42. Fight For Who You Love
For three weeks Dillon didn't see Libra at all. She didn't go to her classes and she didn't go to see Jack at the apartment either. Dillon was worried that Jack would reject him and move out after everything that happened, but he didn't. Instead he told Dillon to give Libra some time to cool off before approaching her again. He was happy to still have Jack to rely on as a friend but knew that he'd have a lot to prove to him as a friend â but he was willing to do the work.
Life had to go on though, despite Libra's absence in his life. Dillon stayed on top of his classes and spent some time with Austin and Jack from time to time â but mostly he kept to himself. Every night before bed he'd replay his last encounter with Libra and every time he cringed but at the same time it felt good to have finally come clean. Three weeks ago, on the night of their conversation, he'd stood in the shower and let his tears fall free but a shy smile had reached his lips too. There was something truly freeing about finally letting the truth out and not holding anything inside him anymore.
But the fear didn't stop permeating his entire body when he thought of how great the chances were that Libra would never want to see him again. It stung each time he reminded himself how long he kept this secret from her and how long he could've kept going had he not met her here. There were so many 'if's' in his life at the moment that it was hard to keep track on them all.
Dillon was snapped back to reality when he heard the buzzing sound of his phone disturb him. He glanced at it and saw another text from his mother, urging him to call them, but he rolled his eyes and ignored it. What his father had revealed to him about his true persona and intentions had left him a bad taste in his mouth â one that was going to take some time to wash out.
"Knock, knock," he heard a soft voice say as Jack quietly opened the door to Dillon's room and peeked his head in. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm not a baby Jack, I'm fine." Dillon announced and propped himself up on his elbows to wait for Jack to come inside.
"You're not a baby yet you've been locked in this room for the majority of the time since you spoke to Libra. You are acting like a child and you know it." Jack moved his feet to make room for himself on the bed.
He sat at the end of it with a mysterious look on his face. Dillon had come to learn that Jack had many tricks up his sleeve and never shied away from making him feel better. This had to be one of those times where Jack had done something to cheer him up and he had a feeling it wasn't something small.
"What have you done?" Dillon asked with a concerned tone.
"What do you mean 'what have I done?' I haven'tâ"
"I can tell that you've done something, I think I know you well enough by now, so just tell me what you've done." Dillon sighed and couldn't help but let a smile show, but only for a second.
Jack shook his head as he had probably wanted to surprise him somehow. A slight worry washed over Dillon when he realized that Jack could've spoken to Libra and convinced her to come over here. He sat up straighter and held his hand over his heart to still its rapid beatings. Could Libra be walking through that door at any moment?
"I was going to surprise you, but since you ruined it I might as well tell you," Jack said and chuckled, "your friend Charlie called your phone the other day and I answered it, you were sleeping, and I told him you were feeling a bit down,"
"You spoke to Charlie?! Why would you do that for?" Dillon said and once more tried to still his heart.
"Because you need a friend that understands you and he seemed like the guy â he is your best friend, right? Anyway; he told me he was going on a break from school so I asked him to come to Chicago to see you." Jack said with a smile.
Dillon didn't know if he should laugh or yell at Jack but in this moment he felt a mix of gratefulness and blind anger. He had told his personal business to Charlie, who probably had plenty of questions to ask him now, but he did need his friend right now. Up until three weeks ago he thought Charlie was the only one who knew of his secret.
"Charlie is here; is that what you're telling me?"
Jack nodded and got up off the bed, "He arrived 30 minutes ago. He's down in the lobby; I told him I wanted to bring you down to surprise you." Jack said.
Dillon rolled his eyes and shook his head at Jack's dramatic flair. Even though they were so different he couldn't think of anyone that made him smile this wide â except for Libra Jones. He got up off his bed and put on his black converse shoes and headed for the door, but not before turning around and giving Jack a nod.
"You're definitely fighting Charlie for that number one friend slot." Dillon said with a chuckle and left to go greet his best friend.
Down in the lobby a blonde haired guy was leaning on his luggage and as soon as Dillon saw him he smiled. Charlie looked different than to when they last saw each other: his hair was longer and he looked happier than ever. England must've done some magic on him and it almost made him jealous.
"I can't believe you're here!" Dillon said and hugged his friend.
