CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: THE RETURN
a.n. // double update today :) thanks to each of you for reading this<3
I'm laughing with Tommy over something Malee said about Red when I get the text from Darren.
What he says catches me off guard, but I knew it.
After the Aveburg Affair, he didn't talk to me for weeks. No text, no call, nothing. Apparently, his pride and ego had really taken a hit that night.
But eventually, in mid-November, we all just started hanging out again, without discussion of what happened or any other explanation. I thought everything was fine, but if I'm being honest, deep down I knew he still was harboring something.
I just didn't think he'd wait until January to talk about it, but okay.
So I respond to his, 'Can we talk?' message with, 'Sure. I'm at work, but you can stop by for lunch if it works?'
He says it does, so I don't bother to tell Malee about it. Instead, I just pocket my phone and go back to work until my break eventually arrives. And when Darren's car pulls up, I see him get out of the vehicle, but he doesn't enter the bar. After a minute or so, I decide to head out, confused as to why he's not coming inside.
Cold air hits my skin where it's exposed seconds before my shoes touch the snow as I shut the door behind me, immediately making eye contact with the blond.
"Hey?" I say, walking over. "What's up?"
"Could we...I...could we walk? While I talk and explain?"
"Okay..." I trail off, nodding and motioning for him to lead the way.
He does, and I follow as we move down the street away from Freed's. I stay quiet, waiting for him to speak first. When he does, I'm surprised by his use of the nickname that only Vaughn's usually called me by. Malee tends to call me Mikki, instead.
"Mik, you remember how I stopped talking to you for a bit after that whole thing?"
"Yeah."
"And then I never actually explained why?"
"Yeah."
"That wasn't what a real friend would do, and I'm sorry."
"It's okay...?" I answer. "I guess I'm just curious as to why you did it."
"You see, the truth is, I was caught off guard."
"Well, yeah, I didn't see the scarecrow clown coming either. Not to mention the ice water."
"No, I mean-" He pauses. "I mean you and Vaughn caught me off guard."
What?
"What?"
We stop walking, standing on the sidewalk, facing each other. We're not far from Freed's, and it's still in sight, but we're a few buildings away.
"Yeah. I mean, there I was, trying to get your attention, but when it came down to it, you ditched me and ran right into his arms," he laughs without humor. "I felt ridiculous."
"Oh." I feel my face start to go red. It's true. I did ditch him without a second thought. I wasn't a real friend.
"Jasmine probably loved it. Anyway, I realized after, though, that you don't feel that way about him and he doesn't feel that way about you. But I still wanted to apologize. Because that's not what a real friend would do."
Wait, what?
What does he mean, he realized Vaughn doesn't feel that way about me? What? I mean, yeah, I wouldn't assume he would, but did Vaughn tell him that? What?
I stay quiet, wondering what else he'll say, not quite sure how to feel about his words.
"And, it's not what a real friend would do, because I'm not a real friend."
"What? Don't say that, of course you a-"
"No, it's true, because I don't want to be your friend."
I freeze, straightening my spine and bracing myself for his next words. Either he wants to stop hanging out with me or he's in love. Already, I can feel the panic rising within me.
He stays quiet too, though, and so I shoot him a confused look, and he gives me one back.
"Aren't you...going to ask why I don't want to be your friend?"
Are you serious? Why's he acting like this? He wasn't like this before.
"I was planning on waiting for you to just tell me."
"Oh. Well," he pauses. "I don't want to be your friend...because I want to be more."
Oh.
"Oh."
"I've liked you since the day we met in the park, and-"
"Haven't you had two girlfriends since then?"
"Well, yes, but that's just because I was trying to get over you."
I stay quiet, feeling just as awkward as when I stepped into the tavern in Chickaloon for the first time. I have no idea how to handle this.
But honesty would be better than shying away from the truth...right?
I briefly purse my lips and start to fiddle with my hands.
"I...don't...feel the same...way."
Silence.
It's like he doesn't know how to respond, and it stretches on and on, in the way I hate. I watch his face start to contort once he realizes I'm being fully serious, and I wince internally.
"So you do like him? I knew it, he's such a liar." His voice raises slightly.
Huh? He's a liar? Who's he? I move more away from the road as a large black vehicle passes us and Freed's by. It looks expensive, but that's all I pay attention to. I'm too focused on what Darren's actually saying. "What? Who is? I-"
He's even louder now, and I take a step back. "You're just an indecisive tease. I see the way you look at him, and I remember the way you acted with me. You must think he's just so much better than me, don't you?"
"Wait, what are you tal-"
He takes a step forward towards me, looking even angrier. And I'm terrified because I've never seen him like this, with his usually pale face so red, and his styled hair so unkempt. He's usually been calm and controlled for the most part. Malee has never said anything about him getting so scary when he's angry. But then again, maybe she's never seen him like this.
