"I told you to be careful," She said softly.
Davina was becoming bleary in his eyes. He was either fainting or crying. He couldn't tell what it was just yet.
"I need to be alone right now," Jordan said, pushing past everyone and making his way out of the cafe.
He stood outside in the crisp air, processing the image that kept replaying in his mind like some sort of sick movie. The one place where he thought he would be happy came crashing down. How could he be so naive? He thought it was going to be smooth sailing from here? He scoffed to himself, wiping away the water pooling in his eyes. He wouldn't cry over this.
"You okay, man?" A voice called out.
Jordan exhaled. "Yeah, I'll be fine,"
He turned to find Declan standing a few feet away from him. He looked apprehensive, like if he took another step towards Jordan, he'd be caught in an explosion.
Declan was at a loss for words. He honestly didn't know what to say now to comfort Jordan. He didn't know how Jordan would react to this. He didn't know how he would have responded if he was in Jordan's shoes. He didn't need to start the conversation. Jordan did for him.
"She has a boyfriend," He said out loud, testing the words on his tongue. He gagged as if he spoke it into existence.
Declan did nothing but nod.
Jordan clenched his fists. Anger pulsating through his body. If he could see red, he would at that moment.
"He doesn't deserve her," He grit out.
Declan nodded again in affirmation, standing up straight. He would have to contain Jordan if his anger got the better of him.
Jordan visibly relaxed, looking exhausted more than anything. He bit his fist, not knowing what else to do to release the tension.
"This is... this is just cruel," He said again, looking at Declan this time. "To know I end up with her eventually and then knowing I can't be with her right now because she believes she's in love with another,"
"It's gonna hurt for a bit of time," Declan finally spoke out.
Jordan tsked. Declan couldn't tell if it was out of agreement or annoyance.
"Why," Jordan started, but he didn't continue. Declan watched as he stared down the concrete in front of him. "Why did we have to know," He finally let out. Like a waterfall finally finding release.
"It would have hurt a lot less not knowing who she was," Jordan spoke, the words they'd all secretly been thinking, thoughts they'd been harbouring.
"I can only imagine how the rest of our lives would go," Declan started getting lost in his own thoughts.
"I don't know, man-"
"It will get better though, you said it yourself. We'll get through it all, the good and the bad," Declan comforted, mirroring Jordan's own words and enthusiasm.
Jordan was quiet for a long time. "Yeah, I guess," He continued staring at the ground until he eventually looked up and at that moment, Declan caught the complete devastation on his face. "It just hurts like hell now,"
Declan pulled Jordan into a hug. Jordan exhaled as he rested his head on Declan's shoulder. The silence was comforting them.
After a moment, the boys pulled apart.
"You wanna go back in?" Declan asked quietly, not wanting to lose the moment.
"Nah, not today," He couldn't face them again.
The door opened again, and the boys turned to face Davina.
"Hey," She said tentatively.
The boys nodded in acknowledgement.
Jordan and Declan shared a looked, and then Declan went back into the cafe joining the others.
"That was some warning you gave there," Jordan said, attempting to put some humour back into the situation. He smiled weakly at her.
Davina leaned against the wall, watching him. "Hmm, didn't work though, did it?"
Jordan scoffed. "I thought you didn't like me,"
Davina shook her head. "It had nothing to do with you,"
"Yeah, I can tell now,"
The two shared a small smile.
Davina opened her mouth to say something but stopped. Jordan watched her in anticipation. "You know, she doesn't know. She wouldn't have led you on or anything-"
"Yeah, I know, don't worry about me," Jordan interrupted. He didn't want to talk about this now or at all. She wouldn't understand.
Davina could tell he didn't want to talk about it. She didn't realise how hurt he was, though. She couldn't understand it. Why was he so devasted from a girl he'd only met a couple of weeks ago?
She watched as he looked back into the window of the cafe. He was only hurting himself more by standing here.
"Let's go somewhere," Davina spoke out, surprising even herself.
Jordan looked up at her, trying to find any sign of insincerity.
She walked towards him, her green eyes matching his. "Let's go somewhere. I need to take my mind off things and well, you," She trailed off.
Jordan tilted his head in amusement, looking down at her. She was still a few inches shorter than him, even in her boots. A slight smirk grew on his face as he caught onto what she implied. The smirk slowly crept onto Davina's face.
"Okay,"
*******
"I would never have guessed you out of everyone would be out here getting drunk with me," Jordan let out after kicking another can to the curb.
"I am full of surprises," Davina replied, handing him another drink.
The two of them were hanging around a liquor store after having bought a couple of cases of drinks.
Jordan thought back to what Estelle said about getting high together and snorted.
Davina looked at them curiously. "What?"
"But then again, I should have known that's how it started," He said more to himself than her.
So Estelle got her tendencies from her mother.
He wondered if they all did this often in the future.
Davina arched a brow, still missing his point. She turned to face the wall again.
