Free A Long Time Coming by Heather Van Fleet

got the prosthetic, that things would
be…well—”
    “Better?” Abigail sighed. Her
insides churned at the lie she was keeping. She squeezed Harley’s shoulder,
hoping she was sending her reassurance through touch, even though she wasn’t
sure if it’d help. Harley’s guilt over her brother’s accident would never
waver, she knew that, but she’d come so far with her issues, that telling the
girl how bad her brother had looked would only break her down again. It was
Abigail’s job to protect the ones she loved, and she would always and forever
protect Harley, even if it meant keeping secrets. “David will never be better
again, Harley. But he will get by. He’s tough. You know that as much as
I do.” Abigail shrugged, needing to move on from the subject. This lying
business was going to brutally murder her stomach soon if she wasn’t careful.
Sure, Harley deserved to know the truth, but it wasn’t her secret to share, nor
was it her issue to reveal.
    They continued on their way,
weaving through the parked cars on the street as they headed towards the
restaurant. Mason sat on a bench right by the front door of the tiny little
diner, just like he’d promised. His smile was bright like always, and his gaze
was focused fully on Harley, like she was the only thing he ever saw. Abigail
knew more than anybody, how true that sentiment was.
    He stood, gleaming from ear to
ear, moving at the speed of a superhero to reach them. Abigail fought another
eye roll. God though, how pathetic could this guy be? It’s like he hadn’t seen
Harley in years, rather than minutes. Abigail wanted to snarl in disgust, but
get all giddy at the same time for the two of them. Her emotions were all over
the place. She was a living and breathing messed up pile of hormones.
    He waved them over, and Harley
literally ran the rest of the way to see him. Arms and hugs, and more kissing,
it was blissfully…disgusting. Abigail shook her head, fighting a smile anyways,
“God, don’t you two ever get tired of kissing like that? How are your lips not
broken by now?” Mason turned to face her, winking again ,but no
words left his smiling mouth . Oh he was a shit–eating bastard and
Abigail clutched her bag just to fight the urge to deck his ornery grin. She’d
always had a soft spot for him though, because underneath all his wickedness,
was an emotional guy who loved harder than any person she’d ever known. She
couldn’t blame him for that, especially since he directed that love towards her
best friend.
    “Oh, Abs, you just wait until
it happens to you.” Harley giggled, as they wrapped their arms around each
other’s waists, losing focus on the world once more as they pressed their lips
together for another brief, agonizing moment.
    “Um, no, if I ever get all
giddy and swoony like you two, then kick my ass, seriously,” really though,
just the thought of kissing David and simply holding his hand in a public place
for the world to watch as they declared their love with PDA, was exactly what she wanted. She was all tough and crap on the outside, but she was
secretly a girl who longed to be romanced the hell off her feet.
    Harley smiled sadly, nodding,
as if she could read her thoughts. Abigail looked away, red in the cheeks as
she waltzed into the quaint little diner that boasted about their fantastic
pancakes right there on the door. But the moment the booths appeared, the
moment the scent of eggs and hash browns and bacon assaulted her nose, her
stomach soured to that of curdled milk. She was so going to hurl. Hell, it was
a wonder she was still standing as it was. She covered her mouth, her body
racing towards the bathroom door only seconds later. And it definitely wasn’t
just to empty her bladder this time.
    Damn it all to hell…
    She hovered over the toilet,
sweat pouring down her temples and onto her neck, soaking her tank top to an
icy cold temperature. She shivered, squeezing her eyelids shut as she retched
into the toilet.