Wednesday morning came and it was time to go back to school. I didn't want to go out for breakfast with Vincent because it would've been awkward after the night before.
He had packed a few things and spent the night in my house. Of course I couldn't sleep in the living room with him. I winced every time I remembered the events from the night before. And I remembered it quite a lot in just that morning.
I finished early so I could microwave something from the fridge before it was time to leave. Maybe after dropping me off, he could eat somewhere.. without me.
The whole ride to school, he said nothing. It was like, he was back to the old Vincent. The really good-looking THING that worked for my dad. It was annoying but I blamed myself.
Anyway, he actually gave me the lecture about not being late. I mean, my dad was out of town! I slammed the door, but it didn't actually slam. Which was also annoying. Everything was on his side, I thought.
Walking into school, I found Shirley at her locker. She was so focused on her phone, which seemed to be in working condition by the way.
I walked as fast as I could so I didn't lose her again. Getting to her locker, I leaned hard on the one beside it to get her attention. It worked. She looked shocked, stranded.. Caught.
"Seriously?", I asked with more anger in my voice than I'd planned.
For a good minute she just stared, speechlessly, at me. I remembered Mira, and everything that went down. It wasn't much. But it hurt because I started to wonder again if she would really do that to me.
" Shirley, what the hell?", I asked, a little emotional.
I just wanted to her say something. Deny it. Even if she had to lie, I'd believe her. But she just swallowed, saying nothing.
I tried to take deep breaths in case I forgot to breathe. It felt unreal. Then I turned to walk away and she grabbed my arm.
"I'm sorry. I thought you'd hate me. You weren't supposed to know. She said she wouldn't tell you. When I found out she did, I couldn't face you. I should've returned the calls by now", she said.
I scoffed, and looked away. Then I laughed, I'm not sure why. I was probably laughing at myself.. I don't know. Then I told myself it wasn't a big deal. Turning around, I walked away.
*************************
After school, I saw Liam. He walked with me out of school and asked how I was doing. We found out Mira didn't even get a suspension, only a warning. It must be because her parents made huge contributions to the school. It sucked, losing my jacket for nothing.
As we walked, I saw Shirley. She looked remorseful, but I looked away. Maybe I was gonna forgive her, but she dragged it out too long.
Outside, Vincent was leaning on the car. He wasn't dressed officially.. Just a T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers, but he still looked good. It was annoying. Liam walked me to the car.
" You're late ", he said flatly.
Vincent and I had eye contact then I looked away. I cursed myself for being weak. Again, my father wasn't even in town. Liam must've noticed the weird energy and broke the silence.
" Liam", he said, offering a handshake.
"Vincent", Vincent replied, shaking his hand. " You're her boyfriend", he assumed, with a stern look.
My eyes grew wide at this as I turned to them. I really wanted to punch him.
"Uh...Unfortunately, No. We're just friends", Liam said with a smile.
Wow. 'Unfortunately'. I had enough and walked around them, getting into the car. They talked for a few minutes and parted, Liam to his jeep, Vincent to the driver's seat.
During the ride home, I just stared out the window. We got to the house and he got out first without a word. Then I followed.
While we were inside, he took off his sneakers but left his socks on. I watched him for a while, without saying anything. Then I went up to my room. Soon enough, I stomped back down, just raging.
" What did you do?", I asked as I walked into the living room, holding my phone.
He was on the floor again, on his laptop. He looked puzzled, looking around, as if trying to remember.
"What are you talking about?", he asked finally.
I took a deep breath to stop myself from bursting.
" What did you tell Liam?", I asked calmly
"Your boyfriend?", he asked, turning to me.
I scoffed at his remark
" He put you in danger. If he hadn't come to pick you, then I would've. Who knows, maybe the stalker followed you home from.. "
"What?", I interrupted, " It had nothing to do with Liam. Besides, I'm the one that took him there. He was going to go home..", my voice had become high-pitched.
"You shouldn't have threatened him like that. He's blowing up my phone apologizing when it was my idea", I said
" Your idea or not. He should've been more responsible. Had better judgement. Anything could've happened ", he retorted.
I scoffed again. I couldn't believe him. Was he even listening to himself.