"It's my fault. In the end, I fell too hard for her too quickly, and I ended up getting hurt," Jordan began rambling. Drunk Jordan is a sad Jordan.
"It's not your fault," Davina reassured, taking another swig of her bottle. "Everyone falls a little bit in love with Arya Hudson."
Jordan snorted. "So it seems," He turned to face her curiously. "What about you?
Davina looked back at him. "What do you mean?"
"Why are you wallowing in pity? Who broke your heart?"
Davina looked forward again, smiling slightly. "No one special,"
Jordan, ever the nosy, pressed further. "Come on, who was the guy?"
Davina snorted. "Who said anything about a guy," She looked at Jordan, her vibrant green eyes dulling at the moment. "Friends can break your heart too,"
Jordan could hear the sadness in her voice, wondering who or what it was, not fully understanding the severity of the statement just yet.
"Cheers to that," Was all he could respond with; the two clinked their cans and continued drinking in silence.
After a few more cans, Jordan spoke up again, slightly slurring his words.
"You know what my problem is?"
Davina feeling dizzy at that point, tried nodding her head to get him to continue.
"I don't know my limit with anything," He continued. "With people, with my friends, my family, this drink. It's killing me slowly,"
Jordan thought it over again. "And every time I end up getting hurt, I always fall back into this," He said, motioning to the drink in his hand. "It's like I look for a way to hurt myself."
Davina watched him for a long time. She then moved closer to him. "You know what, I didn't think you and I would have anything in common, but I was wrong,"
Jordan furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "How so?"
"You and I are both self-destructive. Look at us. We're only going to regret this in the end," She said, motioning towards the empty cans.
They both chuckled at that.
"Alright, you got us there," Jordan said, taking another swig.
"But then again, there's something beautiful in self-destructing, in finally giving in and not caring," She said, swirling the liquid in her can. "At least for the night,"
"To Self-Destruction," Jordan held up his drink.
"To Self-Destruction," Davina mirrored him, clinking their drinks again.
*******
"My back has given out!" Jordan exclaimed as he wobbled outside.
The two of them headed out of a nightclub they spent the last couple of hours in.
"I didn't know you could dance like that, Wallace," Davina giggled, having to hold the wall to steady herself.
The two burst into laughter, remembering Jordan twerking.
"It's genius. How did you know they'd buy you all those drinks," He asked her.
Davina shrugged a sly shrug. "It's been known to happen sometime,"
They shared a grin, remembering sharing a couple of cocktails.
"We need to go out with you more,"
"We should," She nodded as she looked up at the sky. "But I think we need to call it a night,"
"Can you drive?" Jordan asked. He didn't want to walk it home.
"Yeah, but we should sober up a little bit first,"
"Good idea,"
The two of them sat on a wall, trying their hardest not to fall off.
"Careful there, Humpty Dumpty," Davina chuckled as Jordan almost went over.
A moment passed.
"Hey, can I ask you something?" Davina spoke up.
"Shoot,"
"What's up with Bennett?" She asked, not looking at him.
Jordan smirked. "Why? You like him?"
Davina slapped his chest and then immediately went to steady him.
He laughed as he sat back correctly. "I'm sorry, I'm kidding,"
"Nevermind, I shouldn't have asked," She turned away from him, trying to hide the pink in her cheeks.
"No, no, no," Jordan tried turning her back to face him. "He's a cool guy, real suave, a real gentleman,"
"Are you just saying this because he's your friend?"
"He's not just my friend. He's like family," Jordan said with utmost sincerity.
Davina couldn't help but admire their friendship. She nodded at him, understanding this.
She then felt a droplet on her face. She turned to find the sky completely darkened.
"It's raining," Jordan stated, looking up too.
"Maybe if we sit in the rain, we can drown in something other than alcohol," Davina replied.
"We could drown in our thoughts,"
Davina thought about it for a moment. "No, I'd rather not,"
Jordan chuckled.
"Let's get out of here. I don't want to catch a cold,"
"Aw, our adventure is coming to an end," Jordan pouted. He enjoyed this impromptu outing with her.
Davina gave him a wry smile. "Not quite yet,"
*******
"You're crazy!" Jordan exclaimed from the passenger seat. He tried his best to hold on to the dashboard. They were right. Alcohol does make for reckless driving.
The music was on full blast, the windows were down, letting the wind them as they sped down the luckily empty freeway.
"Maybe!" Davina shouted back, grinning. She then turned the radio over and exclaimed. "I love this song!"
"Me too!"
The two of them are shouting out the lyrics.
"I don't got friends. I got family.
At the end of the day, that's all I need.
And you know, that's what you'll always be.
No matter how long it's been."
Jordan looked over at her. She was crazy. He was crazy.
But he couldn't remember why he was so upset before, after the night he had, he finally felt relieved. Maybe it would be alright.
He looked back at her, singing the lyrics. "I got family. At the end of the day, that's all I need."
