Diving In (Open Door Love Story) Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Excuse me,” I say to Mom, hoping she just gets the hell out of my way and doesn’t challenge me. She moves. I clock out. “I’ll see you next week.”
    Gabe doesn’t say anything when I get in the van. He backs out of the space and then, for the first time since we started going on drives, takes a right out of the parking lot.
     
    ~
     
     
    Ten minutes later we’re going down the driveway into the parking garage underneath the Grove Hotel. Gabe parks the van in the space right by the elevator.
    He pretends to dust off his lapel. “Just one of the perks of being me.”
    “And well worth it.” I point my thumb at my chest.
    Gabe shakes his head slowly in an Ah Yeah manner, his upper lip curled. “Totally. I’d take a header into a shallow pond again in a heartbeat if it meant choice parking for life.”
    “So, what are we doing here?” I ask, grabbing onto the door handle. “Are we getting out?”
    He uncurls his lip and his face returns to being way too handsome. “Yes, Dork Patrol, we’re getting out.” He backs out of the driver’s seat, laughing. “I have no idea why I called you Dork Patrol, but now I’m always going to. Sorry in advance.”
    I make a whatevs face. “That’s fine. I’m going to call you Fast Food Condiment Hoarder. Nicknames shouldn’t always have to be short or applicable.”
    “Agreed.”
    We take the elevator to the roof deck and I follow Gabe to the edge overlooking the square. The streetlights are in full effect, twinkling. A lot of the buildings are already decorated for the holidays, adding to the spectacle. I jam my hands deep into my pants pockets, feeling dumb for not grabbing my coat. It’s dry, but windy out.
    “I like to come here to get away from my parents, and my parents are great, so I figured you might like to know about my secret spot to get away from your less-than-great mom.”
    I nod. “This is the part where I’m supposed to defend her and say she’s not that bad, but she really is that bad.”
    “She doesn’t want you hanging out with the likes of me, which was obvious even though I couldn’t hear what she was saying.” Gabe starts shrugging out of his coat. “Your mom wouldn’t be the first of my friend’s parents to think I’m a bad influence. It’s okay if you … need to do as she asks.” He’s got one arm free of his coat. “I’m trying to be manly and let you wear my coat, except I’m having trouble getting it off.” He chuckles and shakes his head. “Pitiful.”
    I want to tell him what really happened. I want for him to know that he didn’t make a mistake and that he’s a good person. But, then it’s all out there and it will need to be dealt with and we’re both … surviving like this. It is up to me whether the past stays in the past and I’m just not ready yet. To relive, fully, what happened. Flashes, nightmares, I’ve learned to manage those. I prepared myself for the aftermath of the trauma and I’m actually okay. And Gabe, he’s come to terms with the way he is and what he thinks he did.
    “You agree that I’m a pitiful excuse for a man?” he says in a joking voice. “Otherwise, I think you would’ve said something by now instead of staring off into space.”
    I roll my eyes at him. “I was remembering something I’d read about paraple—”
    “You found a wheelchair sex site, didn’t you?”
    I blush, because yeah, I had, but, “I’m not taking your coat because your body has trouble regulating heat, right?”
    Gabe sticks his free arm back into his coat. “Imagine a cartoon bubble above my head that says, ‘sigh’ okay?”
    “You could just sigh,” I point out.
    “You could just sit on my lap and let me put my arms around you,” he says, like it’s the simplest thing in the world.
    I look at his lap. His jeans are baggy, but I can make out the outline of his legs. They’re pretty thin compared to the rest of his body. “Are you sure I won’t hurt you?”
    “No,” he says, his eyes