by Skyla Carter
It was as she was washing her hands and she saw herself in the mirror that it dawned on her. She wasn't going to get out of this one. She couldn't explain what she had done the previous night without explaining everything else. Shit! Shit! Shit! It was too soon. Way too soon. She was supposed to have had a couple of more weeks before dropping the bomb.
With a sigh, she slid down to the bathroom floor. Well, she'd had a good run anyway. It least she could cross out that she'd had a proper relationship. Even if it had lasted all of five days and had consisted of three days apart and two days of hot sex. Way to make a girl feel special, Nate! Instead of staying with her last night he had run back to his ex. She couldn't deal with bullshit like that right now. What she'd wanted was all of him for a couple of weeks. It hadn't been too much to ask. Just a couple of weeks to get to know him, to find out what made him who he was. Two days had not been even nearly enough for that. She supposed two weeks wouldn't have done it either but at least he would have wined and dined her, taken her out somewhere or whatever it was couples did.
Oh, well. It would soon be time to face the music. She knew Irving would make it a point to return today, she'd avoided answering his questions as best as she could the previous night.
Getting up, she looked down at her attire. She knew Irving wouldn't have taken her clothes off, he was too proper for that, so it meant Corey had before he had joined her in bed. She wore just her little black boy shorts and nothing else.
She re-entered the bedroom and looked over at her sleeping friend. Would he sleep so peacefully again? With another sigh, she walked into the dressing room and pulled the little box that held the contents that had her up Shit Creek in the first place. She had been stupid to do it, stupid to even bring that stuff home. Now she had to flush the stuff down before anyone searched for it and it got her into more trouble.
Box in hand, she decided to use the common bathroom instead. She didn't want Corey waking up and catching her in the act.
But, as she opened the door and saw John with his hand up as he had just been about to knock, she knew she was totally screwed.
"Hey, I was just about to wake you," he said, not a hint of a smile or any warmth in his eyes. "I wanted us to talk before your dad comes."
The box slowly made it to her back, not too quick as she would have drawn attention to it.
"I... I was just going to make some coffee," she lied.
"Got a pot already brewing," he said as he stood aside.
Okay, she was going to make it. All she had to do was slip the box onto the little table right next to her as she followed him, then make some excuse to come back and hide it. She'd have to flush it down another time.
"What's that?"
Her eyes widened in horror as she turned her head to the man sitting up in her bed, half naked.
"Um... morning, Corey," she said with a fake smile.
"What is that?" he repeated slowly.
"Oh, this?" she asked as she took the offending object from behind her back. "Nothing, just an old jewelry box that mum left me."
But she knew even as she said the words that he would not buy them. And neither did John because he quickly snatched the box from her hands and opened it.
His dropped jaw told Corey everything he needed to know.
"Fuckin' crazy bitch," Corey spat out as he made to get up from the bed.
"I was going to flush it down... " she started, but her voice trailed off at the angry look in Corey's eyes.
Right. Plan B. Run like a mother fucker.
She hadn't thought it through, really. Where did someone go in a stolen car with no clothes on? As much as she loved taking her clothes off, walking around in public naked was too much even for her. And she was sure people got arrested for that shit.
If she'd got her car instead, she would have had some clothes in there as her usual escapades normally meant she sometimes had to change her clothes. But Corey's keys had been closer and she was now stuck in his precious H2 with no clothes on.
She should have gone to his parent's house. She even had a few clothes there, but that idea had come to her after about an hour of driving when she was positive they would already have been informed. So where did one go when they were naked? She was glad the Hummer was a big car, it meant most other cars would be too low to see into her cabin. Well, even if they were high in enough like the occasional trucks or buses that she drove past, they wouldn't have been able to see clearly through the tinted windows but she was still feeling a bit self conscious.
Her phone beeped yet again. She'd had to put it on silent because the phone calls hadn't stopped coming. Corey, John, Irving, Mandy, even Bob, Liz and Ethan. And of course, Nate. He'd said he'd drop by in the morning. After spending the night with his Beth, no less. Well, she wasn't in the mood for him. He could just go fuck himself.
But two hours later, when she was low on gas and her stomach was reminding her that she had not eaten since her birthday lunch, she knew she had to stop being childish. She had to call someone. But who?
Parking her car at some old warehouse that didn't look too busy, she picked her phone up and replayed her voice messages.
"When I get my hands on you I'm going to wring that pretty little neck, understand? And how many times do I have to tell you that you do NOT touch the H2? Bring my fuckin' car back."
No, no one touched Corey's precious car. That went way up there with doing drugs. Two strikes for her!
"Rae, get your ass back here this instant. Where are you going to go? You have no fucking clothes on!"
Dear John. He was probably worrying that she would catch a chill or something and her bits would fall off!
"You do not want to make me angrier than I already am. Bring your ass back here, NOW."
Corey again. She wasn't going anywhere near him when he was that angry.
