Ruby. Ruby!”
She forced her eyelids open and was puzzled when she saw Blake’s face only a few inches away. He was devoid of any color, and his eyes looked worried.
“Blake?” Her voice was hoarse and barely above a whisper. The slightest movement made her head spin.
“You’re alive. Thank God,” he gasped, tears running down his cheeks.
“What?” She attempted to sit up, but with his hands on the tops of her arms, he gently kept her still.
“Don’t move. We’re waiting for the medics.”
Everything seemed fuzzy, and she desperately dredged her mind for clues as to what had happened, but it was too hard. She gave in to his demand and tried to focus on her breathing, hoping it might help relieve the pain.
“Is she okay?” she heard a woman’s voice close to her head. In her peripheral vision, she could see her brown shoes.
“She’s alive,” Blake snapped, looking up at the woman. “No thanks to you.” He took hold of Ruby’s hand, and she noticed how cold it felt.
“She stepped out in front of me,” the woman said, her voice cracking.
Did she step out? She couldn’t remember. She guessed it was possible, since she’d had so much on her mind after what happened with Drew. A dark feeling washed over her.
“I don’t blame him,” Ruby murmured.
“Who?” Blake asked, taking one of her hands in both of his and rubbing it vigorously like he was trying to help her regain circulation.
“Drew,” she said, guessing that she wasn’t making a whole lot of sense.
Blake closed his eyes as if trying to regain his patience, and then opened them again. “Really, Ruby? You want to talk about Drew?”
She tried to shake her head, but it made the world around her spin, so she held herself as still as possible. “No,” she admitted.
Blake swerved his gaze upward, to the owner of the brown shoes near Ruby’s head. “You would have seen her if you hadn’t been speeding,” he snapped.
“I wasn’t. I don’t think.” The woman’s voice faltered.