It's Monday morning and you're alone. Alone at a coffee shop with your laptop and a large iced mocha feeling as if you need to be doing something productive. So used to the normal schedule you'd waken up at 7 only to realize you're supposed to be quitting. In fact, it's the only reason you came down to the coffee joint; to use their wifi for emailing your supervisors because it's so much faster than yours at home.
Pressing 'send' feels so wrong, like a weight has both been lifted off your shoulders and placed on them again at the same time. You're terrified to tell your parents, hesitant to tell your girls, but all in all you're glad you get to just breathe out a sigh of relief for once. It allows your mind to focus on other things; like yesterday morning's awkward situation. To go from being choked during sex to caught eavesdropping all in the same couple hours; it ruined the shit out of your happy post-sex vibe. You were supposed to pass out on Erik's soft ass bed with those black satin pillowcases, maybe watch some movies while he used your butt as a pillow. But instead, you grabbed your shit and hobbled out into an Uber in silence, not even waiting for an explanation on what you'd heard.
Thinking of the way he looked at you is still giving you chills. And maybe you're being dramatic, but you swore for a second that he wouldn't have minded killing you for hearing.
Erik hadn't said anything about it when you left, only following you outside to watch you get into the white Jeep that came to get you. The trek up your apartment's stairs was hell on your ankle and you had to explain to your visiting parents why you look so raggedy. Your mother had something to say about you hanging up on her, and your father had something to say about Erik's flannel shirt tossed on your couch. It could have been yours, but he was adamant that it was a man's solely because of the size and the smell of the cologne.
Funny, you didn't think he had a sense of smell on account of all the Joop he wears.
That began another conversation, about you being smart and safe and not letting 'no-good ass men' mess with your head. You ignored your mother the entire time, all the while trying to convince her your red neck was the result of a bunch of cheap chokers breaking you out.
Twirling your straw around your drink you sigh, resting your head on your hand. Your brain feels more confused than ever, and you don't exactly know where to channel this energy. Sydney and Kayla are at work by now, and will be out of commission until around 4, and that makes you feel even more lost. Someone should have taught you how to do nothing.
The thought of texting Erik crosses your mind but you don't know what to say. It's a bit early for sex, and it'd be too weird to ask him to hang out like you're 12. And you actually do want to hang with him today, only to ask for a very important favor, and you're afraid he'll get on you for wanting him to do something. Especially after yesterday.
You sit at the table, ice melting in your drink, for an agonizingly long time debating on whether or not to text him. The iced mocha is a lukewarm mess by the time you decide to leave, and you toss it in the trash can angrily as if it's the reason you're going through it right now.
The text you send in your car is short and to the point.
Can you do me a favor? If you're not mad at me
You finally saved his number in your contacts, but you're not sure if you should leave it as 'Erik.' T'Challa definitely called him something else last night , and even though you don't know how to spell it exactly, the name just looks odd in your contact list. There's a crack in your screen that perfectly splits 'Erik' in half, and you try to remember when you dropped it. Maybe it happened when you rolled your ankle, but you're annoyed because it's just something else to pay for.
