I sat down and glanced at the door across the room that led to the basement. I kind of hated being in the breakroom alone. Rory made fun of me for being freaked out by the basement, but excuse me if I hated to go down into the creepy-ass pit in our building. The place was a human medical office before it was a vet, so it occasionally had bad vibes anyway, but the basement had the worst. It was the only bad part of working in a historical building that was original to the town.
I always sat facing the basement door, refusing to turn my back on it. I started eating, hoping Rory would take an early lunch out of sympathy.
???
“So, are you going to tell me what happened on Saturday or what?” Rory was staring at me over her sandwich. We were the only ones in the breakroom since it was too early for lunch. She raised an eyebrow at me. “You went to sit down, then you were gone and I got some gibberish drunk text saying you were going home.”
I sighed as I looked at her. “I felt sick, so I went outside for some air. Tanner and Jaron followed me out there and startedshit-talking while I was trying to get the world to stop spinning. When they first came out, I really thought you were going to find me outside beaten and left for dead. I was way too drunk to try to defend myself.”
Her curious look turned to horror. She grabbed my arm. “Oh my god, Elijah! I’m so sorry! I wish you’d had one of us go with you. I don’t trust them. I’m still not sure they didn’t have something to do with Brandon.”
“I know how you feel, but regardless, I guess they’d been talking shit about me at the bar all night, and Mason heard them. He saw them follow me outside, so he followed them.” She was leaning toward me by then, her sandwich forgotten in front of her. “I didn’t even recognize him at first. He started yelling at them as soon as he came out. He told them to leave me alone, and he was ready to fight. He’d already started to, but then Chris came out and scared them away. I wasn’t having fun anymore, and I told them I was going to call a cab, but Mason was sober and offered—well, more insisted, on taking me home.”
“He rescued you?” she sounded as shocked as she looked. She remembered Mason as the prick basketball player, the asshole to everyone who wasn’t popular. That wasn’t, unfortunately, the only way I remembered him.
“He wasn’t always that asshole in the gym, you know. He was my best friend growing up. We were together all the time, but no one seemed to remember that. They all thought I was just an idiot with a crush on someone out of my league.”
Rory had been around while Mason and I were still friends, but I hadn’t been close to her until middle school, after he’d abandoned me for people he apparently thought were better. Her group had taken my lonely, bullied ass in and tried to protect me. It worked fairly well until senior year. “Anyway, he got me home. I think he was worried they’d come after me, because he didn’t want me to go home alone. Then I puked in my driveway, so he insisted on helping me inside.”
She stifled a laugh, waiting for me to continue, and I went back to my lunch, because I really didn’t want to. “And then?” shefinally pressed. “So, did you guys make up? I don’t know if I’m ready to forgive him for hurting my best friend back then. But did my best friend forgive him?”
“He did apologize. Repeatedly. I mean, I can tell he’s felt bad about it.”He kept the picture all these years.“He said he was just—” I stopped myself abruptly. I wasn’t even sure if Mason was out. He seemed to be, but maybe that was only in Chicago.
Rory looked around the room as though checking to make sure someone hadn’t slipped in silently. “He was justwhat? Why was he still with you in the morning? I’m not stupid. I saw both of you yesterday, and I can tell you what it looked like from the outside.”
I lowered my voice in case someone was trying to eavesdrop, even though everyone else here was older than us and didn’t give a shit about our love lives. “He said he was scared back then, alright? And don’t you dare repeat any of this, because it’s not even my place to tell you, but you’re my best friend. He said he was scared because he liked me too. He didn’t want anyone to find out. I was really drunk, and I... let him talk.”
“And then you let him rail you?” She fucking knew me so well. I hated it. “I mean, he’s literally the biggest walking red flag around, so of course you did, right?” If it were anyone else, I would have been pissed. But she was smirking at me, and we both knew I was just as mean to her.
“Fuck you, Rory, you’re such a bitch.”
“But you love me. And you know I’m not exaggerating. Youdidget laid, right? You had the glow. Even if it was reluctant and you were pissed that you had it and you were trying to hide it from me.”
“Fine. I got railed. Happy?”
Her triumphant expression dimmed slightly. “Not as happy as I would be if it had been someone I thought was actually good for you.” She sighed. “But if you and your ass are willing to hear him out, I guess maybe I could too.”
“I mean, I haven’t forgiven him completely. I just... I don’t know.”
“Oh, so you just hopped on for a ride, but you still aren’t even sure he’s worth hearing out?”
“Correct.”
She huffed out what was almost a laugh, but shook her head. “Dammit, Elijah, you are soyou. How can I keep you out of trouble when you won’t eventryto keep yourself out of it?”
“You can’t. You know that. I just need you to be there for me when it all comes crashing down.” Because it would. I knew it would. It always did. And shehadbeen there for me, so many times. She was right there with movies and beer or ice cream. With a shoulder to cry on and the words that always seemed to help. But even she hadn’t been able to get me to admit everything Brandon had done to me, and she hadn’t been able to get me to leave him. I thought if I’d stayed with him much longer, she would have been the one to kill him.
Her eyes softened. “Always,” she said softly. “I’ll always be here for you, Elijah.” I threw my trash away, gave her a quick hug, and headed back to work.
Chapter 11
Elijah
It felt like it had been a long week by the time I got home, and it was only Monday. I didn’t feel like cooking, so I heated up a frozen pizza. I’d just sat down with my plate and a beer in front of the TV, Enyo curled up beside me, when there was a knock at my door. Enyo lifted her head, ears perked and staring at the door, still as a stone. It was unnerving, because I wasn’t expecting anyone and I didn’t get unexpected visitors.
My shades were down and my curtains drawn. There was no window on my front door, so I stood quietly and tiptoed over to peek out the peephole. A glance back proved that Enyo was sitting all the way up, watching me. The porch light was on, but I couldn’t see anyone out there.
I glanced at the window, tempted to look out, but I didn’t really want to, because I had no idea who would come out to my house so late in the evening and why they weren’t standing in front of the door like a normal person. I didn’t get ding-dong ditches this far out of town. The only way anyone would be messing with me like that was if they were up to somethingshady.
