Dom nodded. Maybe he felt better having backup if Brandon was still in the area, waiting for us to leave the pub and continue his tirade against us.
The happy, laid-back mood from earlier was gone. Try as they might, the conversation seemed stilted. Alexis’s chair was right next to Zain’s. They were so close that I wondered if she’d been leaning up against him when Brandon and I first came in, but she wasn’t paying attention to him now. It was a small thing in the scheme of the disaster this night had become, but it still made me want to cry. This was supposed to be a joyful, celebratory evening to kick off the season. This wasn't how the day was supposed to go.
Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Whentherewereonlythe dregs of drinks left, Kendra said, “Do you want to come with us? You can crash on the couch for the night.”
I shook my head. “I just want to go home. Thanks though.” I pulled out my phone and hit my ride sharing app.
“You wouldn't be imposing,” Kendra said.
Alexis nodded fervently before asking, “He didn’t have a key to your place, did he?”
“I know I wouldn't be and no, he didn't.” They exchanged a look, but I didn’t want to have my decision questioned again. “I’ll be fine. If I change my mind and need to talk, I’ll text you guys.”
That appeased them a bit, but they still looked like they wanted to protest. I ignored the way they were trying to communicate with each other without saying a word and looked at my phone. I was looking at the details of the car being sent for me when I heard Dom. He was whispering and seemed to be under the impression that I couldn’t hear. “I’ll go with her. I’ll head home from there.”
“Are you sure?” Alexis whispered back. She had finally managed to get her volume under control.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” he replied. “I think she needs somebody around for a bit, even if she won’t admit it.”
I glanced up. Dom, Alexis, and Kendra were huddled together and whispering. None of them seemed to realize that I was watching now. Kendra narrowed her dark eyes and said, “You’re not going to do anything ridiculous–”
Dom snorted and gestured to his face. “Are you fucking kidding me? We just said that we don’t have that kind of relationship. And I just got punched in the face. And she just dumped her boyfriend. Not to mention that even if we did have that mindset, it could fuck up our skating relationship. God knows we saw it enough among other pairs when we were teenagers.” His firm tone didn't invite further questioning. His comment about our partnership was something I’d long known. If we had ever gotten together and then broken up, things would have been weird in our partnership. But the way he was so eager to stress that he would never consider something more was a blow to my already battered self-esteem.
I cleared my throat, causing all three to turn in my direction. Varying degrees of guilt crossed their faces when they realized that not only had I heard them. “I’m going to go outside. The car’s only a couple of minutes away.” I flashed them the screen of my phone so they would know I wasn’t just trying to get away from them. “Even if you guys don’t believe me, I think I’ll feel better at home. And since you all think I need to have somebody with me, someone can come and make sure I get home safely.” I made sure my tone made it clear that I thought this was unnecessary, but I would concede if it made them feel better.
“Who do you want to come with you?” Dom asked. He slid on his jacket as he spoke. “I won’t be offended if you say you’d rather have one of your friends with you.”
I looked at the mark on his cheek. “You’re my friend, too. They can head home and you can come with me. I can’t really say no after you took a punch because of me.” I had always felt safe around Dom. He had never made a move on me in all the years we’d worked together. I didn’t care if anyone else was worried, I wasn’t.
We exited the pub together as a group of seven. Dom’s friends went off toward the restaurant to get back to Zain’s truck so he could drive the others home. Kendra and Alexis each gave me hugs and made me promise to text if I needed them before going off in the other direction to the nearest bus stop. When they were all gone, Dom and I stood side by side and waited for the car in silence.
The ride back to my place went quickly. The driver realized almost immediately that I had no interest in talking, so he turned the radio up. I appreciated the quiet. It gave me a chance to think, hardly paying attention to the buildings and people we zoomed by. Occasionally I looked over at Dom, whose face was lit up by his phone screen. He was texting someone, but I didn’t ask who.
The front of my building was well lit between the streetlights and the outside lights, even though it was late. Dom followed me as I walked over to the entrance and entered the vestibule at the front. I unlocked the front door to the building and Dom quickly pulled it open further, placing his hand above my head to hold it. “I’ve got it,” he said.
We rode up to my floor. The hallway was empty, but I could hear the muffled voices of some of my neighbours in their apartments. Dom kept his distance, staying a few feet behind me as I unlocked my front door. I flicked on the lights and kicked off my shoes before finally speaking. “Thanks for coming with me. But as you can see, I’m safe here. They lock the front door atnight and I’ll lock my door with the deadbolt. I just want to go to bed.”
Dom didn’t move. He looked me over as if I were a specimen in a lab that he had been tasked with figuring out. “Are you sure? Has he been texting you?”
I pulled out my phone. It had buzzed several times on the ride over, but I hadn’t bothered to see who it was or what they wanted. I hit the app and looked at the messages. There was one from Alexis at the top, emoji laden and apparently also from Kendra. Below it, there was one from Brandon.
“Well?” Dom said.
I nodded. Swallowing hard, I hit the message to read what he had to say, ignoring Dom's warning of, “That’s a bad idea.”
He was right. I could have gone without reading it. The texts contained more of his angry ranting, although this one was mostly insults that were aimed at me. I skimmed most of what he had to say, trying not to let it get to me. It was only at the end that I felt the familiar pit settle in my stomach.
Brandon
You probably are going to spend the night with him, aren’t you? I should have listened when my friends when they said I needed to not let you get too close to him.
“Hazel?” Dom asked. His familiar voice saying my name so tenderly broke my fixation on Brandon’s words.
“You were right,” I said. I reread the last line, then texted him that I didn’t want to hear from him again. “I’m blocking him.” When my phone was back in my pocket, I added, “He said he should have listened to his friends and that he thinks we are going to spend the night together.”
