Chapter Twenty-Two

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Barrett

" C an you grab the top of this?" I'm straining as I'm holding the top of the drywall up. We finally got the extra products we needed and are finishing up this house. Abel rushes over to where I'm standing and grabs the weight off just in time. "Thank you." The two of us haven't hung out alone in a while, and as I look at him, I see he looks fucking stressed. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just starting to feel stressed about getting married. I know more than anything I want to marry Kara. I go to bed thinking about her, get up wanting to live my life with her, but the pressure is starting to get to me." He runs a hand through his hair. "It's stupid the type of shit you have to think about when you're going to get married."

The answer seems simple to me, there's no reason we should be this stressed when it comes to what is supposed to be the best day of our lives. "Why don't you just elope if it's that stressful? None of us is going to say anything to you about it. You know that, right?"

"I just don't know what to do. I know my mom wants to be there, especially after her cancer scare. I don't want to disappoint her."

The way he drops his head down says more than anything to me about how much this is affecting him. He takes it seriously. "What if you could do something special for her that takes some of this pressure off of you? There are definitely two things that can be true here. You cannot be so stressed and still give her something that's special."

He sighs heavily. "I'm even slacking on things around here. I haven't been here like I should; Dad said something to me about it the other day. I know I've left you holding the bag on a lot of this shit over the past few weeks. I'm sorry."

I've felt it more than I've said to anyone but knowing that Boone has seen it means a lot to me. "You have, but I've understood at the same time."

"But you shouldn't have had to, and Kara told me last night she's about ready to call it off if I don't calm down. Like who am I and what's happening?"

This isn't what I want to do right now, I seem to be giving all the advice lately, but we all have that situation in this group of friends. "You're somebody who's gotten everything they've wanted and now you don't want to disappoint anyone, but you can. It's okay to do that. It's perfectly fine to do what's best for you and Kara. That's really all that should matter in the equation. I understand about your mom." I put my hand on his shoulder. "But you one hundred percent can't go on with your life worrying about how she's going to feel because she fought this battle. Her battle is never going to change, and neither is the way you feel."

He presses his lips together and makes a noise in the back of his throat. "So what you're saying is I'm going to have to figure out what makes me happy without sacrificing my mental health."

That's not what I was getting at exactly, but he's gotten it better than I was trying to explain it. "There ya go."

"Hmm."

"What?" I push a nail into the drywall. "Why are you hmmming me after I've given you good advice?"

"I think I need to give you some advice." He leans against the drywall we've just put up and crosses his arms.

"Okay then tell me all about what your advice for me would be."

He raises his eyebrows and gestures toward me. "It's all good and everything that you and Gabby have decided to give this another try, but you know what? The only place you've taken her is around the bar and all of us. I get the feeling you're scared that your mom might run into y'all. You've kept her where you're comfortable, and really how fair is that to her?"

I hate this asshole. Grinding my back teeth, I try to think of how to respond. There's really nothing else for me to say. "Fuck you, man, I hate when you're right."

"It's not just you. We've both got some truth bombs to drop. Since I've already been a shitty co-worker this week, I'm gonna go ahead and keep it going. I'm gonna go talk to my mom and why don't you set up a date with your girlfriend. Ya know, treat her like your girlfriend, not someone you can just bring around when you know you're mom isn't going to be around."

He doesn't wait for me to say anything before he leaves. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I find Gabby's name and fire off a text.

B: Wanna go on a date tonight?

G: Like at Monroe's? I'm not sure I can do a late night tonight.

It hits deep in my gut what Abel was talking about and how much of a truth bomb he set off.

B: No, like a real date. I was reminded today that we haven't done that. Wear something comfortable, and I'll pick you up tonight.

G: Okay, Barrett. I trust you. I'll see you later on tonight.

B: See you later, love you.

G: Love you, too!

Now I have to figure out exactly what I'm going to do, but I have a great idea, and I think she'll love it too. As much as I'd like to kill Abel, I might just have to thank him tomorrow.