‘Cool!’she says.‘Are you drinking?’
‘Yeah, Zayden’s gone to get some.’
‘Oh.’
There’s a weighted silence and I wonder whether she’s trying to work out more of what’s going on between Zayden and me.Anybody watching would have thought we were flirting with each other – since we were – and now I’ve confused her by saying he’s just my friend’s brother.
‘Here you go,’ a voice interjects, and I’m relieved that Zayden has made it back to me.‘Hey, Avery.’
‘Zayden,’ she greets him with a nod.‘Nice to meet you, Nora.’
She turns and leaves the dance floor quickly and I’m still unsure what that was all about, but I turn back to Zayden, disregarding the odd encounter.Taking the can from him, I inspect it briefly, noticing it’s unopened.Since the scare with Anya and her drink-spiking incident, I’ve been on high-alert, so I appreciate that he left it sealed before giving it to me, and also didn’t just pour it into a cup.I trust Zayden, but I still like that he did that.
After we finish our drinks, he swivels to face me, ‘Wanna get out of here?’
Heat sears my cheeks as I nod.‘Definitely.’
‘I still can’t believe that disaster of a date.’
Zayden glances at me as he walks beside me, the sound of our shoes scuffing against the pavement filling the space around us.The warm breeze washes over us and I cross my arms in front of my chest.
‘It was a surprise for me, too, to witness whatever that was that I walked into.’
‘Yeah … he was not what I expected.’
Zayden smirks.‘He’s a douche, whoever he even is.Anyone with half a brain can see you’re way out of his league.’
I laugh in surprise at the compliment.‘Yeah, well, I’ve made worse choices.’
‘Same,’ he says, then rubs a hand over his jaw.‘Most of mine lasted longer than a night, though.Three years of a prolonged bad choice.’
That catches me off guard.I slow a little, our shoulders nearly touching.‘You mean your ex?’
He nods, releasing a breath.‘Leasa.We were toxic.The screaming-in-the-carpark type of toxic.I thought I loved her, maybe I did, but I lost myself in it.Everything was about her and it was well over before we called it quits.’
I look up at him, surprised at how easily his words comes out, wondering if it’s the alcohol that’s made him so open and honest, or whether he’s always like this.‘That sounds tough.’
He shrugs.‘It was sometimes, for sure.I wish her all the best.She isn’t a bad person, we just weren’t compatible.’
I smile.‘That’s kind of you.Refreshing, actually.Most guys go on and on about how “crazy” their exes are.They never admit their side in it all.’
He laughs, a low, warm laugh that makes me wish I could hear it again.‘Neither of us were innocent.’
I nod.‘I get it.I was in a relationship like that too – if you can call it that when you’ve never met.It was all online, but it felt real until it became … scary and violating.’
He glances over, a look of concern falling across his face.‘Scary how?’
I hesitate.The buzz from the drinks is making my tongue looser than usual.‘He knew everything.All my secrets, what I wore to bed, where I was even when I didn’t tell him.It made me freak out.He knew so much about me, but I never got to hear his voice, meet him in person.It was so one-sided and I let it go on for too long.’
Zayden stops walking for a beat.I do too.He’s watching me, his expression unreadable.
‘Did he hurt you?’he asks quietly.
‘Not physically, no,’ I quickly say.‘He just wasted my time and filled my head with nonsense and things I now know are lies.I just feel violated because I was so trusting of someone who clearly did not do the same in return.It sort of made me feel a bit … irrelevant.’
He nods slowly, like he gets it – more than I expected.‘You’re not irrelevant.Just so you know.’
I lower my gaze to look at my feet.‘Thanks, Zayden.’