" And by responsible, you mean, make my decisions for me?", I asked calmly
He turned to me, then away. Getting off the floor, he walked over to me. But before he could say anything I put up a hand to stop him.
"I am not a child. It was my decision. You had no right to do what you did. I am not your responsibility. I am my responsibility. ", I spoke with articulation, hoping it'd be clear to him.
" Yeah, and you are so responsible aren't you?", he retorted as I turned to walk away, stopping me in my tracks.
I was really mad. Maybe I was mad because of Shirley. Or that he may have cost me the only friend I had left. Or that he was out of line. I really wanted to just walk up to my room. But after a few steps, I turned around, walking back to him.
"No, you don't get to do that", I said.
" Do what?", he asked.
"Be mad", I replied. "Alright? I'm the one that was rejected last night, humiliated. So just stop, and let's be mature about this", I said.
" This isn't about that ", he retorted
" Really?.. Well then, I'll make the shitty decisions, damn the consequences... But it's not your place to be mad....or go around threatening my friends", I paused. "You're just my dad's driver, nothing more", I said finally, then walked out.
LAST NIGHT
VINCENT'S POV
" Although", she said, and I felt her hand on the back of my head as she moved closer, then kissed me.
The kiss only lasted a few seconds, but it felt like a few minutes. In that moment I thought about whether I should kiss her back, even though I knew I shouldn't.
While I was deciding, she broke the kiss. Impulsively, I put my arm around her waist, pulling her in for another kiss, taking the lead. It lasted a bit longer.
When we broke the kiss, we took deep breaths. Then we just stared at each other, each one of us waiting for the other to speak first.
"Vincent.. I..", she started, but got interrupted
" Why did you do that?", I asked, almost sternly.
The question seemed unexpected. She opened her mouth but no words came out. I noticed how anxious I made her.
"Don't ever think anything can happen. You're my boss's daughter, and certainly immature for my type"
"I'm sorry about that", she said looking down. She looked so flushed.
"I'm going to get my things, and we're going to your house. I shouldn't be long", I said, walking into the room, surprised at how I handled it.
And after that, we didn't talk about it. We were going to act like nothing happened. Or at least I planned to. Because nothing CAN happen. She'd just end up hurt.
***********************
MONICA'S POV
I sat in bed, just sulking. I was really angry. And I blamed it on Vincent threatening Liam, but I knew that wasn't it.
My phone vibrated a few times. Shirley tried calling a few times, then she sent many texts. I decided to just take a walk, clear my head. I left my phone in the room.
Vincent was still on his laptop. Without saying a word, I made for the door.
" Where you going? ", I heard him ask
" For a walk", I said without stopping to look at him.
"I'll take you", he said from behind me.
I didn't reply him and kept walking. I heard him run after me.
" Hey", he called out.
Then I didn't hear him anymore. Soon, the car pulled up beside me.
"It's called taking a walk for a reason", I said without stopping to look.
" Get in, I'll take you somewhere where you can take a walk", he said
"I'm good, I won't go far", I insisted.
" Monica get in. You know I'll keep insisting ", he said.
I sighed. He was right. He was going to keep following me and talking to me, which I didn't need. I needed to be alone so I could clear my head. So I got into the car.
We pulled up in front of the old play ground. It was a wide field. A few couples and families were spending time there; a few singles too. Vincent stayed in the car.
I started to walk. The fresh air was nice. There was a little wind too. It felt good in my hair. Finally coming to a stop, I sat on the grass. Closing my eyes, I tried meditation; letting go.
" Monica", I heard a familiar voice call after a few minutes.
Opening my eyes, I sighed in frustration. I blamed Vincent. He just had to insist. I thought about getting up and just walking away. But I decided to talk to her.
I knew I was being an idiot. She could lie and i'd believe her. But I wanted to yell at her for doing what she did to me.
I didn't care about what Mira and her little pets did. But she asked them to, and then ghosted me.. Just like that. Without a warning. I was going to make her tell me why.
Calmy, I asked, "What do you want Shirley?"
She sat on the grass with me. We sat quietly for a while.
"I'm sorry", she said
I didn't reply.
" I didn't know she would tell you. She wasn't supposed to", said Shirley.
I laughed.
"So you're sorry she told me?", I asked
" Yes. I would've never.."
