Chapter 108 TYLER
I hated to admit it, but winter break wasn't exactly going the way I'd imagined.
Between everything that had already happened and the disaster with my friends, the last thing I wanted was more time alone with my thoughts. Still, that was exactly how I ended up spending most of the remaining days.
Studying became my routine.
At first it had been a distraction.
Now it had become a routine.
Without Megan, without the usual group chats lighting up my phone, and without Tyler showing up randomly to drag me out of the room, there wasn’t much else to do. Studying was easier than thinking about everything that had gone wrong.
I told myself I was getting ahead before the semester started again.
The truth was that it kept my mind occupied.
If I stopped long enough to think, my chest started hurting again.
So I kept studying.
By the second-to-last day of the break I had finished reviewing most of the material for two classes and had started making color-coded notes for the next set of lectures. The thought of the weekend ending—and school starting again—made my chest tighten in a way that no amount of studying could fix.
I was halfway through highlighting a page in my economics book when I heard a voice drifting down the hallway.
A woman’s voice.
I frowned and paused, my highlighter hovering over the page.
My dad usually worked late during the week. It was barely noon, which meant he should still be at the office.
The voice came again, clearer this time, followed by the sound of cabinets opening in the kitchen.
Curiosity slowly pushed me out of my chair.
I stepped into the hallway and walked toward the kitchen. When I reached the doorway I stopped.
A woman stood by the counter with her back partly turned toward me. She was tall with dark hair pulled into a loose ponytail, and she was pouring coffee into a mug like she belonged there.
She turned when she noticed me.
“Oh,” she said with a friendly smile. “You must be Harper.”
I blinked in surprise.
“Yeah.”
Her smile widened slightly as she set the coffee pot down.
“I’m Claire.”
She said it casually, like that was supposed to explain everything.
I waited for it to.
It didn’t.
“I work with your dad,” she added after a second, reading my confusion. “He told me you were staying with him for a bit.”
“Oh.”
That made sense.
At least it seemed to.
My dad had coworkers over sometimes for work related things. Maybe they had a meeting or something planned and he had stepped out for a minute.
Claire leaned against the counter and took a sip of her coffee.
“So how are you holding up?” she asked gently.
The question caught me off guard.
“I’m okay,” I said automatically.
She studied me for a moment like she wasn’t sure she believed that.
“Well,” she said after a second, “your dad worries about you a lot.”
That sounded like him.
“He doesn’t have to,” I muttered.
Claire smiled again, softer this time.
“That’s kind of a parent’s job.”
Before I could respond, the front door opened.
Footsteps crossed the living room.
A second later my dad appeared in the kitchen doorway.
“Sorry about that,” he said as he walked in. “The delivery guy couldn’t find the—”
He stopped mid sentence when he noticed me standing there.
For a brief second nobody moved.
Then Claire walked over to him.
“Hey,” she said warmly.
Before I had time to process what was happening, she leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.
“Good morning, baby.”
My dad froze.
My mouth fell open.
The room went completely silent.
Claire slowly pulled back and looked between us.
Her smile faded when she noticed the stunned expression on my face.
“Oh,” she said softly. “Ethan… you haven’t told her?”
My eyes snapped to my dad.
“Told me what?”
He looked like someone had just dropped him into the middle of a minefield.
“Harper,” he started carefully.
Claire cleared her throat.
“I can give you two a minute,” she said quickly.
My dad nodded. “That might be best.”
She set her coffee mug down and walked out of the kitchen, glancing at me with an apologetic look before disappearing into the living room.
The second she was gone I turned back to my dad.
“What was that?”
He ran a hand over the back of his neck.
“It’s not what it looked like.”
I stared at him.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Harper…”
“No,” I said sharply. “You don’t get to say my name like that and pretend this isn’t exactly what it looked like.”
He sighed heavily.
“Claire and I have been seeing each other.”
The words felt like a punch to the chest.
“Seeing each other?” I repeated.
“It’s not serious yet.”
I laughed bitterly.
“Oh, that makes it so much better.”
“Harper, listen to me.”
“No,” I snapped. “You listen to me.”
The anger that had been building in my chest for so long suddenly surged forward.
“You keep talking like you and Mom still care about each other,” I said. “Like you wanted things to work out.”
“That’s true.”
“Then why are you the first one moving on?”
He looked frustrated now.
“Because your mother and I are not in the same place anymore.”
“That’s a convenient excuse.”
“It’s not an excuse,” he insisted. “She wants something different from her life right now. I can’t sit around waiting forever for her to decide if she wants to come back.”
My vision blurred with tears.
“But you have me,” I said quietly.
His expression softened immediately.
“You’re my daughter. That’s not going to change.”
“Then couldn’t you have tried a little harder?” I asked, my voice shaking. “Knowing that we have a family. Knowing that I’m part of it.”
“Harper…”
“I feel like you’re the reason everything fell apart,” I whispered.
The words hung heavily between us.
For a moment he didn’t say anything.
Then he reached for me.
“Sweetheart, that’s not fair.”
I stepped back before he could touch me.
“I can’t do this right now.”
I turned and walked out of the kitchen before he could stop me.
Claire stood near the couch in the living room, looking uncomfortable.
“Harper,” she said gently. “Maybe we should talk.”
I ignored her.
I grabbed my jacket from the couch and shoved my arms into the sleeves.
“Harper, wait,” my dad called from the kitchen.
I didn’t stop.
Claire followed me toward the door.
“Hey,” she said softly. “I didn’t mean for you to find out like that.”
I pulled the door open.
“Congratulations,” I muttered. “You did.”
Then I stepped outside and slammed the door behind me.
The cold air hit my face like a shock.
I walked without really thinking about where I was going.
My chest burned with anger and frustration.
Every time I tried to get my life back on track, something happens.
Every time things start to feel a little better, something comes along and stabs me right in the chest again.
I walked for nearly twenty minutes before I finally slowed down. It wasn’t until I looked up that I realized where I had ended up. Miller Bar.
I blinked in surprise.
I hadn’t even realized my dad’s apartment was this close to it.
A memory flashed through my mind: Tyler laughing as we slipped inside after skipping classes with half our classmates.
I hesitated for a moment before pushing the door open.
The bar was quiet.
It was still morning, so only a few people sat scattered around the room.
I walked toward the counter slowly, scanning the room.
Part of me knew it was stupid. But another part of me hoped I might see someone familiar. Even if they might not really want to talk to me.
Then I saw him.
A guy sitting near the end of the bar with messy blonde hair and broad shoulders.
My heart jumped.
Tyler.
Relief rushed through me so suddenly that I almost laughed.
I took a step toward him.
Maybe saying hello wouldn’t hurt.
Maybe we could just talk for a minute.
Before I could move any closer, a girl walked up behind him.
She leaned down and kissed him.
My stomach dropped.
The world tilted slightly.
Then the guy turned his head and I got a clear look at his face.
It wasn’t Tyler.
Just some random guy who happened to look like him from a distance.
The tension drained from my body all at once.
I let out a quiet breath and turned around, heading back toward the door.
Stepping out, the chill didn’t hit me as sharply as before, but a different thought crept into my mind. One that made my chest tighten again.
I wouldn’t be able to watch Tyler move on.
Not the way my dad was already moving on from my mom.
Mark had already broken up with me.
Pushing Tyler away suddenly felt stupid.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and opened his contact.
My finger hovered over the call button for a se
cond before I pressed it.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
He didn’t answer.
I lowered the phone slightly, debating whether I should call again.
Just as I lifted it back up, a notification popped onto the screen.
A new message.
From Mark.
My stomach twisted as I opened it:
‘Can we meet?’