"So, seriously, what did you do to get this injured?" I asked, searching for the beginning of the tape roll. The tape was that clear kind and I had been turning it around in my hands for at least five minutes by now, trying to find out where it began. The weak lighting from above didn't exactly help, either. "You look like you died but got called back up by a necromancer. What is this?" Without hesitating, I prodded his bruised pink cheek. "You better watch YouTube tutorials on how to apply blush. What you're doing isn't working."
"I didn't get hurt on purpose, Florence." Wolfe grimaced. "I know it sounds shocking, but there are things that I can't control."
I pulled a face at him and opened the first aid kit. Immediately, a bunch of empty bandaid wrappers came springing out. I plucked them all out and set them besides me on the bench. Underneath the mess was medical supplies. Generic stuff, like thick white bandages and alcohol. There was also a little pink Dora the Explorer pocket watch, for some strange reason. "I have this really good Nars foundation." I offered. "Covers just about anything. It would work really well to hide the bruises. I can bring some-"
"It's not that serious." Wolfe rolled his eyes. "Please, Florence, it's not that big of a deal. I appreciate the concern but I don't need any Spongebob stickers on me. I've been hurt worse than this."
"Look at your hands."
"Florence-"
"Look at them." I winced at his knuckles. They looked so painful. The recent scratches on his palms from when I accidentally made him fall was bleeding a bit, too. "You look like you smashed those little red cochineal bugs with your bare hands. Your hands look like they went to Sephora and destroyed the rack that has all the red lipsticks. Your face is stupid. Your hands are so red, apples would be jealous."
Wolfe shut up after that. Sulking, he got up and washed his hands in a little sink that was near the back of the room. While he was doing that, I made a couple bandages to the best of my ability. (Not really, I just stuck wads of soft cotton material to some tape and added smiley faces to the back of them with a Sharpie I found in the kit.)
Wolfe came back, gently patting his hands dry with a bunch of brown paper towels. Without all the excess blood around, his bruises were a lot more prominent. They were fresh cuts, starting to immediately bleed again even after he wiped them off. Wolfe was expressionless as ever, as if his hands weren't almost mutilated. He made it seem like nothing could hurt him. And then there was me, the girl who could get a paper cut and act like she's on her deathbed.
"So what really happened?" I asked again as he sat down on the bench beside me. Taking one of his hands gently into my own, I pressed an alcohol wipe on his knuckles. It made me cringe just to do it and I wasn't even the one who was hurt, but Wolfe didn't even flinch. Not once. "Did you get into a fight? Or was it one of those illegal wrestling matches? Did someone try to take your Twizzlers? Because, oh man, I'd be looking worse for wear if that happened."
Wolfe's face finally contorted into a grimace, but I don't think it was from the stinging sensation of the alcohol reacting to his scars. Rather, I think it was from my question. He seemed vaguely annoyed ever since we met in the alley and it wasn't really helping my self-esteem. Not that being around Wolfe Sterling ever did. His lips tugged into a frown. "Why do you care so much about it, Florence? I don't need your help, nor did I ask for it. Why can't you just leave things alone?"
I stopped for a second, trying to swallow the hurt that came with his vicious tone. Wolfe's artificial emotions were giving me a headache. Trying to brush it off, I shrugged. "You're the one who dragged me in here, Wolfe. And I don't care." Lies, I totally did. "I'm just curious, that's all. It's not just me at fault for meddling. You do the same, intrude where you're not wanted-"
"Florence, absolutely nothing that I have done since I arrived has held the need for your presence." Wolfe spoke so beastly that I stopped working on his hands and stared at him in stunned silence. He continued in the same hateful tone. "Nothing in any of these situations requires you to be involved except for the relationship between parents and kid. I am doing business with your parents, not with you. Why get involved? What purpose do you have in this? What are you trying to accomplish by sticking yourself in a messy situation that has nothing to do with you? Your parents do not want you to be a part of this, Florence. And neither do I."
"If you don't want me around, then why force me into coming along?" I questioned. My chest felt tight with his words. It awed me that I could speak without choking. "You literally dragged me here, Wolfe. It's not as if I have a choice." I was getting defensive now. "This little deal may not involve me directly, but it involves my parents and I'll be damned if I sit around and let you bully them into doing your dirty work just because they're too scared to speak up. If I'm so annoying, Wolfe-" Anger flitted around my stomach like butterflies. "-then why bother keeping me around? Why not just kill me, kill my parents, take over the business as the sole owner, and get on with your life?"
Wolfe's jaw twitched, not out of amusement but out of a silent rage. "Because if I killed you-" he growled, "-your parents wouldn't comply as they've so kindly been doing. You're the only reason they have agreed to any of it. And if I killed you all, then someone would notice. It'd be too obvious of a crime."