It's terrifying how different someone you thought you knew can become. Was that secret person knowingly hidden within them the entire time, waiting for release? Or is it just a matter of an emotional hijacking, or an unintentional, careless lack of self-control?
"Look at you. You're just a scared girl with a crush on somebody she'll never get. And you know what? You're real stupid for not wanting to be with me. I would treat you wonderfully, but I guess that's how it always goes, right?"
"But- what-" I can't fathom how quickly this conversation took a turn, and I realize I'm shaking. "I thought you were just apologizi-"
All of a sudden, commotion, shouting, comes from up ahead, from the vehicle that had just passed us by. It's stopped now, and my eyes widen in alarm as I see a man running straight for us.
He's dressed sharply, expensively, but his hair is tousled and something in his eyes...His face. It's littered with scars, and I...
And I recognize this man.
"Run!" I yell to Darren, turning to go, only to get slammed back sharply as he shoves me down onto the ground.
It hurts, and as I fall onto the packed-down snow, I'm faintly aware of car doors and the sound of driving away. My eyes are wide with terror as the man barrels past me to continue after Darren, and my head won't stop racing.
What's happening? What's going on? What's happening? He's here? Was that his family? Why is he only chasing Darren? What is this?
I stumble to my feet as fast as I can, looking at where the black vehicle from which the man jumped out was, but it apparently drove away once he got too far from it. It doesn't matter, because I recognize this man from the day in the cafe with Vaughn.
Then I turn my head in the direction Darren and the man both went, not seeing either of them. I'm shaking even worse now, and without hesitation pull out my phone and click Vaughn's name.
Is this 911 worthy? I don't know. He just chased him, that's all. But Darren is a slow runner, as we've established. The man didn't have a weapon. But, still, if that's who I know it is, I need to call the cops immediately.
"Mikaere?"
"I need you to come to Freed's, please," I say, my voice sounding much weaker than I would have expected. I don't sound like myself, and I think he realizes that, too, because his response is immediate.
"I'm leaving now, what's wrong?"
"It's...so much just happened and I'm going to try to get near Tommy and Malee, but be careful when you get here." I pause. "I think I'm going to have to call the cops, too," I add lowly, more to myself than to him.
Now he sounds even more worried. "Mikaere, what- Are you hurt? Are you safe?"
"Yeah, no, I'm okay, I just...Please hurry. I have to go, just, drive safe, please. And keep an eye out for an expensive-looking black vehicle. It's large. Probably driving away from Freed's." And then I hang up, trying to not cringe at how abrupt I'm being, running in the direction of the bar.
And that's when I hear the sirens, so it would appear that the cops have already been called, probably by Malee, Darren, or Tommy.
Which isn't a good sign.
I run and run and run until I'm able to see that the man is banging on the bar door, and Darren is nowhere to be found. Neither is his car, so I'm assuming he got away safely.
However, I know there are more than a few blonds in that building. I slowly back up, trying to stay out of sight, even if I have dark hair.
I still can't wrap my mind around what just happened and what's currently happening. It's all happening too fast, and I can't stop shaking.
The man is clearly unhinged. A sane person would not act like this, and it terrifies me to wonder what happened to him to get him to this point.
This is nothing like the cool, confident boy I saw in the papers Vaughn showed me.
I'm panicking, feeling as I did when that man woke me and Grace from our sleep that one night. I don't know what to do except quietly get to my truck and wait for Vaughn.
So that's what I do, certain I'm a safe enough distance away from what's happening.
The cops arrive a short while later, and the oldest of them seem shocked at the man when they see him, and it solidifies my assumption of who it is. A pit of anxiety replaces my stomach and I feel sick, suddenly regretting having called Vaughn here.
How is this possible? He returns and all of this immediately comes back to the surface? He's been trying to heal from it all, and this is what he gets?
Only once they've managed to get the situation somewhat under control do I exit the vehicle, surprised that they did not use any violence against him, seeing at how violent he's acting. But then again, he's rich, white, and they know who his family is.
I hear the man saying a word over and over again. Band.
It's all he says as the cops put him in the back of the car. They seem visibly upset, disturbed, and confused as to what to do next.
And that's when Vaughn arrives, and I feel as though I've just made a horrible mistake in asking him here.
So, I run to him in his vehicle with the intention to reach him before he can get out and get a visible glimpse at the man in the car. And before the man can get a glimpse at Vaughn - who knows what would result of that? But before I can move to the passenger side and hop in, Vaughn's out of the vehicle and moving toward me. He appears visibly worried.
"Mikaere, are you alright?" He asks, and I walk right into his arms, hugging him tight.
I nod against his chest as he hugs me back just as firmly, but I have to tell him. I have to explain. So I pull back, and I struggle to speak as he wipes away tears that I didn't know had fallen from my eyes. But I manage.
"Vaughn, I just saw Ethan. And I'm pretty sure that if I was blonde, I'd be dead."