Thank you SO much to everyone who has followed this story so long. I hope you enjoy the next chapter!
Chapter 4
He wasn't sure whose house he was in at the moment. As he rolled out of the bed, slipping from underneath the arms of whomever was lying next to him, he had to admit to himself that he wasn't sure even what country he was in. The last thing he remembered was a pretty blonde in a dirty bar in Paris. As he looked at his growing stubble in the bathroom mirror, he guessed he had been gone for about five days.
The pretty blonde. Now, in sober daylight, she wasn't as pretty as he remembered. Yes, she was attractive, but if he was being completely honest with himself, the real reason he left that bar with her was because, in the haze of booze and drugs, her smile reminded him of another blonde, one far more important and beautiful than this one.
That blonde, he hadn't seen in a long time. Several months ago, he had seen her from a distance. In a wedding dress. He had left before the ceremony, before ever saying a word to her. The sight was so damn painful, he thought it would split him in two.
That night, he drove down to Baja and stayed high for three weeks. None of his friends knew that he was so close. He hadn't spoken to Kelly in three years. He didn't want them to know. For him, Kelly was his last connection to his home. Once she married Brandon, she was gone. Nothing would ever be the same. There was no reason for him to ever go back.
He left the house without saying a word to anyone. He needed a shower, a sandwich, and a drink. He didn't really care what came in which order. As soon as he stepped outside, he realized that the was still in Paris. It was drizzling rain, but he decided to walk anyway. Every time he came back to Paris, he always remembered the time he came here with Kelly, all those years ago. He had been a miserable jackass and she had slapped him. The memory still made him smile.
He had never fought, laughed, or made love to another woman that compared to Kelly Taylor, not even Toni. He loved her and missed her like hell, but his connection to Toni was so different to his connection to Kelly. And it still haunted him.
Walking down a busy street, he almost hadn't heard his phone ring. He dug it out of his pocket and looked at the Caller ID. He rolled his eyes before he flipped it open and held it to his ear. "What is it, Iris?"
"Is that any way to talk to your dear mother?"
"Remind me," he said sarcastically, scratching his jaw. "When was the last time you called me?"
There was a pause on the other line. It had been five months. "When was the last time you called me?"
"Point taken, mother," he said impatiently. "How are you?"
"Your sister called and said she hasn't seen you in a month. We're worried about you."
He shook his head, forgetting that she couldn't see him. "Mom, Erica is fine. She's halfway through her third semester in London right now."
"Darling, I know that. I just talked to her yesterday. I'm not worried about her."
"I guess you're worried about me," he said, rolling his eyes. "I'm fine."
"You don't sound fine, dear," she said. "You sound tired. And it worries your sister when she hasn't talked to you. What is she supposed to tell your friends when they call her and ask her how you are?"
Now he was ready to tune her out. He started looking for a cafe to sit down and get out of the rain and get some food. "Iris," he started irritated, "I don't really care what she tells Brenda."
"Brenda? Who said anything about Brenda?"
He stopped looking at his menu. "Then who are you talking about?"
"Kelly calls Erica once a month to check up on her. She always asks about you. What is Erica supposed to say?"
Dylan's stomach twirled in a knot as soon as he heard her name. A thousand thoughts pierced his mind. He was grateful that she still checked in on his sister. He was jealous that Erica talked to her and he hadn't heard her voice in years. He was angry that she pretended to care how he was when she laid next to Brandon every night.
Anger won over. "I don't care what she tells her."
Now her anger boiled over. "Dylan McKay, you know if Kelly gets worried about you, she will book the first plane ticket to Europe to find your boney bottom!"
Dylan waived away the waiter. He had lost his appetite. Sighing, he said, "Mom, there's no way Brandon would let her fly halfway round the world to find me. Just tell Erica to tell her I'm traveling and I'll be home soon."
"You need to check in more often, darling. Brandon is old news."
His senses became instantly sharper, sharper than they had been in months. "What are you talking about?"
"Brandon and Kelly never got married. He moved to the East Coast."
His mother kept talking about he was no longer listening. The world around him blurred as well. Everything became instantly minimal to the words he had just heard. Brandon and Kelly never got married.
"Mom, I love you. I'm okay. I've got to go." She barely eked out a "I love you, too, honey!" before he hung up the phone.
This was the closest to sober he had felt in a long time. He didn't want food. He needed a cab. He had to get to the airport immediately. He cursed himself for not calling home, for not checking in sooner. All of these months he thought she was married. How could he have wasted so much time? Have been so stupid?
For the first time since Toni died, he saw a light. His oldest friend, his dearest lover was free. But he knew Kelly Taylor. She wouldn't be free for long. She was too beautiful. Too smart. Someone else would fall in love and take her if he didn't hurry.
Soulmates. Right. Her words still pierced him. He had hurt her deeply when he told her he was getting married three years ago. But he knew then and he knew now that they were soulmates. They always had been.
And more than anything, he needed to see her.
