34 Pieces of You Read Online Free PDF

like, ten. She was, like, really, really trashed, and she wanted to get high.” He shakes his head, sighs. “She was a fucking train wreck. When she finally did talk about it, it didn’t make much sense.”
    “Well, make it make as much sense as you can.” It’s a lot to ask. When Ellie crossed the line of not exactly there , interpreting what she thought or felt was nearly impossible.
    “Well . . . I’m not trying to be creepers, but did you ever notice that Ellie could be weird with her stepdad?” Tommy asks.
    “Like how?” My voice is casual, but inside, my stomach twists into a knot.
    “Well, like . . . um . . . you know . . . kind of flirty.”
    “Yeah,” I say slowly. I had witnessed this before, but I’d told myself it was because she was drunk. That she was just being Ellie, pushing the boundaries as far as she could.
    “I guess he finally freaked out on her, said she was trying to ruin his marriage and maybe it’d be better for everyone if she went to live with her dad.”
    “Wait . . . what?” I sit up, holding the blanket to my chest.
    “I know.” He slides up the bed frame, stretching out his long legs. He looks out the window, like he’s thinking about things. I follow his gaze. When I look back at him, he’s biting his thumbnail—really ripping into it.
    “Stop!” I pull his hand from his mouth. The skin is raw. He looks at me. His eyes are watery. “Hey.” I move closer. I hold his hand in my hand. “What’s going on?”
    “You don’t know, then?” He glances around the room like he’s taking in everything: the mashed-up sheets, his rumpled shirt in the corner, and our pants, which are unbuttoned but still on.
    I hesitate, unsure. . . . Finally, though, I say, “Know what?”
    “I wondered but I didn’t know . . . I thought . . . I thought maybe she told you but you decided to let it, you know, go . . . because of everything that happened.”
    “I have no clue what you’re talking about.” And I don’t, but I can tell that whatever he’s leading up to isn’t good.
    “Oh.” Tommy presses my hands to his bare chest, but I resist. I put them back in my lap.
    “Hey, come here.”
    “What should I know, Tommy?” I ask firmly.
    He starts biting his nail again. This time his skin tears open and starts to bleed.
    “Crap, Tommy.” I grab a box of Kleenex from my dresser and hand it to him. He wraps the thin sheet around his thumb, the blood like a shadow pushing through.
    “That night,” he says, “we got really drunk—”
    “You already said that—”
    “Just give a me a sec, okay, Sarah? Just . . .” He starts pacing the room, working on his other thumb. I watch, trying to figure it out, and then it’s done. I know. And inside, that ball of anxiety that’s been building in my belly becomes this shaky thing that bounces around. He stares at me, the tears cresting.
    “You slept with her,” I say slowly. “Right?” My voice rises. “That’s it. Right?”
    Again, he nods. “I thought that fight we had . . . It was so bad, and you said you were done with me—”
    “Yeah? I’ve said that like a thousand times—”
    “Sarah, c’mon ! You said this time was different. You said you couldn’t stand to look at me anymore! Don’t say that’s not true,” he pleads. He sits down, grips my shoulders.
    I push him away. The last thing I want is any part of him touching me. “We are done.”
    “Sarah, you’ve never wanted me to be your boyfriend. . . .” His torn-up hand circles my biceps, but I continue to resist. He squeezes my arm, says, “Stop, just listen to me—”
    “Let me go.” I dig my nails into his wrist, pushing so hard I’m convinced I’ll break skin here, too.
    “God!” He stands, looking at the half-moon imprints. “Don’t be like this. We weren’t hooking up anymore. I thought . . .  Sarah , don’t act like you don’t have things you don’t tell me! We all have secrets.”
    I slide back