Jake
I watched her as Laura moved around the car, her face pale as she inspected the damage. My blood was boiling, my hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly I thought it might break. This entire mess, this whole damn situation, was her fault. She just had to scream, had to throw a tantrum like a child instead of keeping calm. And now here we were, in the middle of nowhere with a wrecked car.
She was taking her sweet time checking the damage, but I could already tell from where I was sitting that it was worse than just a few scratches. I could feel the unevenness in the car's handling when I pulled over after the crash. The front end was dented, the bumper barely hanging on. I exhaled sharply, rage curling inside my chest like a slow fire.
She finally came back around to the front, her expression caught between fear and frustration. Good. She should be scared.
I yanked open the door, stepping out of the car and slamming it shut behind me. The cold night air did nothing to cool my temper. I didn't even look at her as I circled the car, confirming what I already knew. The car was fucked. I was fucked. She was fucked as well but that wasn't my business, I wouldn't even bat an eyelid if she was the only one affected. She damn well deserved it for causing this mess.
I could feel her eyes on me, but I was too furious to deal with her right then.
"This is your fault," I growled, barely keeping my voice in check.
Laura's eyes flashed with indignation, and she crossed her arms, her posture defensive.
"My fault?" she shot back sharply to my surprise.
"You're the one who wouldn't listen to me when I told you we were going the wrong way! If you had just listened…"
"I don't want to hear it, Laura!" I snapped, cutting her off. "You screamed. You freaked out like a damn child and caused this whole mess. We could've been seriously hurt because you don't know how to control yourself." I slammed back at her.
She blinked at me, clearly shocked by my tone, but I didn't care. She needed to understand just how badly she had screwed up.
"You weren't listening to me!" she yelled, stepping closer, her eyes blazing with anger.
"I told you we were going the wrong way! But no, you were too busy being the almighty boss to actually pay attention. If you had listened to me in the first place, we wouldn't be here right now. You caused this, so don't even dare turn this on me. We are in this mess because you never listen to me! You f*cking never do!"
I clenched my jaw, feeling my temper flare even more. "I don't take orders from my assistant," I bit out, my voice low and dangerous. "Especially when she can't even do her job without screwing it up. You're lucky I don't fire you right here and now."
"You can as well fire me… sir!" She lashed at me.
"What did you say to me right now?" She
Her mouth opened, and I could see the retort forming on her lips, but she snapped it shut. I wasn't going to fire her but I know the look on her face, she was scared. She dare not answer the question. Instead, she took a step back, breathing heavily, her fists clenched by her sides.
We stood there, locked in a silent standoff, both of us seething with frustration. I could tell she was holding back, trying not to escalate things further, but I was already too far gone. The rage in me was white-hot, and I didn't care anymore if she fought back.
Finally, she broke the silence. "I'm going for a walk," she said stiffly, turning on her heel and storming off down the road.
I watched her go, my teeth grinding together. She was acting like a spoiled brat, and now she thought she could just walk away from this? Fine. Let her go. There was nowhere to go out here anyway. She'd be back soon enough and I would be here to give her another dose of hotness. Maybe she would keep running into the woods every time.
I leaned back against the car, trying to calm down, but my anger was still simmering just below the surface. Every muscle in my body was tense. She had no idea what it was like to run a business, to carry the weight of responsibility that I did every single day. I didn't have time for screw-ups like this.
Time passed, probably only ten or fifteen minutes, but it felt like hours. I kept glancing down the road, half-expecting to see her figure coming back into view. But there was nothing.
Then, suddenly, she reappeared, walking briskly back towards the car. My anger flared up again, ready to unleash, but before I could say anything, she spoke first.
"There's a cabin not far from here," she said, her voice surprisingly calm. "We can stay there for the night and figure out what to do in the morning." She let out slowly while avoiding my gaze.
I stared at her, barely believing what I was hearing. "You've got to be kidding me," I said, shaking my head. "You want me to sleep in some random cabin in the middle of nowhere?" I quizzed while she shrugged, clearly unfazed by my tone now. "It's either that or you sleep in the car, and since it's about to rain, I thought you might want a roof over your head. As for me, I'm not willing to catch a cold out here." She let out.
I opened my mouth to argue, but at that moment, thunder rumbled in the distance, and the first few drops of rain started to fall. Laura shot me a look that screamed -I told you so- but to her credit, she didn't say anything.
"Fine," I muttered through clenched teeth. "Lead the way then." I let out in a firm tone, trying not to give her the satisfaction.
Her lips quirked up in what I could only describe as a -serves you right- smile, and I had to force myself not to react. She started walking again, and I followed behind, the rain picking up as we trudged along the muddy road. The frustration was eating me alive, but there was nothing I could do about it. We were stuck.
By the time we reached the cabin, the rain had turned into a full downpour, and we were both drenched. I barely had time to register what the place looked like before Laura was pushing open the door and stepping inside.
It wasn't much, just a small, two-room cabin with a fireplace, a couple of chairs, and a bed in the rooms. But it was dry, and that was all that mattered right now. I stepped inside, shaking the water from my hair as I glanced around. The place was clearly old, probably abandoned, but it would do for the night.
Laura moved over to the fireplace, checking to see if there was any wood. I watched her for a moment, my irritation still bubbling just beneath the surface, but I couldn't deny that she had saved us from a miserable night in the car.
"Thank God there's wood here," she muttered, arranging the logs. "At least we won't freeze."
I didn't respond, just sat down in one of the chairs and watched her work. My clothes were sticking to my skin, and I could feel the cold seeping into my bones, but I refused to let any of it show. I wasn't about to give her the satisfaction.
As she knelt down to light the fire, the flames caught quickly, casting a warm glow around the room. I leaned back in my chair, watching the fire crackle, trying to push down the frustration that was still gnawing at me.
Laura stood up, brushing her hands on her pants before glancing over at me. "Well, I guess we'll just have to wait this out," she said with a shrug.
I didn't bother responding. Instead, I stared at the fire, my mind racing with a thousand thoughts. This wasn't how I had envisioned the trip going. And the fact that Laura had been right, that I hadn't listened and had gotten us into this mess, only made the whole situation worse.
She sat down across from me, and for a few minutes, neither of us spoke. The sound of the rain pounding on the roof filled the silence, and I could feel the tension between us like a live wire. I didn't know how to get past it, didn't know how to address everything that had happened without exploding again.
But for now, there was nothing to do but sit in this damn cabin and wait for the storm to pass…