Welcome to the Queendom

Chapter Ten

When I emerged from the elevator and almost made my way around the corner, I heard a familiar voice.
"I don't want you to come down here." It was Dean and he did not sound happy. I peeked around the corner and saw that he wore the mask of someone who did not want to be messed with as he listened to someone talk on the other end of his phone. Who was he talking to and why did he sound so mad? "Because I said so!" he whisper-yelled. He looked around which made me duck behind the wall again and not come out until he wasn't looking anymore. "The last thing I want is for you to show up. I left you for a reason." Is he talking about an ex-girlfriend? "I don't want to hear what you have to say, bye." With that he ended the conversation and stuffed his phone in the pocket of his black leather jacket. I counted to 10 in my head before emerging from behind the wall with an innocent smile on my face as if nothing was amiss. I fastened the medium sized buttons on my tan overcoat and tapped his shoulder. He turned around and his guarded expression disintegrated into a genuine smile. He looked me up and down with a raised eyebrow.
"You like?" I asked, doing a little twirl.
"Aw, you look adorable," he teased. "Adorable?" I questioned. "Just adorable? No, I have to be smoking hot. I put on heels for you-well Nikki made me put on heels for you, but still."
He chuckled. "I'm just twisting your arm. Why would Nikki do that though?"
I rolled my eyes. "Don't get me started. Something's wrong with that girl."
"Ready to go?" he asked, laughing and I nodded.
"Sure am."

We arrived at the La Taza Coffee House about 10 minutes later and got out. After receiving a friendly greet from the hostess, we sat down in a little corner and ordered our coffee. For some reason I didn't feel hungry anymore because I had a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach, replacing my appetite.
"You okay?" Dean asked. I probably looked sick.
"I'm fine," I quickly assured. "So what's been going on with you?"
He smirked. "We just saw each other yesterday. Not a lot has been going on."
"Look, I'm trying to start up a conversation here," I said, "help me out."
He shrugged. "Not much. What about you?"
"I got to talk to my mom yesterday for a little bit," I stated as our coffee came around. I used the coffee stirrer to make little swirls in it.
I could've promised you Dean's jaw clenched a little when I said that. "That must be nice. Is she a good mom?"
"The best," I beamed. "Yeah we jump down each other's throat every now and then, but she's there when I need her. I was actually surprised when she told me to go be a wrestler. I've been wanting it for so long but I thought she would want me to be like a doctor or a lawyer or something." I looked up at Dean and he seemed so out of it. I felt bad. "I'm sorry," I said. "Here I am going on and on about my mom. So what's yours like?"
Something in Dean's expression slightly changed, but it was gone in a flash and he shrugged. "I haven't spoken to my mom ever since I moved out back in 2004. That was when I started wrestling."
I gaped at him. "You haven't spoken to your mom in 10 years. Wow, I couldn't go that long. You should call her sometime and see if you guys can meet up."
Dean shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea." His voice sounded annoyed so I decided to not push the issue any further.
His guarded expression was back which made me think of the lobby and how he talked to the person on the other end of the phone. A question was bubbling up inside my throat but I tried my best to swallow it down. Now didn't look like the time. Our silence turned awkward and I contemplated on leaving and giving him time to be alone. I played with one of the figurines lining one side of the table. One was an angel with a cup of coffee in her hand, another a heart with a coffee cup engraved in the middle, and the last one just a plain mug that said Coffee Crazy on the front. I played with the Angel for a few moments before finally deciding to leave.
"I think I'm gonna go," I said as I pulled out a $5 bill from my back pocket to pay for the coffee. "Do you think you can tell the lady to keep the change?" I set the money down and started to stand, but he grabbed my arm, pulling-more like yanking-me back down.
"No," he quickly mumbled before removing his hand from me. "Sorry."
"It's fine," I assured before the question couldn't contain itself anymore. "Can I ask you a question?"
He smirked, his old self returning. "You just did." I swatted his arm before he raised his palms to the ceiling in surrender. "Fine, ask away."
"When I came down to the lobby, I heard you talking to someone." His smile slipped a little. "Can I ask who you were talking to?" Instead of answering, he traced his index finger along the brim of the coffee mug figurine. I hung my head a little. "Sorry," I mumbled.
"You're good," Dean assured, "but it was just an ex of mine."
I nodded in understanding though I really didn't. I can't remember the last time I had a boyfriend let alone been on a date. My work had always came first. I don't know why, but I said, "Daniella."
"Excuse me?" Dean asked. He seemed startled.
"Daniella," I repeated. "Remember yesterday when you texted me, wanting to know where I was and you said, 'Chelsea whatever-your-middle-name-is Renee'?" He nodded. "My middle name's Daniella. I know it's so out of the blue, but I just thought you should know."
"Chelsea Daniella Renee," he tried the name out on his tongue. "That's pretty." I don't know if my ears were deceiving me or not, but I could've sworn he mumbled, "At least there's one good Daniella I know." He looked over my shoulder and it seemed as if his bluish-gray eyes went black. He clenched he hands in tight fists. "No," he growled.
"'No,' what?" I asked about to turn around to see what he was looking at, but he snatched me out of my seat. Quickly fishing out a $5 bill of his own, Dean slammed it down on the table and dragged me out of the coffee house. "What's going on?" I asked as we broke through the doors out into the cold. "Let me go," I demanded, snatching my arm out of his grasp. "Tell me what's going on right now. What's wrong with you?"
He started to stumble over his words before he finally gave up. "I'm sorry," he said. "I'll make it up to you, promise." With that he stalked off.