"So that's the only reason I'm alive right now?" I could feel my face crumple. "Because you're worried about retaliation?"
"What else would be the reason?" His voice was passive and uncaring.
So it'd been established that Wolfe had no problem killing me. That stung. I paused for a moment, trying to regain my composure. I don't know when I had lost it, but it was gone. I was afraid to speak because I knew I'd cry. Staring hard at the bench, I could feel the tears burning. It was so stupid. He was right about all of it, anyways, but to be told how unwanted I was up front kind of sucked. I was never one to make friends, and I had no one else but my parents and Clancy. Ade was slowly distancing himself away from me. Wolfe didn't want me around. Wolfe didn't want me at all. I had known that...so why did it hurt so much to hear it?
"Okay." I whispered. The word was barely audible to my own ears.
Suddenly, Wolfe pulled his hand away. His eyes were burning emotions, yet somehow managed to remain cold and blue at the same time. I didn't know what I said to get such a reaction out of him, but he instantly seemed furious. "Florence, don't get upset over this. I'm telling you to stay out of it because you will get hurt if you do. I do what's best for my business. What's best for my life, my reputation. I do what's best for my bank account, love. If that's to take place in the coffee shop, so be it. I have a deal with your parents, not with you. There is absolutely nothing in this that involves you, Florence." He growled. "Perhaps it'd be best if you meddled in your own affairs rather than mine. The life I live, the life of the Crowns, it's not meant for people like you."
"People like me?" The hurt flared up again, making me lash out. "Oh, fuck you, Wolfe. What, am I really that delicate that I can't handle knowing at least one of your secrets? Maybe if you weren't so frigid you wouldn't find yourself in messes like this. Is human interaction really so terrible, Mr. I-Hate-Everyone? I'll stay out of it, I'll stay out of your life, but you have to stop dragging me around. Find someone else to annoy. But just know that I love my parents and I will do whatever it takes to protect them. To hell with you, Wolfe."
"Love is a weakness." Wolfe answered coldly. "You don't know people like I do, Florence. You haven't ever seen humanity as miserable as I have. We're fucking cowards. The most vulnerable ones are the ones that decide to put others before themselves. They're the ones who care, who love, who trust. Trust is such bullshit, in the end. It's human nature. Betray others to save yourself. That's how it finishes off, anyways, even in books."
"That's what you think. That's your opinion based on the life you have lived. The world isn't as black and white as you make it seem, Wolfe. There are good things in the world, too. Like Twizzlers. And love. Love is important. So are dogs. Haven't you ever seen a puppy, Wolfe? Looked into one of those cute little fuzzy faces and played with their poofy little paws? How bad can the world really be after that? Happiness isn't a product, Wolfe. You create happiness. It's a choice, not an object that will one day run out. The dinosaurs were happy. We can be, too." I said.
"Sure. Before they were completely annihilated."
"The same concept still applies."
"You have such beautiful beliefs." Wolfe's expression softened. He glanced at me, curiosity flashing for just a second in his eyes before it disappeared and was replaced with that cold apprehension. "But they're as true as you want them to be. My life is black and white even if the world is not. I know my goals. I know what I have to do to achieve them. If that makes me heartless, then fuck it, I'll be heartless. That's what it takes to survive, Florence. It's a dog-eat-dog world and I'll be the wolf."
"It doesn't have to be." I was frustrated. I couldn't see his view on things no matter how hard I tried. He was angry at the world. I just wanted to know why.
Wolfe shook his head. "Happiness. As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't exist."
"A choice, not an object."
"Please-" Wolfe sighed heavily. "-let's just drop it. Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you. I appreciate the help, truly. Could you maybe finish up bandaging a little faster? I think the rain stopped. It's half past four, I have something at six and I want to get you home before then."
"What do you have at six?" Despite the conversation we were just having about minding our own business, I found myself asking the question before I could stop. I wasn't even curious at all. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good since Wolfe was involved. I had no desire to know his (most likely illegal) plans for the afternoon. Feigning interest was just an instinct to remain polite. It was an autopilot factor for me.
Wolfe, if it was even possible, became more annoyed. He made a noise in the back of his throat. "What did I just say about meddling in my life, Florence? Are you really so curious about the world that you need to know everything, little miss nosy?" With a small secretive smile (alliterations, ugh) Wolfe offered me his hand again. I opened a new alcohol wipe since the one I had was drying out and began to carefully clean his wounds. The scratches on his palms weren't as bad as his bloody knuckles, but still made me wince.
