Novella #2, Chapter 7: The Kids Are Not Alright

Emma had just loaded up her car and while part of her was eager to go home, she still wanted to hang out with her sister one last time before leaving. However, Rebecca said that she had another busy day at work, so they just said their goodbyes and left it at that. The clock in Emma's car read 9 o' clock, so she figured that she should check out and leave now since it would be a long drive back.

Greg was dead asleep in his room, which was left in total disarray. Papers were strewn all over his desk and some of his books were left open on the floor. There were a couple stray cups sitting on the night stand and an empty pizza box was sitting in the middle of the floor. Matt was laying on the floor next to Greg's bed and kicked the pizza box underneath it. He laid there awake and looked up at the ceiling, just getting lost in his own thoughts. He thought about Maya and his first encounter with her. He had just settled into his first week of being the new auto shop manager and the first customer he talked to was her. She had asked him about the tires of her first new car since they were a little low on air. The thought of that memory made Matt smile, but then he heard his brother wake up, so he got up from the floor. "Matt? What are you doing in here?" Greg stood up in his bed and rubbed his eyes.

"Well, after dinner last night, Maya and I talked in the living room some. You had fallen asleep in your food by then and I didn't want to wake you up, but she said that I should get you into bed anyways. I have to say, it wasn't easy washing your face in an upright position, so I ended up just turning on the shower head and let that do the job."

  "Oh, okay. I'm surprised I didn't feel anything." Greg's face turned red for a minute as he heard his brother speak.

"Yeah, you were out cold. But anyways, after I got you in and out of the shower, I put some boxers on you and then got you into bed. I was about to leave, but then I heard you talking in your sleep. Your were mumbling Emma's name over and over and I kind of felt bad, so I just grabbed a pillow from my room and slept here on the floor."

  "Well I appreciate you taking care of me. I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble."

"Nah, it's fine. Just try not to get food on your face again." Matt let out a small laugh after saying that.

Emma just now parked outside of Greg's house and thought about calling him before coming inside. Just as she was about to call, she noticed Matt's girlfriend parking her car right behind her. Both of them came out from inside their cars. "Hey! It's Emma, right?"
"Yeah. And your name is Maya?"
  "That's right. Are you about to head inside?"

"I guess so." Emma felt nervous. Part of her wanted to get back inside the car and not face Greg. She knew she should have told him everything that had happened these past few days, but her mind kept thinking about all of the possible negative outcomes of this situation. Before she could turn herself around, Maya took her hand and said, "Whatever it is your thinking, just know it's not likely to happen. I know Greg and he's very understanding. He loves you. Just give him a chance."

"Thank you." Emma smiled at her and they walked inside together. 

Greg, Matt, Emma and Maya were now sitting in the living room together in total silence. The girls kept looking at each other while the guys were focused on the TV watching football. After a considerable amount of time, Maya asked, "So who wants something to drink?"

Emma said she didn't want anything and the guys didn't hear her, so she walked into the kitchen to grab some water. A moment later Matt joined her and asked if something was wrong. 

"I talked to Emma outside before coming in earlier," she said in a hushed tone. "She seemed nervous so I tried reassuring her. I don't know what's going on with the two of them, but hopefully they'll work it out soon."

  This made Matt feel uneasy, so he said, "Well according to Greg, she hasn't talked to him in days. I don't even know if he acknowledged her when she came in the house with you. He's just been out of it ever since last week."

Hearing this made Maya feel sympathetic. "Oh, I didn't know that. It sounds like Emma has a lot of explaining to do then."

  "Yeah, no kidding. How about we give the kids some space here?"

"Alright." Maya gave Matt a quick kiss on the lips and then they walked over to his room. 

Once halftime rolled around, Greg turned the TV off and faced Emma with a blank stare, which made her feel uneasy. She's never seen her boyfriend look this depressed before and she knew it was her own fault. She opened and closed her mouth, not knowing what to say. Greg, however, started to feel anger rising inside of his chest as he continued to stare at her. "So? What do you have to say for yourself?" Emma had a flustered look on her face as he continued to stare at her.

"I.. I'm sorry," she said meekly.

  "That's it? You leave me with no word whatsoever for a week and that's all you have to say?"

