“Where are you running off to?” I asked right before she threw my boxers at my face. I was grinning as I pulled them off, threw back the covers, and got out of bed. Naomi’s eyes quickly dipped down as I strode forward. I smirked as her gaze stayed on me, burning hotter. She licked her lips and raked her nails down my abs once I got close enough.
“No,” she reprimanded herself before stepping back and shaking her head. “Get dressed.” This time she spoke to me, looking up into my eyes with a hard glare.
“Why? Where are we going?”
“We’re going to Alara’s favorite coffee place and picking her up something special. A thank you for making breakfast.” I recognized the name of the place, Caffeine IV, a local coffee shop that was on the same strip as Inked 101, and offered to drive.
Thirty minutes later we were stepping back through Naomi’s front door, just as Alara was putting the last of four plates on the table. A wide smile brightened up her face as she looked at the coffee cups in Naomi’s hands. No words were exchanged as she bounced toward her best friend and gave her a big hug. Naomi laughed and held her arms out and away to avoid spilling the drinks. Gabe and I stepped forward at the same time to relieve her of the coffees. We were both smiling at our girls. Naomi’s arms were wrapped tightly around Alara and they laughed as Naomi whispered something in her ear. When they pulled away, they were still talking and laughing as they dismissively took the cups from us and sat down at the table. I looked over to find Gabe grinning.
“Yeah. Get used to it. If those two are in a room together, you’ll more than likely take a backseat.”
I watched him walk over and join them, noticing he wasn’t very bothered by the statement he’d just made. But then again, neither was I. I’d take the backseat, just as long as I was in the car with her.
I was dying. Okay, probably not, but it sure as hell felt like it. I had just thrown up my lunch, which only consisted of a bowl of soup, but it still hurt. After carefully standing up and rinsing out my mouth, I stumbled back to my bedroom before face planting on my bed. The slight bounce did nothing to assuage my sickness and I groaned loudly with the contact.
Why am I such a moron?
“Are you okay?” Slowly rolling my head to the side, I looked toward the door to see Alara standing there, a frown marring her face.
“I’m great,” I muttered.
Her frown deepened as she stepped into the room. “Maybe I should stay home.”
I bolted up when she started worrying her bottom lip. I tried to hide my wince at the abrupt and painful movement. “No. Absolutely not. You are not canceling.” Gabe had convinced her to go out of town this week for spring break and every time the trip was mentioned, I could see the apprehension on Gabe’s face, like he was waiting for her to cancel on him at any minute. And he had every right to worry. Alara, while I loved her to death, had a serious problem committing to going out. I’d gotten used to it, I’d known her for years and I understood her better than anyone, so I knew how hard it was for her to go out sometimes, but it seemed Gabe was still trying to figure it out. Even so, I had faith he’d stick by her because, man, was that kid in love with her.
He loved her like Romeo loved Juliet.
Like peanut butter loved jelly.
Like Kanye West loved… well, Kanye West.
“But—” Alara began.
“No buts. Unless of course we’re talking about you slapping Gabe’s butt when you’re out of town with him this week, then by all means…” I waved a hand in her direction as she blushed, and we both laughed at the predictable reaction.
“Yeah, you’re right. You’re clearly well enough to be left alone.” Her smile quickly fell as she came to sit on the bed next to me and put the back of her hand on my forehead. “Seriously, are you sure?”
“Positive. Besides I could always call Derek or Sherry.”
Her brows rose as she removed her hand. “You mean the same Sherry who’s been avoiding us and secretively weird for weeks? And the same Derek you’re fighting with right now?”
What?
She was totally right about the Sherry thing—after all, she’d been feeling it to. But how the hell had she known things were frosty between Derek and me? Had Derek told her? I quickly dismissed that thought. Even though he was mad, he wouldn’t do something like that without talking to me. He wouldn’t—
“You guys have never been good at keeping your fights a secret,” Alara filled in.
“Really?”
