Holding Onto You (Never Letting Go) Read Free Page A

hand out and we shook hands. “Anytime, son. Now just be careful, ya hear?”
    “Understood, sir. How much do I owe you?” I started going for my wallet but he stopped me.
    “No worries, Adam. Consider this your graduation gift.” He patted my shoulder and walked back into the house.
    I turned around and gave the house one last look. Tomorrow I would be on a plane to Boston.

Chapter 2
Four years later
     
    “Adam, seriously, we need to get our own place. I’m so tired of living with your brother!”
    Her whiney voice i s irritating me but damn she looks hot tonight in her tight, white sleeveless dress. We’re at dinner waiting for our food and my girlfriend keeps complaining about everything.
    “We’ve been together for over two years. Don’t you want to start a life with me?”
    No. I want a life with Sophia.
    I look at her and tr y to remember why I’m still with her. “Kennedy,” I rub my face. “Why do you keep saying the same shit over again? We’re not moving out. I don’t want to get a house with you. You’re being a brat.”
    She’s sitting in front of me with wide eyes and her mouth drops open. I usually never yell at her and go with the flow but tonight she’s being incredibly annoying and needy. She looks away and crosses her arms across her chest. I take a sip of my beer and lean back in my chair.
    We s it there in silence while she plays with her glass of wine, not looking at me. I struggle to say something, anything to clear the tension in the air but no words came out.
    “Adam, what ar e we doing?” She softly whispers. “You still haven’t even told me you love me, do you know that?”
    I sigh, she ’s right. I can’t love her because my heart is still with my pretty girl. “Kennedy, love is a big step. I don’t know what you want me to say.”
    She stares at me with her big dark eyes. There’s sadness and I know she’s ready to break down. “Never mind, just forget it.”
    Before I c an say anything, our food comes. She orders the salmon with grilled asparagus and wild rice and I order a mushroom risotto with grilled chicken topped with grilled vegetables. We eat in silence, something that’s been common for the past few months.
    “I’m going out tonight with the girls.”
    “Alright.”
    She drop s her fork and spoon on her plate. “Do you even care that I’m going out?”
    I ta ke another drink of my beer and glare at her. Personally, I don’t care what she does. She’s just someone I’m with, something that makes things a little easier for me. “Go have fun tonight with the girls. I have some things to look over tonight anyways.”
    “Whatever, Adam.”
    “Will you stop being a fucking brat? Seriously, Kennedy. What’s your deal”? She stays quiet and continues to look at her food. I grab my beer bottle again and finish the drink. “I put up with a lot of your crap but this is too much. You complain about everything I do and everything I don’t do.”
    She play s around with her food some more. “I want to feel like I have a boyfriend, Adam. Is that so hard? I haven’t even met your parents. You won’t let me in.”
    I c an’t let her in because I don’t know how to. Sophia haunts my memories and everything about her lingers in my mind. She’s in my dreams and in my thoughts. As the years progress, my feelings for her grow. I resent myself and feel alone. “I can’t.”
    “What do you mean you can’t?”
    “I’m damaged Kennedy. I don’t know how to love.”
    She’s across from me and doesn’t say anything else. The rest of the night is quiet as we finish eating our dinner.
    I came to a stop and tried to catch my breath. I placed my hands on my head and closed my eyes. I thought about last night with Kennedy and tried to figure out what the best thing was to do. I saw the answer dangling in front of me and it hypnotized me but I couldn’t do it. I proceeded to tell myself this was the right thing to do; to stay with Kennedy and have her leave