She looked back at him, finishing the lyrics with him. "And you know, that's what you'll always be,"
They would be family in the end.
*******
"I don't see why I have to walk you up your flight of stairs," Davina grumbled as she struggled under all of Jordan's weight.
She had parked her car outside his apartment complex and had been coaxed into walking him to his door.
"Because you're a good person," Jordan replied, smiling as he leant on her.
"I'll never do anything nice for you again," She snarked back.
They eventually got his door, stumbling and almost falling a couple of times.
As Jordan went to open his door, the door magically opened itself.
"Hey, mom- wait, you're not my mom,"
"No, I'm not Jordan,"
Standing at the door was something worse than Jordan's mother.
Bennett.
Bennett eyed the two drunken teens. He looked from Jordan's unfocused eyes to his unstable body to his arm around Davina's waist.
He looked at their interlocking arms and then to Davina's lazy smile.
Something was coming over him. They're both drunk.
Jordan stumbled again, and Davina caught him. They both giggled at their imbalance.
"Did you two have a good time?" He grits out.
"Yeah, not bad," Jordan replied, seemingly not noticing the death glare he was receiving from Bennett. "Why are you here, Bent?"
No reason just wanted to know where you and Davina went together, alone.
"Just wanted to make sure you're alright," Bennett replied.
"Awww, he cares about me," Jordan cooed, moving forward to hug Bennett. He nuzzled Bennett's neck.
Bennett wanted to pry Jordan off him but instead pat his back. He looked over at Davina, giggling at Bennett being used as a teddy bear.
"So, did you guys get an Uber," He asked, witnessing their drunken state and trying to hold Jordan up.
"No, I drove," Davina replied, attempting to turn around. "I'm gonna go now too,"
Bennett looked up immediately. "You what?"
"I drove," She said slowly as if he didn't hear her the first time.
"I'm sorry, Bennett, it's your mother."
"She's gone now."
"Drunk driver.",
"Dad, where's Mom?",
"Come on, Estelle, we need to go-"
"Dad, where's MOM?"
"You did what?" He repeated, attempting to contain his anger.
"I said I-"
"How could you be so stupid?" Each word had an edge to it like he barely contained himself.
Both Jordan and Davina could feel the shift in the air, the atmosphere tensing around them.
Davina felt like a deer caught in headlights, Bennett's cold stare was piercing through her.
"I'm sorry," She stammered out, not knowing how to respond.
Bennett ignored it as he looked at Jordan. "You made her drive?"
Jordan was speechless. He didn't think of that at all.
"He didn't make me do anything," Davina spoke up but immediately regretted it since Bennett's fury was back on her.
"Do you have any idea what could have happened to the both of you tonight?" He looked between them.
They clearly did since both of them looked down immediately.
"We sobered up. I'm not even that drunk," Davina meekly pointed out.
Bennett gave her a look. "Really?" He said not buying it.
She was still struggling to stand straight.
She exhaled. "Okay, yeah, that was incredibly stupid of me. I take full responsibility. I'm sor-"
"No," He cut her off. "You don't get it, you endangered other people, you endangered Jordan, you endangered yourself," He pointed out.
She opened her mouth to respond, but he wasn't done. "There was absolutely no reason for you to have driven home,"
"We weren't thinking of that," She replied.
"Oh really?" He countered cooly. "What were you guys thinking of? What were you guys doing?"
Davina had enough of his lecturing. She didn't appreciate the hint of accusation in his voice. Her patience was running out fast.
Who did he think he was?
"Whatever," She tsked.
She knew she was wrong. She just didn't want him to be the one telling her.
Bennett turned back to Jordan. "And you. How could you have trusted her to drive you home? How could you trust her?"
That caught Davina's attention. Bennett regretted his wording immediately.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked slowly.
"Nothing doesn't matter," He bit out.
"Who do you think you are?" Davina bit back.
"I'm his friend," He growled. "And I don't appreciate you putting him in danger like that, so excuse me for not trusting you,"
Davina scoffed. Those words hurt her deeper than she thought they would.
Bennett could see the hurt he'd caused. He was torn, he never wanted to be hated by her, but he just couldn't get over the fact she would put herself in harm's way like that.
"Bennett, it's not her fault-" Jordan chimed in. He was cut off immediately by Bennett's stare.
"Go to bed, Jordan," He ordered his friend. Jordan nodded. He turned back to Davina to give one last sympathetic smile before he was off.
Bennett closed Jordan's front door, leaving him and Davina in the corridor.
They both stared down at one another.
"I'm driving you home,"
"I'm taking an Uber,"
They both said at the same time.
"Okay fine," Bennett gave in.
The Uber arrived a short while later, and Davina got in.
She then rolled down the window, looking at Bennett one last time.
"Just so you know, I wouldn't trust you either," She said to him.
There was no emotion in her words or her face.
She hated him.