hearing damage | YELLOWJACKETS

thirty-four.

Quinn Galen | 2021
Wiskayok, New Jersey

"You didn't need to come with me," Quinn says as she looks over at Shauna in the passenger seat. They were heading back from New York to New Jersey since Quinn had managed to secure the money needed for the drop.

"I know that I just wanted to get out of the house," Shauna responds.

Quinn chuckles, "Running from your husband, teenage daughter, or your lover?"

Shauna huffs, "None of your business."

"Do you feel bad cheating on Jeff?" Quinn asks as she looks at the road.

"Honestly," Shauna says, "No."

"Damn," Quinn says with a laugh, shaking her head, "You're ruthless Shauna."

"Why would I feel bad if I don't love him?" Shauna asks.

Quinn shrugs, "Maybe because you swore a sacred vow? You do know that's what marriage is right?"

"I know what marriage is, Quinn," Shauna states, "Why are you asking questions anyway? My answers never seem to satisfy you."

"Because your answers show how you haven't changed at all," Quinn states.

Shauna rolls her eyes, "Seriously? I'm the one who hasn't changed when you're pathetically-"

Shauna bites her tongue and shakes her head as she looks out the window.

"What?" Quinn asks with a smile, "I'm the girl who's pinning after her dead ex? Yeah, I am. But I don't pretend to be something else. I didn't marry someone because I knew that I couldn't love them without explaining what happened to Jackie."

"You mean you couldn't love someone without explaining what happened out there and who we became," Shauna states.

Quinn's jaw clenches, "If I'm going to be with someone, I want to be able to give them all of me, not whatever you've been doing for the last seventeen years."

"And what have I been doing?" Shauna asks.

"Pretending," Quinn answers, "You don't love Jeff. You claim you don't love Callie. You hate your life. You're unhappy, that's why you're having an affair with a guy who is at least ten years younger than you."

"You're mentioning his age as though you also don't sleep with women younger than you," Shauna responds.

"Yeah, because they don't really want anything serious," Quinn responds, "And they're mostly experimenting."

"Except for Francesca Pace," Shauna states, "She wants to get to know you. She wants the real thing. So, what are you going to do?"

Quinn grips the steering wheel a little tighter, "I don't know."

"Yes, you do, you're going to run from her like you do everyone else because you don't think you deserve to be happy."

"I don't think I deserve to be happy?" Quinn snaps, pulling over to the side of the road. She looks at Shauna, her eyes narrowing, "I was willing to be happy. But you ruined that."

Shauna's brows furrow as she looks at Quinn, "How – how did I ruin it?"

Quinn sighs as she runs her fingers through her hair and looks at the empty road ahead of them, "You and I, we depended on each other. After Jackie. After – after everything else. And when we got back, I still needed you. And you married Jeff and I was alone. If there was anyone who understood, it was you and you hurt me with Jeff for the second time."