"Don't make me come after you. I will haul your naked ass out of that car and beat the shit out of you in public. You know I will. Just get back here."
Corey had threatened her like that a few times in the course of their relationship, but this time she was actually afraid he meant it.
"Rae, it's your father. You and I need to talk. Come back home, I'm waiting for you."
Daddy, Daddy, Daddy. She wasn't going to buy that! She could totally hear the underlying anger in his voice.
"Rae? I've just had a call from Corey. Where are you? Answer your phone, babes. Please."
Nate. The message had been left around eleven, so that meant he had come by first thing like he'd been supposed to. Had he been having too much fun to think about poor old her?
"Rae, I will say this one last time. Get here, NOW."
Corey wasn't playing. God, she hated this. She should have just stayed to face the music. How the hell would she tell them the truth now? She would have the right opening for it. The minute she showed her face they would ride her ass about her stupid stunt. Then was she supposed to say, "yeah, sorry about that. It's just that I'm dying."?
"Okay, sweetheart, I know you're going through something right now. Just come home. Come and talk to me. Maybe I can help."
John. He probably meant that, but the other guys wouldn't give her a chance.
"Rachael Taylor, DO NOT make me look for you. I have been waiting for you for hours. If you want to act like a little girl, I will treat you like one. Just come home and talk to me like the adult you are."
Irving again. She had expected him to have gone by them, but obviously, that wasn't the case.
"Babes... pick up the phone, please. I need to know that you're all right. I shouldn't have left you last night, I'm sorry. But I thought if I left you with Corey you would finally tell him what's going on. I'm sorry. Come to the hotel, you can hide out here if you want. Please."
Excuses, excuses. Did he really think she would buy that? He had left her to be with Beth, full stop.
"Rachael, dear. Corey has been calling here all morning looking for you. John as well. He mentioned something
about you being naked... Come home, sweetheart. I've got a few of your clothes here. You don't want to be attracting the wrong kind of attention, do you? I'll have some coffee and sandwiches ready for you. We can talk while you eat. I won't tell the boys."
Yes, Liz would probably be worrying more right now about her naked state and lack of food than what she had done the previous night.
"Okay, I had time to think about this. I was angry and that probably scared you. But you don't have to run from me sweetheart. I won't hurt you. I just want to talk. Just come back home."
Said the spider to the fly. She totally saw through that one.
Sighing, she threw the phone onto the passenger list without bothering to listen to the rest of the messages. They would just be the same.
In the end, she chose the easier option; Nate. He wouldn't ride her as hard as the others would. And at least she had some leverage with him. There was the Beth issue and him actually leaving her the previous night for her. She could just call him to bring her some clothes, hit him up for some money and just go. She didn't owe him anything. She had been stupid anyway, to think their relationship wasn't based on a certain amount of pity.
So she would hit him for some money then lay low until they all left the city. Good plan. She knew eventually she would have to face them, but not today.
"You fucking coward," she muttered to herself.
As she was about to start the engine, she noticed a woman park up then rush out of her car with big shopping bags in her hands. Clothes? There was a God! Maybe she wouldn't have to ask Nate to bail her out after all.
She beeped the horn, but the woman didn't even turn around. She looked like she was in too much of a hurry. She'd left her engine running and her door wide open and inside she saw a few more bags. Who did that in this day and age?
Making her mind up, she looked around the car park. There were only about four cars there and no one was walking about. There was hardly any traffic on the roads either. She could make it.
She jumped out of the car and took a final look around before making a run for it. All she was doing was borrowing. She would give the woman her address and totally pay her back when she got home. She wasn't stealing, she wasn't a thief. She would just grab some clothes, get dressed and wait for the woman. No biggie.
But as she leaned into the car she saw two little boys, about ten and six, sitting wide eyed in back. They had, obviously, watched the little run she had made to their car.
"I... I wasn't... I'm not...," she stammered as she quickly took her hand off the bags and tried to cover her privates.
Then to her horror, she saw the younger boy's lip start to quiver. Fuck!
The resulting scream was even louder than she had expected. Shit. She had to get out of there really fast.
"You perverted bitch! Move away from my babies," a voice screamed behind her.
Feeling more horrified, she turned around so she could make a run for her car. But the woman wasn't alone. Right behind her were two big men, dressed all smart in their police uniforms.
"Fuck me!" she swore under her breath.
"Are you alone?"
"Do you realise how stupid you've made yourself look?" John shouted from the other end of the phone. "How long did you think you were going to last? What, where you going to reduce yourself to actually charging for sex so you could get a bit of food and a place to sleep?"
"That's so low, John," she said wearily. "Are you alone?"
"Is it safe to come home, you mean? Yes. Corey's driving around everywhere looking for you and Irving's gone to see if he can get any information out of Nate," John said.
"I'm in trouble."
"Geez. I wonder why," he said sarcastically. "Is someone hounding you because you're FUCKING NAKED, by any chance?"
