I expected someone to walk in. Maybe a stranger, maybe Christian, maybe Cody or even Death.
Instead the door was opened by a stranger and when I turned I came to look in through the doorway where a pretty dense group of people had formed. Standing like statues, unmoving and in shock, listening in on us.
We weren't quiet, I realised.
The door wasn't soundproof and the house wasn't that large. This entire time we'd been pretty much screaming directly into the living room.
While we had been yelling at each other they had approached the door, likely out of good-natured curiosity, and... and they had heard everything. Or a good portion of it. Even the tail end of our argument was enough to... They heard it.
Every word of it.
I couldn't describe the feeling, and seeing Anna in the crowd made it jump up tenfold. Less like euphoria, more like... powerful. A big strong man with more muscles than I ever had before. I could do a backflip out of here I was pretty sure.
Suddenly I was in charge, not this helpless small person wandering amongst a crowd of people that hated me and would never believe a word I had to say.
No, they had to believe me now no matter what.
When I looked at Zack, he was a white sheet, he almost camouflaged with the white kitchen tiles behind him, and was in the process of turning green.
I set my cup on the counter in the awkward, thick silence.
The crowd said nothing and did nothing but stood, staring at Zack and also off into the distance like they had been possessed.
When I approached to go through them they parted like the Red sea shuffled to the side leaving a clear path for me to exit.
I marched out, feeling like every other step was too fast or too slow, knowing that all, or at least mostly everyone was watching me.
Anna trailed after me as I pushed towards Death, who was waiting with his hands on his crossed legs calmly.
"I'm sorry-" She tried to say.
I looked back briefly. "You don't need to be. You did everything right." I reassured her, and I saw a shade of relief in her eyes as she disappeared behind someone else who also tried to approach me.
But I didn't want to know what they wanted. I didn't want the questions or the apologies or even the possible accusations. I just wanted to leave.
This was Christian's birthday and I was making a big mess of it... I'd gotten what I wanted, he'd made a fool of himself.
Even if only a few of the people he'd told realised he wasn't telling the truth and no one else it was still a huge relief and I didn't need anything more.
I reached out a hand to Death as I stepped out in front of him.
"I'm glad you made me do that." I said in a low voice with a smile.
He took my hand into his warm strong hand and stood up effortlessly. "Looks good on you." He said, a glint of mischief in his eyes as he turned towards the door.
I glared at him. "Yeah, about that..."
~⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣~
"So I'm sorry we left, we couldn't find you." I said, the wind rustling through my hair.
"That's fine," Christian's voice sounded a little far away on the other line. "I heard what happened, I get it."
"Yeah," I rubbed my temples. "Sorry about that, on your birthday..."
"Nah," He brushed it off. "This is interesting if anything. I would have probably just gone out for dinner on my birthday. I was wondering how this would develop in any case."
I looked up at Death, my hand gripping his tighter. "You knew about it?" I asked quietly.
"Yes, well no, but sort of. He told me what happened, that he cheated on you, so when he came back to me a couple days later and told me a completely different story, that he told you what you did and you broke up with him... I knew it was bullshit. I tried not to say anything. I can't- Y'know. If there was any truth to it I guess it would be..."
"I get it." So he had known. That shouldn't have mattered as much as it did.
Knowing that even if we hadn't, by chance, been stupid enough to have an argument easily heard by everyone, he would have at least innately understood that I wasn't lying, maybe even stood up for me when it counted... when it inevitably all came crashing down.
And even now, even with all the relief it felt. That sickness remained, that for what felt like ages now people had been told that about me.
"Does this mean we can talk about it?" Christian asked me.
I scoffed. "Well yeah, I wouldn't stop you."
He grunted. "Yeah, he told us not to say anything."
"Zack?"
"Who is us?"
"Me, Anna, what's the name of that guy you're close with?"
I scratched my head. "Clay?"
He laughed. "No, ah, Mark."
Right, of course. He'd been misled as well, yet I didn't know how to feel about it. Other friends of mine, all right, I guess they didn't know me as well. But Mark had been so willing to drop me as a friend and completely freeze me out without even wanting an explanation, without even wanting to yell at me or anything?
I wasn't going to lie and say that didn't hurt.
We wrapped up the conversation and hung up with my loud repeated birthday wishes lingering in the air as we passed by the alleyway leading to the communal parks along the way back home.
I kept glancing at our hands, the way his looked holding mine, his hand was larger with longer more elegant fingers. I looked up at him. He really was attractive in every stupid way. It was enough to make a model feel crushed looking at him. And yet I felt like it was right, he was right in picking me.
The way our hands linked together so comfortably, so naturally, there was something convincing about it.
Since I hadn't known about the allegations being made against me behind my back why I had no reason to be so relieved, especially when I didn't dare to tell myself that it was all over yet. No matter what happened I couldn't imagine not losing some friends over this.
Despite it all I held his hand tighter and grinned ahead of me.
"You want to go to the park?"
He grunted, an agreement, I decided.
~⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣︵⌣~
"It's kind of cold out huh." I said, breathing into my hands as I rocked myself gently with my feet backwards on the swing.
He nodded. "I suppose it is."
There was a slight sprinkle of frost in the grass, it wasn't enough to be very noticeable but it was cold enough that instead of melting and disappearing into the soil it sat and sparkled like glitter. A sprinkle here and there, it looked pretty.
