Lethal Love

26 ; Bitches Bite Back

When I give her a blank expression she just shakes her head in disappointment and writes it down for me.

"Thanks," I say and smile brightly.

"You're lucky I love you," she mumbles. She hands me back my notebook and motions for me to do the rest by myself.

We sit there for maybe an hour, Hailee working on an english essay whilst I do my math. I hear her slap her notebook shut and look up. "I should go. Mom wanted me home before it got dark."

I stifle a yawn. "Sure, drive safely."

She nods and pack her stuff, giving me a sideways hug before leaving. I'm sat there for God knows how long, still working on math.

"X equals five," I mumble. Wait, that doesn't make sense. I look over the equation again and sigh in frustration before I erase it all. I hear footsteps and look up to see Tyler walking into the room. He sits opposite me on the dining table.

I don't say anything and neither does he. Hailees' tea mug is still on the table and Tyler picks it up. He runs his finger along the rim which is smudged with pink lipstick. He stares at it for a long time. Then he swallows hard before setting it down on the table again.

Tyler folds his hands on the table, a neutral look on his face. "We need to do something," he says.

I look out the window and sigh again. I've done that a lot lately. Sigh, I mean. The weather is dreary and gray, a thick fog covering the sky. No birds are chirping. The sun seems to be sleeping. Nature continues to grow though. No one has mowed the lawn in maybe months. It's so long now that it seems to resemble a grass field rather than a backyard.

"Did you hear me?" he says, frustration edged in his tone. I ignore him again. He slams his hands on the table.

"Dammit Adeli-"

"Yes I fucking heard you!" I whip my head towards him. He shuts up and sits back in his chair. "I've been listening to your rants all week. 'We need to do something', 'we need to have a plan', 'we need to stop moping around'. Well guess what? We don't need to do anything. There's nothing that can be done." When I'm finished I look down to my equation again.

You can almost choke on the tension in the room. "What happened to you?" He sounds defeated. I can't even look him in the eyes and give him a proper answer. Because I don't have one at all.

"You got your heart broken. Bu-hu. It sucks. I get it. But you can't sit around moping all day and being pissed at the world. Because guess what? Everyone gets their heart broken at some point. Don't act like you're entitled to something more than everyone else." Tyler gets up, his chair screeching against the floor as he pushes it back. I continue to fiddle with my pencil, writing then erasing numbers. "This is impossible," I mumble.

Tyler sighs. "Just think about it. okay?"

I ignore him and pick up my calculator.

Tyler speaks again before I get the chance to punch in the numbers. "It's 7."

I look up then. "What?" He rolls his eyes as if I'm stupid.

"X equals 7," he replies. I only stare at him for a moment, not wanting to say anything back. Then he turns to leave. "It's not impossible. Every problem has a solution."

...

I shift nervously in my seat in the corner, my fingers curled around a cup of coffee. With shaky hands I take a sip. It's scorching hot, the bitter brown liquid burning my tongue and throat. I'm on my second cup, thus resulting in my incessant tapping of my foot under the table. Though that also might be due to my nerves. He's late. It's already dark out.

The bell above the door rattles and I look up from my cup. A hood covers his face but I know he knows where I'm sat. His walk is confident as he strides towards me.

"I wasn't sure if you were going to show up," I say. I try to keep my tone calm and light.

He smiles. "Of course I'd show." I smile back, my eyes fleeting around every other second, afraid someone will see us.

"So?" he asks.

I cast my eyes down at the cup, fingers circling the rim of it. I clear my throat and look up again. I lean in a little, making sure nobody can hear me when I speak. "I want in."

Sebastian leans back in his seat, a wide smile spread on his face. He shakes his head slowly, 'tsk'-ing at me. My cheeks heat up and I'm sure he can see my blush.

"Getting desperate now are we?" he teases.

I blush a deeper shade of red. "Come on, just-

A waitress comes over and I fall silent. Her hair is falling in curls down to her shoulders. Her name is Vanessa. I recognize her from school. Her uniform, black jeans with a black t-shirt with the logo on it, fits tightly. She plasters a smile on her face and talks with an overly friendly voice. "What can I get you?"

She looks to me first. "Uh, I already have a coffee," I say. She smiles and nods. She knew I already ordered but it would be rude to just ask Sebastian I guess. She turns to him, the big smile still intact. "And you?" she asks.

Sebastian gives a boyish smile. "I'll have some fries." Vanessa nods and walks away.

As soon as she's out of ear-shot I speak again. "So as I was saying-

"So eager," Sebastian interrupts. He leans back in his seat, hands behind his head. "And here I thought you were asking me on a date." He smirks. I glare but bite my lip in order not to snap at him.

"What do you want from me?" I ask. I swallow my ego. "I'll do anything."

He studies me for a while, eyes squinted. Then he sighs as if he's done thinking it over. "I don't want anything. I've already gotten what I wanted."

My hope is slowly simmering away. "You- You don't want me to sell drugs for you or anything? Or join your illegal fighting club?" I try to sound convincing my voice waivers. My heart is beating hard and fast in my chest. I feel perspiration coat my upper lip.

Sebastian rests his hands on the table. "I don't know anything about that." He smiles innocently and I clench my teeth. We sit there in silence for a while. Vanessa comes with the fries. She senses the tension though and asks if everything is okay.

I breath out and then smile towards her. "Yeah, we're fine. Right?" I nod to Sebastian.

He turns and gives her a dashing grin. "Superb." He picks up a fry and eats it. "Thanks."

Vanessa nod hesitantly but scurries away to another table anyways. Once we're alone again Sebastians' smile is replaced by a sneer. He gets up from his seat but I grip his sleeve in a moment of desperation. "How is he?" I ask. "How is the guy you almost beat to death?" I add.

Sebastian glares and leans his hand on the table, his face coming closer to me. His eyes cast down my body and my heart stops. He leans in further, placing a strong grip on my neck. His fingers dig into the skin, but to anyone else it could look like a heartfelt goodbye. I feel myself shaking and tears brim my eyes.

His mouth is next to my ear and his whispers send shivers down my spine. "Listen here, I'm going to tell you a story about my dog. She was cute and all but she used to bite my shoes. One day I got home from work and found her chewing on my favorite pair. I tried to grab them back but she bit me. The fucking bitch bit me. And do you know what happens to dogs who bite?" His grip tightens and I almost whimper. "They get put down."

He leans back and release my neck, storming out of the diner. I close my eyes and take deep breaths. My heart is still raging and I'm sweating like crazy. I hear shuffling in front of me and open my eyes again.

Tyler is sitting in front of me, brows creased in anticipation. "Well?"

I shake my head angrily and rip the mic out from under my shirt, throwing it on the table. "He didn't confess."

Tyler punches the table. "Fuck!" People turn to look but I couldn't care less right now.

"Hey," I grab his hands. "It's not over yet."