Emma was trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to show up on her face. She felt so guilty for treating Greg like this, but she just couldn't come up with the right words to explain herself. Before she had a chance to speak, Greg interjected harshly. "I loved you, Emma! I trusted you and you left me! Do you have any idea what you put me through? I was worried sick! I thought you were dead!"
Emma stood up and started to yell back at him. "I'm sorry! Okay? I know I should have told you and I apologize for not doing so. I know I should have said something, but I was scared! I was afraid of hurting you even more. I was afraid of losing you!"

"Well I'm already hurt, Emma. You lead me to believe that you didn't care about me anymore. And you should know by now that you can trust me! All I ever wanted to do was be there for you!"

  "Well you know what, Greg? Maybe I'm just not the right girl for you. Maybe I should just leave before this fight gets any worse!! Good bye!" In that moment, Emma stormed off and slammed the door behind her while Greg stood in the middle of the living room dead silent.

Matt and Maya were busy making out with each other when they heard the front door slam shut, which made both of them sit straight up in bed. "I should see what the problem is now," Matt said as put his shirt back on. In that moment, Maya decided to get out of bed and dress herself as well. "I guess this means I'll check on Emma."

  "Well good luck," Matt said as he kissed her. "I love you."

"I love you too," Maya said with a small smile on her face.

Emma was now sitting on the front porch crying her eyes out. She felt so helpless and emotionally distraught. She didn't think that Greg would get angry at her, but she understood why he did. But out of all the things she felt right now, she knew that she had just broken her own heart. She messed things up with this one relationship and didn't know how to make things right again. After sitting there feeling miserable for five straight minutes, she got up and headed towards her car. Before she could get in, however, Maya called out for her. "Hey, wait! Hold up there."

"I feel so stupid," Emma said to Matt's girlfriend as they sat on the porch together. "I... I wish I could learn to better trust him, but I can't. I haven't been able to trust anyone for a long time. Not since I got rejected in middle school, and not since my parents' separation a few years ago. I'm such a mess. What is wrong with me?!"

  "Nothing's wrong with you. I can promise you that you're not the only one who has trust issues." Maya put an arm around Emma's shoulders in an attempt to comfort her. "I may not know what that feels like, but just know that you're not alone. We all have a past, and sometimes it takes time for us to make peace with it." Emma wiped off the rest of her tears and looked at Maya with a long face. Part of her was still hurting, and it wasn't just because of her past. It's because she finally realized that she does love Greg.

"I couldn't help but overhear some of the shouting back from of my bedroom. Are you okay?" Matt was sitting adjacent to Greg in the living room and he looked at his brother solemnly for a moment, noticing the tension in the air.

  "What do you think?" Greg asked in a serious tone. "My girlfriend left me for a week and all she could say is 'I'm sorry'. Why can I never get her to trust me? I've never done anything to hurt her!"

Matt let out a long sigh before he moved over to the couch. Once he sat down, he then turned to face his brother and said, "Can I tell you a story?"

  "I'm not in the mood for that right now."

"Well I'm going to tell you anyways, so just shut up and listen." Greg let out a gruff sigh and said, "Fine." Matt then proceeded to tell him about their parents and how they met. He said that Mom used to tell him about it as a way to get him to go to sleep as a kid (and Greg was just a baby back then). He said that Mom and Dad had met when they were teenagers and had been in love since then, but it took a while for Dad to trust her. They had similar fights like what his brother and Emma had, but over time, they learned that trust is best formed when it's not being forced. Matt said he doesn't remember the rest of the story because he was asleep by then, but that one lesson that Mom learned always stood out to him. 

  "I wish Mom could see you now, Greg. I know you miss her and Dad, and I do too, but I think they'd be very proud of who you are today," Matt said longingly. For a moment he thought about them and looked down at his feet, his forefingers touching his temples. He then sat back up and said, "And for what it's worth, I'm proud of you as well. You just have to let people trust you first."

"Thanks." Greg offered a small smile then nudged his brother in the elbow. In return Matt pulled Greg in tight for a hug and messed up his hair. Greg looked annoyed for a minute, but then he ended up laughing. "You're a dork, you know that?"

"Yup! And I'm proud of it," he said as he flashed a smile in his brother's direction.

"I should head home now," Emma said as she held open the car door. "Thanks again, Maya." Matt's girlfriend offered a smile and said, "Anytime." Emma smiled back then drove off to her home. The two girls waved to each other before she sped off.