The playground was empty, but someone had been here before us and used the swings, the seats were dry unlike the benches.
I'd always liked the swings, well past the age that it would have been acceptable to. After a while as I grew older it began to feel like the only acceptable reason to be sitting on one of these things was while getting drunk.
"I'm still not going to go work for you." I said, swinging back.
"Yes you are." He replied, at this point not even bothered by the statement.
"I'm not."
"You're stubborn as anything," He said, watching me like an adult watching a nuisance child. "But you'll give in eventually. I've known to be quite..." He tapped his nails on the chain of the swing he was resting his hand on. "Wilful."
I dragged my feet on the ground and turned to look at him with a slight scowl on my face. "Who says you're that way."
He raised an eyebrow, looking down at me as I involuntarily rocked back and forth a little. "Are we getting jealous."
My glare deepened. "No." I folded my arm. "I was just asking a question."
There was a low chuckle from him. "Complete with a scowl the size of the moon."
He got up from his swing and approached me, leaning down to kiss me. I didn't question it or think twice about it, I just closed my eyes and accepted the show of affection, drinking in every bit of it, revelling in it. The soft lips, how warm it made me feel, the tickle in my chest as my heart began to jog in reaction.
When he pulled away I saw his eyes opening as he pulled back as well and saw the long eyelashes feathering those sharp red eyes up close as he retreated and those perfect plump lips, pink in the chilly temperatures. Looking at them made me want him to kiss me again.
Made me want him to kiss me again.
His hand reached out and wrapped around the side of my neck, the place where his name stood tingling as he brushed it with his finger, a spark of pleasure in his eyes. "You look particularly good with that. I'll be displeased if you cover it up."
I looked up at him, the warmth of his fingers against my neck felt good. "What if I do?"
A host of darkness passed by in those blood red eyes. "Just to disobey me?" He asked.
I shrugged, feeling breathless all of a sudden. "I- No..."
He narrowed his eyes. "Then I would torture you." He said matter-of-factly. "In the most delicious way possible."
I couldn't help swallow loudly, my heart racing in response, a pleasurable throb ringing out from lower down. It was probably dangerous to probe this line of questioning any further. Far safer to find the safe concrete pedestrian path along the road than wander out into the sea, lost and without adequate signage. I knew the more I egged him on this way the closer I was coming to tasting it.
It was strange to have that feeling of comfort around another man like this. I finally understood why boys pranced around screaming 'I'm submissive' from the rooftops.
There was a kind of special freedom in knowing that it was acceptable for your partner to be the one to initiate the kisses most of the time and boss you around and take care of you. And when I thought about it like that the idea of working under him almost didn't appear that bad as bad to me as odd as that might sound.
Even though I'd never looked for men like him or even been with one, he was more attractive than any other man I'd ever met before, and the more I hung around him and adjusted to the idea my friends would get to know him and eventually bear witness to the dynamic between us the more I accepted that there wasn't a doubt who was in charge here.
He was my master, whether or not I was on a collar and leash being paraded through the park. He was in control. That was understood by the two of us.
"I won't cover it up..." I said finally.
He just chuckled, withdrawing his hand even as I inched closer to it. "Yes you will." He murmured.
Then my phone vibrated, and it took me a moment to fish it out of my pocket from the side of the chain.
It was a text message from Cody, plus a couple I hadn't seen.
[ C o d y ] damn bro I think I missed out on a lot
[ C o d y ] did he tell people you raped him?????
[ C o d y ] I knew it was something but that bitch was crazy thats not normal - is that what happen ???? we need to talk
[ C o d y ] are you ok? you didn't tell me you were leaving. I didnt even get to meet your new guy. at least tell me about this guy man.
[ C o d y ] you should see zack right now, no one knows what to say to him anymore... he threw up in the bathroom and he still looks peaky
[ C o d y ] no ones saying anything but he should leave
[ C o d y ] should I kick his ass?
I wanted to laugh idea of pacifist Cody trying to throw punches at Zackary.
I sighed, typing out a quick reply before tucking my phone away.
I felt as though Zack had been going into self-destruct mode since the day we broke up and I'd been too willing to avoid and ignore it.
At this point when I imagined Cody hitting Zack I felt like he'd probably just stand and take it.
That wasn't a happy thought. I couldn't help it, even if I felt relieved and back in control. I had slept in a bed together with him for the better part of four years almost every night. We knew each other well, I liked him. That wasn't disappearing into thin air. The idea of him setting a timer on his social life wasn't something that made me jubilant... but I also couldn't help him. He'd done this to himself.
At this point I could just hope that this marked the end of his lies, that he'd leave me alone now, pick up his stuff and forget me.
"I kind of want to go home now..." I said quietly.
"Home it is..." He said in a smooth low voice. There was a devious smile in Death's eyes and I was suddenly lifted from the swing, so smoothly it almost made no sense to be as shocked as I was. I yelled out in surprise as he carried me in his arms, princess style, and started taking me out of the playground. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, still unable to convince myself that this ethereal creature could have the power necessary to lift me without dropping me five seconds later.
"Dammit, I don't know if I'll ever get used to that..." I gasped against his shoulder.
He chuckled and I could feel the vibration coming from his chest. "Time will tell..."
[A/N] Thank you my wonderful patrons 〜 ╰( '⌣' )╯♡
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