I knew why I was there, but as for the rest? I had no idea.
As for Dominic? Fuck knew what he was thinking. I could spend a million years studying him, and I wouldn’t be able to figure him out.
One thing was for certain—I didn’t want to.
8
Ryan
Later that night, I got home from art class to someone waiting for me.
This time, it wasn’t Dominic.
Max scowled from where he waited on the staircase. “What’s going on with you and Dom?”
I sighed as I hung up my bag. “Can’t you wait until I’m through the door before hitting me with the third degree?”
“Nope.” Max folded his arms. “Not when it concerns Dominic.”
Figured. Of course that was all he gave a shit about.
“Nothing is going on,” I grunted, trying to shove past him. Max stood firm. He had more muscle and weight than me, meaning he didn’t move an inch. “Stop being a dick and let me past.”
“Why did you hang out with us today? You never do that.”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s not like I’m ever invited.”
Max didn’t protest at that. Why would he when it was the truth? “But today you did anyway.”
I dropped back a step, resting my exhausted body against the banister. I really needed a good night’s sleep. “What makes youthink I had a choice in the matter? Dominic literally dragged me there. Trust me, I’d much rather have stayed in the library.”
His lip curled in a sneer. “That makes two of us.”
My spine stiffened. I knew better than to rise to Max’s taunts, but I couldn’t stop myself. “Why do you hate me so much?”
I don’t think either of us expected me to say that. I winced internally while Max’s mouth popped open. It was only for a second, then he recovered.
He shot me a withering look before retreating up the stairs. “See if you can work it out yourself, golden boy.”
My brow furrowed. Dominic had said something similar the other night. What the fuck had I done to give them that idea about me? Nothing in my life was golden.
I thought about following him up and demanding more answers, but exhaustion was pressing heavily on my shoulders. Maybe after a decent sleep, everything would make more sense.
Before I could take another step, the sound of the dishwasher being unloaded floated through from the kitchen. My knuckles turned white as I gripped the banister.Just go upstairs. Mum won’t mind you not helping this once.
I knew she wouldn’t. She was grateful for any help she could get, which was ridiculous in this day and age. There were four of us living here—we should all be pulling our weight.
It was that thought that had me twisting and going through to the kitchen.
Sleep would still be there in ten minutes.
It was nearerthirty before I made it to my bedroom. Once the dishwasher was done, Mum had made us both a cup of tea. Shewas in an unusually chatty mood, and with Dad already down in his shed, I didn’t want to leave her alone. Instead, I’d sat at the table and sipped my tea, trying to think about anything other than the throbbing in my temples.
Or Dominic, but that goes without saying. My new daily mission was to not think about him.
I dropped onto my bed and plugged my phone in to charge. It had died on the way home from class. To be honest, most days I didn’t even bother taking it out with me. It was rare that I could put credit on it, all of my money from my paper round going towards my art lessons. It was even rarer that I had someone to talk to on it. Not much point keeping it topped up when my contact list was practically empty.
I’d picked up an extra route last week, which had my paycheque a little fuller than usual. I didn’t know why, maybe it was because I’d already been in the newsagents, but I’d decided to top up on a whim.