She laughed. “Yes, really. Do you remember the time you were pissed at him for something he said to Caleb?”
I scoffed. “Which time?”
“Touché. But I’m talking about when we were in high school and you guys had been fighting for about a week. One day you and I came home from school and found him drinking straight out of the orange juice carton, like he always did. But this time you went off on him. Screaming about how he was inconsiderate and pigheaded, and that the orange juice didn’t deserve to be treated that way because it was only ever nice to him.” She raised her brows. “It didn’t take a genius to figure out there was something a little deeper going on.”
We both laughed, because yeah, I really was that crazy. It quickly became apparent that laughing was a bad idea when what felt like half a lung coughed up later, I was exhausted.
“You don’t have to tell me,” she said softly as she played with the edge of my comforter.
I opened my mouth to ask her if we could talk about this later, to promise her I’d tell her when I was feeling better, that I just didn’t want to get into, yada, yada, yada… But I froze before any of those stupid and meaningless words made their way out, guilt immediately socking me in the stomach. It was one thing to simply not tell Alara, but her knowing I was keeping something from her was an entirely different story.
I reluctantly sat up further in bed. “Derek and I were just waiting for the right time to tell you. We weren’t trying to keep secrets from you.”
“I know.” She gave my hand a squeeze.
Closing my eyes, I tipped my head back against the headboard and said, “Our mom has been calling.” I peeked one eye open to see that Alara’s had doubled in size.
“Seriously?”
I nodded and withdrew my hand from hers so I could rub it down my face. “Yeah. I’ve only spoken to her once, but I guess Derek’s been seeing her regularly. I haven’t spoken to him in weeks.”
“You can’t be mad at him for wanting a relationship with her.” It was delivered gently, and I knew the last thing Alara wanted was to make me feel bad, but damn… it hurt. It hurt because she was right, and it hurt because I didn’t know how to accept it.
Sensing my discomfort, Alara nudged me with her elbow and winked. “Well… you could always call Damien if you need a ride to the emergency room.” I didn’t think I’d ever loved her more. I gave her the most sincerely appreciative look I could before morphing it into a fake scowl.
“And why would I call him?” I thought about crossing my arms over my chest but I ended up leaving them limply by my side because, well… lazy.
“I’d call my boyfriend if I were sick.” I knew she was baiting me, I could see it in her beady green eyes.
“Not my boyfriend,” I stated firmly. “He’s my fu—”
“Don’t say it.” Alara held up her hand. “It’s crass and so not true.” She crossed her arms before firing off questions.
“How often did Caleb stay for breakfast with us in the past year?” Never.
“And how often do you see Damien?” Almost every day.
“Do you guys text about random things?” Occasionally, but that waddling penguin video was damn funny and I had to share it with him.
“Do you cuddle?” Only because he’s warm.
“Does he—”
“Okay. I get it.” She smiled like she was winning until I said, “But he’s still not my boyfriend.”
“Why not?”
“Because I said so.”
<
br /> Alara rolled her eyes as she stood up. “You know, I can see why you want to go to law school. You have one sharp mind.” She was laughing as she tapped the side of her head in mock amazement. I attempted to throw a pillow at her as she left the room but between my achy muscles and my horrible athleticism, I ended up knocking over my lamp.
“Dammit,” I muttered as I slumped down and rolled my face into another pillow.
“There, there.” Alara patted my arm, and I looked up to see she’d also righted the lamp. “You get an A for effort.”
“That’s a stupid grading system,” I grumbled. A knock sounded at the door, and if a knock could sound excited, this one did. My roommate’s smile stretched wide, but when she looked down at me, it faltered slightly.
“I’ll see you in a couple days?”
“Yes,” I answered resolutely. “Now get outta here.”
“Call if you need anything.”
“Yes, mom.” We both ignored the slight tension that word brought about as we said one more round of goodbyes. And ten minutes later, I heard the front door softly shut before the lock clicked.
