Page 24 of Bones

Fuck. In this moment, I’m not so lost in my head, not so numb that I can’t feel the pain in his words. My brother is hurting, and I’ve been fucking selfish.

“You aren’t going to lose me, ever, okay? I felt lost. I didn’t know how to handle not being your… person. I know it sounds fucked,” I mutter, my jaw tightening.

“You are still my person. We shared a fucking womb, Bones. You’ll forever be my person, but I have room for Isla and Natalia too. But it doesn’t change us and who we are.”

“I know. Or at least I’m beginning to.”

He steps forward and rests his forehead on mine. “Love you, brother. Now go back to your woman. Seems like she’s helping you, since this is the first time you’ve actually spoken about this.”

“I didn’t know what to say,” I admit, pulling away and watching him get in the car.

“Still pissed that you came here instead of coming to spend time with us,” he calls out through the open window.

“Next time.”

When Doc said that Skull has been trying to include me in everything, she wasn’t wrong.

He even shared his old lady with me.

But I guess the hard pill to swallow is that it was usually him and me trying to include other people.

He’s happy, though, and that’s all that matters.

And I haven’t lost him.

He’s still here, driving two hours in the middle of nowhere to make sure that I’m okay.

And for the first time in months, I feel like I might be.

We didn’t have sex last night, but she tried to convince me to change my mind.

It was hard. Fuck, it was hard, but I went down on her a few times and left it at that. I want to drag this out with her, and I want her to want more when we get back home. I know it’s a gamble, but I said I wanted to take my time, and I meant it. She’s more than just a casual fuck to me.

We left the cabin after I made her breakfast and are now driving back the two hours to Rest Falls.

“The Great Divide” by Noah Kahan plays, the lyrics loud between us. What will she do with my soul if I give it to her?

“This is the music you like?” I ask her, and she nods.

“Yeah, he’s amazing. What do you listen to?”

“Mostly rap, but I like a bit of everything.”

“Me too. So what now? Are you dropping me off at my house?” she asks casually, glancing out the window.

“Yeah, if that’s where you want to go.”

“I called in sick for work today. I have to go to the shelter this afternoon, and then back to reality for tomorrow.”

I could be wrong, but she sounds a little sad at the prospect.

Maybe I’m just hopeful.

“How did you get involved with the shelter?”

“About a year ago, I saw a social media post asking for volunteers, so I went in and offered to help. Most of the time, I go in and help walk the dogs. There are so many of them looking for homes, you know? Sometimes I take them out to the beach for the day,” she explains, shrugging like it’s nothing. “I know it’s not much, but they get really excited to get out of the kennels. When Sadie needs a short-term foster carer, I take them home until they find their forever homes.”

She has a heart of gold.