"Uuggh!!!" Leilani lets out another exaggerated sigh, "He's driving me insane! I swear his perky butt isn't gonna save him this time!!"
Dae glanced away from Evan, who sat in his arms on the couch, to take in Leilani dramatically throwing herself back to lie on the floor. Seeing Leilani look so much more disheveled than usual Dae felt a crease in his brow return. Readying himself to finally tell her what he really thought about Anthony, he felt Evan squeeze his arm gently.
Glancing back at the redhead, Dae watched Evan shake his head. He slipped out of Dae's embrace and plopped onto the floor next to Leilani, poking her cheek gently. "What happened?"
"A week ago he was fine with this trip away," Leilani rolls over to lay on her side to look at Evan. "He was even excited...But now all of a sudden, he wants to go somewhere else and he gets fucking weird whenever I mention you and Dae coming with us--"
"Heaven forbid." Dae hissed with venom in his voice. Both Leilani and Evan shot him a look--hers laced with a little guilt while the redhead arched an eyebrow--but Dae only managed to shrug. "I'm just saying. Ant's always been weird whenever things get...gay."
Leilani let out a sigh, "Was hoping you didn't notice that."
"It...was pretty obvious." Evan shrugged and Leilani let out another sigh.
"Cool...Cool...That is great..." Leilani's phone pinged again, confusion and anger contorted her face when she glanced at the message, and she slid her phone across the carpeted floor. "I think...I might..."
Leilani closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, while the two boys shared a look. Dae plopped down onto the floor next to Evan and Leilani, "Lei? What do you mean?"
After a moment, shaky resolve filled her face, and even though she was on the verge of tears she spoke firmly. "I think it's time Ant and I break up..."
"Leilani," Evan placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "As flattered as I am by that, I don't think Dae and I want you breaking up with him just because--"
"No! I'm doing it now because he's out of control." Leilani cuts him off as she crawls over to get her phone and effectively out of Evan's grip, "The way he talks to me...Plus how he's been squeezing my wrists lately--"
"What?" Dae could feel the fury building in him, only slightly registering Evan's worried expression. But Leilani challenged his anger with one look. A look that Dae knew all too well; one crafted to shut him down immediately.
"Stop." Leilani finished typing on her phone and then placed it on Evan's coffee table. Then she leveled a gaze at Dae, "we don't need to worry about him anymore...I ended it. I'll text Marco, Ryann, and Cass later to let them know, but I don't need you to punch anyone for my honor Dae. Right now, I wanna just enjoy the long weekend, with my favorite boys."
Silence sat between the three of them, Dae trying his hardest to relax his fists before Evan cleared his throat. "Leilani...Are you...are you sure? We can take it easy if you want and-"
"Absolutely not." Vulnerability peeked through her expression. And even Dae knew if she didn't distract herself she'd mourn the relationship all weekend. "I need this. And I'm not letting Ant ruin our plans. Not anymore."
Dae let out a sigh before glancing back at Evan. Then he stood up and offered a hand to both the redhead and his best friend. Once Evan and Leilani were both on their feet, Dae gently slung his arms around Leilani's shoulders and squeezed her tightly. "Anything for you, kid."
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To Dae's surprise, no one at the party even batted an eye when he--a complete and total stranger--walked through the door.
Okay...that was a lie. There were definitely whispers but those were more in regards to him and Evan walking in with Leilani--who had already been a little busy drowning her sorrows in her mom's expensive wine.
Evan proposed hitting up a party near the lodge they were renting, apparently knowing the host from his time in the area. Dae almost felt like this would've been a look into Evan's past had Leilani not been in need of a babysitter.
As the party had begun dwindling down, Evan went to go speak to the host--no doubt apologizing for the sloppiness of Leilani walking through their front door shouting that she's single at the top of her lungs--leaving Dae and his best friend alone on the couch.
She groggily slung an arm over him and nestled her cheek against his shoulder--he could feel her leaving a little drool on his shirt. He let out a soft sigh, and she glanced up at him with a look of fear in her eyes. "I'm sorrrrrrrrrrry, Dae...I really need this. Don't hate meee..."
Dae shook his head with a soft smile. "Nothing could ever make me hate you, oh small sloppy one."
While Leilani lets out a full-bellied laugh, Evan wanders back into view. He wears a look of confusion on his face with his cell at his ear. He nods and says something to whoever's on the other end, before locking eyes with the two of them. The redhead made a ridiculous face at Leilani, causing another uproar of laughter, before turning away with the look of confusion returning.
Leilani squeezed Dae's arm drawing his attention back to her. She smiled at him with a freedom he hadn't seen for a while. "I like Evan. He's good for you."
She spoke in almost a whisper, warm affection and alcohol flushing her face. Leilani closed her eyes, and the two of them sat in comfortable silence together for a few moments, until someone cleared their throat. Dae turned to see Evan standing there holding everyone's coats.
"So..." Evan started to speak and from his tone, Dae could tell it was bad news. "I thought I'd be the responsible one--no offense, Dae--and call the lodge."
"And?" Dae asked as he slowly shook Leilani awake.
Leilani struggled to focus, glancing between the two boys, as Dae helped her into one sleeve of her jacket. "We're headed there now, right?"
Evan bit his lip for a moment before he seemed to resolve whatever was going on in his head. "No. It turns out that Ant is just spiteful enough to cancel our lodgings on us."
Leilani suddenly shot to her feet, only one arm in her jacket, and her footing uneasy. She wobbled a little but that didn't stop her. Dae stood up a second later, cautiously waiting for gravity to win. "He did WHAT?! I swear to god if I get my hands on him--"
"Not sure if that's a threat or a promise, but I'm in." A familiar rich voice interrupted Leilani.
"Listen, buddy...I'm not--" Leilani's fury settle down as she turned a little too quickly to confront who she thought was a creep, but stopped immediately when locking eyes with Nikolai.
"So I called some backup," Evan said with a smile, before sliding next to Dae. The redhead wrapped an arm around him, and Dae could feel the warmth in his cheeks. "Nik was kind enough to allow us to spend the weekend at his humble abode."
"It's a hell of a lot cheaper than any place around here," Nik laughed as he gently helped Leilani get her other arm through her sleeve. "And I promise the company's not so bad."
Leilani flushed but pulled her arm away, wobbling as she did. "I could've done that on my own."
Nikolai held up his hands in gentle surrender and an endearing smile graced his face, "I would be foolish to have ever doubted you. But it's nice to meet the elusive Leilani after all this time. I'm Nikolai."
"Don't think I've heard of you," Leilani said with a coldness that wasn't very like her.
And despite the potential of those words breaking men before him, Nik's warm laugh echoed out and Dae watched Leilani shift from defensive to calm in a matter of seconds. "You're a delight, just as Evan said."
Nik finally seemed to notice the two boys and tore his attention away from Leilani long enough to engulf Dae in a strong hug. The wood and citrus cologne he wore made the hug even more comforting. "Dae! So good to see you again; I'm excited to spend the weekend with you all!"
"Alright, alright." Evan lightly smacked Nik's lower back, "Keep hugging Dae like that, and I'm gonna get extremely jealous."
"Of him or me?" Nik laughed as he let go of Dae and walked back toward Leilani. He looked at her with a softness that seemed to wear her down. Then he offered her his arm, "I know you're cautious of me, and I don't mean to overstep, but at least allow me to escort you to the house. You can continue to stare grumpily at me after we arrive safely."
Leilani glanced back to Evan and Dae as if asking if she should. When both boys nodded and smiled, she gently took his arm. And they started their journey to Nik's house.