18+ | Eva French relocates from sunny Florida to the gritty streets of Detroit, seeking a fresh start. But her new beginning takes a dark turn when she experiences a traumatic assault on her very first night in the city. Haunted by the incident, Eva...
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Vince Matthews
Jay was talking about her that afternoon. She was not there and I found myself surprised that I felt a slight disappointment by her absence. I had enjoyed looking at her through the fire the last time she was there.
"So what do you guys think?" he asked us, his eyes brimming with curiosity. I stayed silent and let my other two friends express their opinions over mine.
"She's cute," Aidan remarked, sounding rather indifferent. Jay looked almost offended at his lack of enthusiasm.
"You think so?" Lea chimed in, a little snootily. "I think her personality sucks."
I let out a snort at her unfiltered honesty. I had always enjoyed and appreciated her bluntness. Never any bullshit.
"Why?" Jay asked, immediately defensive, shooting me a glare as I chuckled from my seat.
"What do you mean why?" Lea snapped, annoyed that he was challenging her. "She barely said two words the whole time she was here last night."
"She's just shy, that's all," Jay insisted, his tone indignant, "She just moved here, she's new. She's trying to get used to this place. It'd help if you were a little nicer, Lea. You're always so intimidating. Do you have to be like that? You scare the shit out of me too, even now."
"Are you blaming me for her lack of personality?" she demanded, her eyes narrowing while she folded her arms and glowered at him. It was funny to watch Jay fold at her intimidation each time. "Please tell me you aren't."
"Okay, okay," Jay said instantly, giving in and holding his hands up, "I didn't mean it like that. I just want her to come by more and I don't want you scaring her off."
It was glaringly obvious that Jay was beginning to develop a profound interest in Eva. He had always been bad at hiding his emotions, always wearing his heart on his sleeve and acting impulsively. While Aidan and Lea began teasing him, I sat back with my beer, feeling a deep resentment towards my friend.
I took a sip of my beer and rested my head on the back of the chair, looking up at the sky while trying to decipher my feelings. I had watched Jay's openness and kindness over the years draw people to him effortlessly. While his luck with women may not have been stellar, he clung to his old-fashioned approach with a stubborn belief that it would eventually work out for him.
He saw all the girls that I had been with. He knew his approach didn't yield the same results as mine. So why keep doing it? Had he been waiting for someone like Eva to come along this whole time? It did seem like they were well-suited for each other. The girls around here never paid too much attention to Jay, but Eva was quite different, wasn't she? She was shy, soft-spoken, quiet. He was gentle, kind, and funny. A disturbing sensation began to settle in as I realized that this thought bothered me.
"What do you think, Vince?" I heard Jay ask. I ripped my gaze away from the sky to sit up and look back at the scene in front of me.
"About what?" I feigning ignorance. I took another swig of my beer.