She looked around the cold room at the policemen and women who were laughing and whispering to each other as the blatantly looked at her. Even with the big jacket that someone had graciously provided, she still felt naked.
"Sort of," she replied. "I've been arrested."
"What?!"
"Yeah... um... I'm gonna need you to bail me out," she said.
Strike three. She was out.
The ride home was made in silence. Even when she had been let out, he hadn't said a word. She had actually been hoping he would blow up there and then, when the police actually had her back. But she could tell by the twitching muscle in his jaw that the explosion was being saved for when no one could save her.
The other car wasn't on the driveway so Corey was thankfully still out looking for her. She couldn't have handled both of them at the same time. Especially since his precious car was still at that parking lot. John hadn't trusted her to drive it back home.
"Kitchen," John barked before he got out of the car and slammed the door.
With a defeated sigh, she got out and followed him into the house. There was no escape this time; nowhere to run. It was time to talk. Or shout, whichever John decided to do.
She slowly made her way to the kitchen, trying to find words to explain her actions. Just "I'm dying," wouldn't cut it. By the time she entered the kitchen, he already had a pot of coffee brewing and had taken the makings of a sandwich out. She was starving; night had already fallen, but she didn't think she could handle any food. Her inside were turning and she felt sick.
He placed a sandwich and a cup of coffee in front of her before sitting down opposite her with his own cup.
"Talk," he ordered.
"I... I'm sorry, John," she started. She couldn't even look him in the eye.
"Is that it?"
She let out a sigh as she toyed with the sandwich on her plate.
"No. I was stupid, I know. It's just that everything was getting on top of me and I wanted one night... just one night where it would all just go away."
"What was getting on top of you?"
"Everything. Nate. Irving. My new family. Corey. You. The stupid list. Just everything."
"Me? What did I do?"
"I was avoiding you. I didn't want you to make me talk, I didn't want this," she said as she ran her fingers through her hair.
This was too hard. How would she tell him?
"Why?"
She could tell by the sound of his voice that some of his anger had ebbed. Maybe because she looked as pathetic as she sounded.
"Don't make me do this, John," she whispered, finally lifting her head to look into his eyes.
The rest of his anger disappeared and she saw confusion and a bit of fear in his eyes. Dear John. Would he be strong enough this time around to hold Corey up again? Or would this kill him, too? It would probably kill him.
He was at her side in an instant, kneeling in front of her and turning her in her chair to face him.
"Rae?"
"I... "
Her voice trailed off when she noticed how totally freaked out her friend was, like on some level he already knew what she was about to say.
She couldn't do it. She couldn't hurt him.
"I just felt so... alone. It's just hit me all over again that I'm all by myself," she lied again.
Okay, she had to make this really good. She had to give him some sentimental bullshit, the stuff only he would fall for.
"You have your family, Corey has his and between you have so many aunts, uncles and cousins it ain't even funny. That's why I decided to get to know Irving, I thought maybe I could worm my way into his little family. And that's why I decided to get a boyfriend. I just wanted someone who was just mine, someone I could have a future with and maybe fall in love with. Then I could have my own little family. But it wasn't working out like that," she said softly, putting as much raw emotion in her voice as she could.
"Then last night, Corey was being weird and Nate had a call off Beth and told her he was going to try to get away... "
At least that much was true. And she could see that something she'd said was getting through to him. The fear that had been in his eyes had disappeared.
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"I felt like my past was stopping me from having the future I want," she said with a little shrug. "I was just feeling sorry for myself. I mean, who'd want a bitch like me for a long term relationship?"
"Don't talk like that, Rae," John said, tucking a few stray strands behind her ear. "You're beautiful, funny and you got my back like no one else. And I know, once you find the right guy, once you fall in love, you'll be as loyal as they come."
"Yeah, well... forgive me for not sharing your optimism," she grunted.
"I really believe that, Rae," he told her. "And that man... or woman... will be the luckiest person on earth. You should have come to me last night, before you touched that shit. I'd have told you that."
"I know, but you're... you," she said as she put her palm against his cheek. "You're my friend; you always see the good in me. I don't think I'd have bought anything you would have told me."
His hand covered hers on his face as he let out a little sigh.
"Rae, don't you know by now, that when it comes to you, I never lie," he whispered as he looked into her eyes. "You are the most beautiful woman I know. And I'd be lying if I said I don't find it really hard to resist temptation when you come on to me."
"But you do resist, John," she smiled sadly.
"Only because I know I'm not what you need."
"Maybe you're what I need right now."
She had no idea what made her say that, but as soon as those words were out of her mouth, she felt they were true. John was exactly what she needed. He was a perfect gentleman and a caring friend. She'd known him for years; she wouldn't have to worry about figuring him out.
Before he could say anything to get out of it, she leaned her face closer to his and took his lips in a sweet little kiss. For once in their long friendship, he didn't pull back.
When she pulled away from him and looked into his eyes, she saw that she should never have worried about that at all. He wanted her. It was written clearly in those brown eyes.