"Your new best friend told me it was important; so I came to defend my place." Charlie laughed as they headed for the elevator.
That evening Charlie and Dillon left the apartment to go get burgers and talk things over, to figure out what Dillon should do. Jack was sleeping at Sophia's and Libra's place but wouldn't answer if Libra would be there. The hurt in Dillon's eyes had been evident when he realized Libra had most likely instructed Jack not to answer any questions about her.
Charlie on the other hand was still stunned at the revelation of Dillon and Libra's relationship. He still saw Libra Jones as the quiet girl from his high school that had incredible grades but no social skills. But Dillon's new feelings had forced Charlie to start looking at her differently.
"âshe hasn't spoken to me since I told her what I've done and now I'm afraid she never will. I fucked up hard Charlie and I don't know how to fix it." Dillon finished his long monologue.
Charlie only nodded and ate his fries in silence for a long time. This news was a lot to take in and Dillon watched tentatively as Charlie process what he just told him.
"I'm still stuck on the fact that you're dating Libra Jones; the wallflower from our high school. I'm sure Tim and Jason was equally as surprised as me when they found out." Charlie finally said and finished the last fry on his plate.
Dillon put his hands on his cheeks to hide the fact that he was blushing. If Charlie only knew how surprised he'd been at his own feelings! They had developed slowly and almost snuck up on him. He'd spent countless nights thinking of her and wondering if he'd always felt like this but denied himself to explore them because of his social status in school. In this moment he felt more determined than ever to win her back, anything not to lose the feeling of comfort and liberation that she'd given to him.
"Maybe you have lost her, man. I mean what happened that night wasn't cool and I know you're sorry about itâbut the damage might already be done." Charlie mumbled and glanced at him for a reaction.
Dillon had thought the same but hearing it from his best friend was a devastating blow. Looking into Charlie's eyes he thought about his father and decided to tell him what Jonah had revealed to him and the status of their new relationship.
"âso you see; my father is just as involved in this as I am. He made the chief protect me, Charlie; he hindered Libra from finding out the truth just as much as me."
Charlie shrugged his shoulders, "You might not like this but Jonah might have a point," Charlie started, "he's your father and his only obligation is to protect you â he did his job Dillon. Be grateful for your father's protection and that he give a shit enough to risk his job for you. You know what could happen if he got exposed." Charlie said.
Dillon was surprised at his words but allowed them to sink in. Jonah had always looked out for him and protected him but Dillon had started to wonder the things he'd done to protect him, especially at the cost of others. Back in high school Dillon hadn't thought much about anyone but himself but he wondered now if it was worth it. All the secrets that his father had to keep, for him, weren't worth it to Dillon anymore. Not when the feeling of liberation had entered him.
He snapped back to reality and thought about what Charlie had said for a moment more, "A father shouldn't encourage his kid to lie, Charlie, and you know that."
"I get that you like this girl now but once time has passed you'll get over it. Don't act like this is your first girlfriend!" Charlie leaned back and smiled.
Dillon understood that Charlie hadn't grasped how much he liked Libra. With her everything felt different in the right way. She helped him realize his past mistakes and work on himself further; he felt like a different man thanks to her. He wouldn't call his high school girlfriends anything meaningful because he would never fight for them the way he was prepared to do for Libra.
You fight for people you love, Dillon thought.
Suddenly he got out of his seat and shook his head at his friend; he'd been no help at all. His mind shot to Jack and it warmed his heart. Despite all the shit he'd done to Libra, Jack's friend, he had been willing to help him win her back because he knows how much it means to him. Charlie would always be his friend but he could tell that they were different now.
"I have to go man; I have to talk to someone who can actually help me." Dillon said frantically.
"Dude I am trying toâ"Charlie said but Dillon put his hand up.
He had heard enough out of his friend and quickly gave him the spare key for Charlie before grabbing his leather jacket and pulling his phone out of his pocket â he needed to work quickly now. Libra needed to know how much he wanted to be with her before she casted him aside.
"âI'm going to get Libra back, Charlie. It doesn't matter what you or my father says; I'm done being protected by others. I want to do what's right in life and that is to be honest with the ones you love."
And with that he left the diner and headed straight for Libra's apartment.