I closed my eyes and thought about what Alara said. Was Damien my boyfriend? Admittedly, in the beginning I wasn’t looking for that, I was looking for a distraction, and of course sex. But even now, I didn’t think it was a good idea to get involved. Between the potential that Damien was a rebound, the fact that I’d be leaving for law school in a few months, and—
But didn’t he say he wasn’t interested in that either? Yes, yes he did. So I didn’t have to analyze what I might be feeling. We were having sex. That was all. That was what he wanted, and that was what I wanted. And for now, the rest didn’t have to matter.
“Hey.” I looked over to see Ellie shuffling into the kitchen, clad in a baggy black T-shirt and black thigh-highs that had panda heads on top.
“Good morning.”
She groaned and covered her nose. “Is it? What’s that smell?”
Raising my eyebrows, I nodded toward the frying pan. “Bacon? I thought I’d make your favorites.”
“That’s really sweet, but—” She cut herself off before jumping from the chair she’d just sat down on and fleeing down the hall. Quickly following, I found her on her knees bent over the toilet. I crouched down and rubbed small circles on her back as the morning sickness passed.
“Are you okay?”
Ellie gave me a small, hesitant nod as I stood up and ran a hand towel under the faucet. Returning to her side, I handed it to her and helped her up.
“So, no bacon?”
She frowned and shook her head. “Sorry, D. I appreciate the gesture, though.”
“No problem. What does the little guy feel like?”
Laughing, she placed her hand on her stomach. “Uhh… I feel like such a cliché, but a pickle sounds heavenly.”
“Then a pickle you shall have.” I moved back to the kitchen to toss the bacon and grab my keys. “I’ll be right back.” I closed the door and made my way to my car. I had just gotten in, when an unknown number flashed on my screen. My finger hovered over ignore, but for some reason, I answered instead.
“Hello?”
“Damien?” The voice was a tentative whisper and while it sounded familiar, I couldn’t place it.
“Who is this?”
“Alara. Naomi’s roommate.”
“Oh. What’s up?”
There was a pause as I started the car and backed out. “Well, I’m headed out of town for the week and Naomi’s pretty sick.” I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking how bad it was and what exactly was wrong. “I know she says you guys are just having fun, or whatever… but I got the impression you cared about her—”
“I do,” I replied swiftly. I was sick of worrying about scaring Naomi off. I didn’t want to pretend I felt less than I did anymore.
“A lot,” Alara finished, and I could hear the smile in her voice. She cleared her throat. “I was wondering if you could check on her for me? She’s stubborn—”
“And the sky is blue,” I deadpanned.
She laughed in agreement. “Exactly, and I’m afraid that even if she gets really sick she won’t call anyone for help. She’s probably fine, but I just worry.”
A weird, unfamiliar sensation pulled at my heart as I thought of Naomi being sick and alone. “Yeah, that’s not a problem.”
I could still hear the smile in her voice as she thanked me and hung up.
…
I frowned as I waited for Naomi to open the door after my fourth knock. I was one second away from calling her, when the door swung open to reveal her pale and sweaty complexion. After Alara had called I still needed to head to work, but I begged off after half a day and told Claire I’d come in early tomorrow. As usual, she didn’t have a problem with it. But when I took in how haggard Naomi looked, I was starting to wonder if I should have asked for tomorrow off as well.
“What are you doing here?” she slurred before turning around and violently coughing over her shoulder. When she turned back around her eyes were closed and she was leaning against the door. “You realize I can’t have sex like this, right? I mean, I know I’m awesome in bed but even I have limits.”
I laughed and rolled my eyes, relieved she was still sassing me. “I came to check on you.”
Her eyes popped open. “How’d you even know I was sick?”
“Alara called.”
“Son of a”—cough—“bitch.” She gave me a weak smile. I returned it until she started tilting sideways. Quickly moving forward, I caught her and held her up as I backed her into the common room. “Woah, woah. You’re okay. I’ve got you.”
I set her on the couch as she scowled at me. “You don’t have to stay. I’m perfectly”—cough—“fine. I can take care of”—cough—“myself.”
