Driving Me Mad Read Online Free

time I talk
to her. I tell her the truth mostly.” She pauses to take a bite of
food, which makes me happy considering the weight she’s lost. “If
we’re supposed to be completely honest with each other, how come
you’ve been holding back on me?” Her eyes widen a bit. “Or am I
overstepping by wanting to talk to you so often?” She drops her
gaze down to her plate. “I don’t want to bother you, so I can stop
texting and calling so much if you want. I didn’t mean to—”
    “Britt.” Her gaze snaps to
mine, those brown eyes boring into me. I can’t quite make out the
way she’s looking at me. It’s a bit bothersome, considering I’ve
always been able to read her so easily. Maybe it’s because I said
it a bit too loud in order to gain her attention. “I’m sorry.”
    The corners of her mouth fall
in a frown as her brows pinch together. “For what?”
    “For holding back. You
haven’t been doing anything wrong, or anything I haven’t wanted you
to do.” I want her to talk to me as often as she wants. We discuss
more than what’s wrong with us and I enjoy it probably more than I
should. Obviously, considering I felt like whatever it is we are is
something important enough to mention during my job interview so I
wouldn’t break any employee/student policies in the future.
    She smiles, but it’s not
completely genuine. “Then it’s officially a two-way street with us
now?”
    “Yeah,” I say, despite the
fact that it’s going to be a difficult task for me. My job is to
listen to people, help them through their problems, and help carry
the weight of the burden. It’s not for me to unleash my problems
onto them. It’s different with Brittany, I know, but the things I
do for my job have transferred over into my life. I’d rather listen
than talk. I’d rather be helpful than complain. It’s why I’m about
to shift the conversation again. “Can I ask you something without
you getting defensive?”
    Her eyes narrow
automatically. “Sure,” she answers with caution.
    “Have you been taking your
meds like you should? You aren’t skipping doses or going cold
turkey?” She always hated taking medication, but she did it anyway
because it helped. Every now and then, though, she’d either stop or
skip doses because she was tired of taking them.
    Brittany sighs, but she nods.
“It’s been hard for me, but I’ve been diligent about it. I’ve only
missed one dose since I’ve been in college.”
    “Good.”
    “Okay, let’s talk about
something else. How are you enjoying it here so far? Is counseling
college students better or worse than your old job?”
    I’m all for taking a step
away from our issues for a while. “Yeah, I like the town and my new
position. It’s different, but in a way, it’s the same too. I
haven’t had much interaction with students yet because I’m still
settling in, so I’m excited about that.”
    “How did you choose this as
your career anyway?”
    “I chose it by accident while
being stubborn,” I laugh. “I was in college, lost and not doing so
well up here,” I tap my temple, “and I didn’t want to get help. I
didn’t want anyone to know what I was going through. I figured if I
could learn everything a professional knew, then I could help
myself. I really enjoyed the classes. I couldn’t help myself, as it
turned out, but I could help others.”
    Brittany laughs. “So because
you didn’t want to accept help, you got a degree that allows you to
be the very person you didn’t want help from? That’s funny.” She
chuckles for a moment longer before asking, “Was it hard to leave
and come here?”
    I shake my head. “I wasn’t
leaving anything behind.” And I wasn’t. My family lives in Texas,
so I was only leaving an ex-wife. This move was just what I needed,
even if it’s been hard as hell so far. Brittany lifts her hand to
her mouth to cover a yawn. “Am I boring you?” I laugh.
    She giggles and shakes her
head. “No. It’s been a long