Sinner's Place {h.s}

seventy-two.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

"Oh, really?" Anna squinted her eyes, "Why didn't you tell me she was back in town?"

"I didn't think it was that important," I commented, standing to my feet with my plate and cup in hand and turning to throw away the leftovers, "She's doing some shit with Ajax. It doesn't involve me."

"Oh, okay." Anna hummed, turning her attention back to finish her food.

I cursed in my head. Things that would have my mother popping the fuck out of my mouth until my lips were numb. I tried to play it cool, forcing my shoulders to relax and my posture to straighten. Once I cleaned up my plates, I leaned against the counter to look at Anna.

"Look–,"

"I just find it funny how we found pills in your car and weeks later, Veronica just so happens to be in town." Anna snapped lightly, annoyance twitching across her face.

I sighed, "It's not like that, Angel. It's really fucking not, I know it looks that way, but–,"

"Don't," She pointed her finger at me, "Because I'm not mad at you about the pills, but if I find out that she's the one that gave you the pills, I will fucking end her. I am so tired of that bitch, it took me everything not to confront her last night."

I threw my hands up, trying to bite back the smirk from Anna's angry outburst.

"I understand you're upset, baby, I really do," I said, "But don't talk about Veronica like that, okay? I'm not taking up for her, but she's clean now. She just got out of rehab, we are all trying to support her as a collective, okay?"

"Support her?" Anna rose from her seat, tilting her head, "You're fucking kidding."

"Anna!" I frowned, letting my hands fall to their sides, "Angel, baby, you have to understand. She has nobody. She doesn't even have a family, not one that she can go back to. I'm not–," I sighed harshly, pinching the bridge of my nose, "I'm not forgiving her for what happened, but if she relapses then it's going to be the same thing all over again."

Anna opened her mouth to say something, then pressed her lips together, nodding slowly.

"Alright, whatever." She muttered, taking her plate and placing it onto the counter.

I came up behind her, kissing her cheek and hugging her from behind.

"You know I only love you," I told her softly, "My sweet girl, I love you. It's always going to be you."

I was very well aware that it was my fault for the strain between the two. What I didn't realize at the time of my relapse was that Anna felt so strongly about me, in a way that she felt jealous over Veronica. I supposed I would've been upset as well if I were to walk in with a crush sleeping with someone else.

Of course, I did.

Anna and Niall.

But I digress.

Anna shrugged her shoulders as she shimmied out of my arms and retracted away from me. I'd be lying if I said this shit didn't fucking hurt me because it did. How she looked at me after that made me want to burst into flames.

"I just need some space right now, I think," Anna mumbled, "I'm still really shook up from the nightmare."

"Um, okay..." I tried to not end the sentence as a question, but it hurt seeing her pulling away from me like this, "Do you need anything? I can pick you up something on the way home?"

"That's okay, Gracie is coming over later with dinner." She said while walking into the living-room.

There was a thick tension in the air, I couldn't put a finger on it. Was it because of Veronica? I knew that Anna had every right not to trust her, but truthfully Veronica had been around for the last three months. Nothing happened. Of course, Anna didn't know that. I just wished I could stress to her that she didn't need to worry about Veronica.