“Sure you can.” I gave her a pat on the head, which she weakly swatted at, before I went to the kitchen and grabbed a water bottle.
“I’m serious,” she grumbled, grabbing the water from me and taking a sip.
“Me too.” There was no trace of joking or compromise in my voice this time. “I’m staying.”
“Whatever,” she mumbled as she got up and shuffled toward her bedroom.
I followed after her. “Have you taken anything?”
“Are you still here?” she asked as she crawled into bed. Laughing at her dejected tone, I followed. She was lying curled away from me while I sat up against the headboard. She groaned when she felt the shift and muttered, “Fine. I guess you can stay.”
“Never up for debate, sweetheart.”
Naomi grunted. “Has anyone ever told you you’re annoying?”
“Probably just as many people that have told you you’re a stubborn pain in the ass.” She laughed and I’d thought she’d quickly fall asleep, but a few minutes of silence lapsed and she laughed again.
“What’s so funny?” I asked.
“Is this the new protocol for fuck buddies?” She looked over her shoulder before twisting around fully. The sheet was clenched in her hands and pulled up to her chin. She tried to inject humor into her tone, but I could see the tension in her body; her movements were stiff and words were carefully measured. But the look in her eyes said something different—she was touched I was still here. So even though she felt a little uncomfortable, she was also happy. “Fuck buddies don’t see each other outside of the sex. They’re practically one step away from being a paid whore.”
“Hey.” I leaned forward and grabbed her jaw, gently but with purpose so she knew what I had to say wasn’t a joke. “You’re not a whore.” I emphasized the word with a scowl. I didn’t know if she’d had one-night stands before, but that was irrelevant. It was also irrelevant that she’d clearly been kidding. No one would talk about her that way, not even her.
Naomi gave me an affectionate smile as she placed her hand on top of mine and asked, “Who said the whore was me?”
I smiled in return, too relieved to be insulted. Touché.
“You know—”
I was cut off as she dropped my hand and began violently hacking. As she scrambled out of bed, her foot caught in the bedding and I quickly leapt forward to catch her before she hit the floor. She latched onto my arm to steady herself as she continued coughing. Naomi tried to move forward once more, but I gently scooped her into my arms before quickly heading toward the bathroom and setting her on her feet. She immediately fell to her knees before throwing up in the toilet. And didn’t this feel like déjà vu.
“You’re okay,” I murmured as I rubbed her back, thankful her hair was already pulled up and away from her pale face. A few minutes later, after the last of her dry heaves subsided, she gently sat back, her ass perched on her ankles. Her eyes were closed in pain, and I felt that tug at my heart once more. I went to grab a cloth from under her sink when something caught my eye. Laughing, I pulled it out and held it toward her.
“Would this help?” I asked, trying to take her mind off her pain.
She turned to look and let out a laugh. It was barely a puff of air with how exhausted she was and her smile was small, but the beauty of it still hit me right in the chest. “No, I don’t think she’d help.”
“She?” I asked as I put her neon blue vibrator back and grabbed a washcloth, wetting it and wringing it out before lightly wiping her mouth.
“Yes, she. I don’t need a man to take care of me.” Naomi gave me a halfhearted glare, waiting for me to contradict her, but I said nothing. We were silent for several minutes as her eyelids fluttered. I held another clean wet washcloth against her forehead, and I knew she must have been extremely exhausted if she was willing to let me help her.
“You didn’t hide it very well,” I commented.
She kept her eyes closed but a tiny smile graced her pale and chapped lips. “I didn’t hide it at all. I’d have kept it up on my vanity if Derek grew some balls and didn’t get so squeamish about it.”
I paused and thought about my own sister keeping her dildo on display in her bedroom, and I almost repeated Naomi’s upchuck performance from minutes ago. Shaking my head, I said, “You should be happy Derek didn’t just throw it out. That’s what I would have done.”
Unveiling Chaos Page 11