"What the the hell Shirley!", I snapped " So you just wanna apologize because I found out it was you?"
"No I... I'm not even sure why I told her. It was hard, I had to stay away because I couldn't face you"
"Then why are you here now?"
"Because.. I finally found the courage", her voice was raised. " Monica, I'm sorry but it's not my fault. I tried to kill it"
I was confused by her statement.
"Kill what?"
"My feelings for you. Mira found out, somehow. But she wasn't sure. I wasn't even sure. But we talked about it. She said, it's probably the reason why my relationships never worked in the past", she was crying now.
" Shirley.. "
"I thought about it. It made sense. I'm gay Monica. Or I might be..... And, I confided in her that I might have feelings for you. But she promised not to say anything. I was going to tell you. But then I saw you and Liam recently and.. I decided it was just going to make things awkward"
I just shook my head, my mouth open. My heart was broken.
"So... I was going to act normal. But I got your text saying Mira told you something and that you needed to speak to me. And I panicked. Since then, I didn't have the courage till now"
"Shirley.."
"I know you're straight Monica. I've seen you and Liam. There was no reason to tell you. But it was really hard not to", she said finally.
I didn't realise how alone she was. I felt bad about the way I thought about it. I knew she didn't need me to say anything. She just needed a hug.
I walked her to her car after. I said goodbye, promising to call later. After she drove off, I walked to my car. Vincent was still inside.I got in and he drove.
Somewhere along the way, Keiron suddenly appeared from nowhere. I screamed, and Vincent maneuvered the car so we didn't run into him. It was a close call, we almost ran into a tree.
Vincent seemed angry as he got out and slammed the door. Keiron had that glow in his eyes. I thought Vincent was not crazy, but mad to have gotten out of the car. We were supposed to be driving away, probably to a police station.
Then Keiron started to laugh; hard. He even bent over and rested on his knee, trying to catch his breath from laughing hard. It was bizarre.
"Don't tell me you're still mad about the beating I gave you. Your face right now is priceless", Keiron said.
" What do you want?", Vincent asked, being the straight-to-the-point guy he'd always been.
"Come on, we haven't seen each other in a while. Can't spare any pleasantries?", Keiron asked.
All I thought about was how I was going to die. Vincent knew him. They were probably in it together. I should've been nicer to Vincent.
" Darion, come on now, is that any way to treat your brother?", Keiron said, with a smirk.
Darion? Who? i thought, Keiron must just be a mad man or drug user... There was no one else but Vincent and I around.
"Tell me what you want Keiron", Vincent asked.
"Make me", said Keiron. The deadly smirk appeared on his face again. His eyes glowed.
Vincent was angry, but he seemed to be pulling himself back.
" You really want to do this right now?"_ he asked Keiron
"Are you still the scary coward I remember? I guess she's better without you", Keiron retorted.
Vincent got very angry. He walked towards Keiron who had the annoying smirk on his face.
" What did you say?", Vincent asked as he moved closer.
"You.. Heard.. Me", replied Keiron.
Then I heard a growl. It was deep and scary. I looked around, for any wild animal. Vincent charged at Keiron. His speed was.. Unnatural.
Keiron jumped, dodging him and then he growled too, literally. He then charged at Vincent. They were both growling like beasts. I got out of the car.
Keiron pinned Vincent to the ground and struck him. Vincent snarled, and kicked Keiron away. He rolled, and finally stopped himself. He was in a deep squat position, with his fists on the ground.
They had become hairier than normal. Their eyes glowed. Their knees, slightly bent, as they were resting on the balls of their feet. They moved almost like apes, on all fours, circling each other.
Then they stopped, ready to charge. In that moment, I called out to Vincent. He turned to me, and while he was distracted, keiron pounced on him and struck him again.
Vincent broke free. He moved back, standing erect . But he still growled.
" get in the car", he ordered, without looking at me behind him.
"Vincent", I breathed.
" Now!", he growled, turning to me. His eyes were aglow. His face, it was different.
I rushed into the car and got in.
Keiron just stared, standing erect too. He looked normal. Again, bizarre. But he wasn't smiling anymore.
Vincent got into the car and started it without a word. i was focused on remembering to breathe. I was so scared.
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Keiron pronounced Kai-rin
Darion, pronounced Dah-rien
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