After carefully cleaning both hands and applying antibiotics, I put on the terrible makeshift bandages. Wolfe sighed when he saw the smiley faces, but it was an amused sigh, not one of those I-am-just-waiting-for-the-right-time-to-murder-you-in-your-sleep sigh he was so fond of. After that was all done and he was bandaged up much better than before, I put everything away and shoved the first aid kit into his lap.
"There you go." I was so proud of myself. I deserved an award. I was basically qualified to be a school nurse at this point. Picking up one of his cotton blob hands, I kissed the tips of his fingers. I also might've tried biting one of them, but that was just because I wanted to see if his skin was made of silicone because I was still kind of holding out onto the notion that Wolfe Sterling was possibly a droid created by the government who'd gone rogue. I mean, him and a robot were practically the same thing, even if he did bleed. But then again, fake blood wasn't so hard to make either...
Wolfe stretched his fingers, testing the elasticity of the bandages. His hands were pretty much blobs of tape and cotton. I think the movement caused some of the wounds to open inside because blood was already seeping through. It made me feel real bad but what else could I do? I wasn't about to share my Twizzlers with Wolfe, though. I mean, I didn't feel that bad. Maybe if I, like, accidentally stabbed him or something, then I would. But I would give him the generic red kind even then, not the fruit-flavored ones with filling.
"I got stabbed once." Wolfe looked kind of annoyed at his knuckles so I offered the only reconciliation I could find. Realizing how stupid I sounded, I cringed and continued without thinking. "At the hospital. By a needle. From a doctor. With a vaccine inside."
He stared at me like I was crazy. "So you got an injection."
"No, I got stabbed at the hospital by a needle from a doctor with a vaccine inside. It was on my left arm. It was a pretty serious wound. I needed a bandaid."
"Oh my God."
"We should leave." I jumped up, accidentally knocking the pile of empty bandaid wrappers on the floor. Before I could apologize and start picking them up, Wolfe also stood up and very politely dragged me out the locker room by my wrist without saying anything else.
Once we got outside, he let me go. The rain had stopped. The streets were all sloshed up and everything was darker from being wet. The sky was much more bleak than before it started raining. There would be another thunderstorm tonight. A hint of the November chill rushed through the alley we were in. There was a black car parked next to a rundown building. Wolfe picked out his keys and began walking towards it. With a little sigh, I clomped down the street after him.
"Are you really going to take me home or are you just going to drive to the woods and abandon me there? Because it's not like you to do something nice, Wolfe. This offer makes me a little suspicious considering your reputation." I said worriedly. "Besides, I don't want to trouble you. Seriously, I always wanted to try one of those Uber cars-"
"It's no bother, Florence." Wolfe walked to the drivers side of the car and unlocked it. "You fixed me up, the least I could do is take you home. Come on, get in before it starts raining again."
He slipped inside. I hesitated for a second, still unsure about the meat grinder thing. He definitely seemed like the type who would do something like that. But as I glanced around and recognized nothing about my surroundings, I decided I was better off with Wolfe in the end. So I took a deep breath and pulled the door open, getting into the passenger seat.
Wolfe started the car and pulled out, joining the other cars in the street. Because of the rain, the roads were slippery but free. Fiddling with one of the zippers on my bag, I glanced out the window. They were tinted darkly, completely seen as black from the outside. I guess, with a quarter of a million dollar bounty on the back of his head, privacy was a necessity. I still couldn't believe I was in a car with Wolfe Sterling. The Wolfe Sterling. Brooklyn's most wanted. Why was I not running to the police?
It was in the midst of silence when Wolfe suddenly began to laugh. It wasn't really one of those laughy laughs and I could see nothing that could be humorous at all. It was more like a disbelieving, throaty chuckle. Like the kind of laughs you do after getting out alive from a situation that was meant to kill you, like when something miraculous happens and you're still trying to wrap your head around it with amazement. Wolfe noticed my befuddled reaction and shook his head, grinning.
"I can't believe you trust me so easily." He said softly. Remnants of laughter still sounded in his voice. "Why is that, Florence? I know you're not as naive as you're making yourself seem. You're a lot smarter than this, than to get into my car under the notion that I'd take you home when you know what I've done. What I'm capable of. And yet, this blind affection. This impulsive trust. You know I'm not a good person, Florence. Why do you try to make yourself believe otherwise?"
"I don't trust you, Wolfe." I stared at him, trying to understand what he was asking me. He stared straight ahead, not meeting my eyes. I could see the bridge in the distance so I wasn't panicking yet. "What are you talking about? I didn't want to get into this car, remember? You pretty much forced me in here. And you'd just get all huffy if I refused your offer, so I didn't. Come on, Wolfe. It's not like you gave me a choice."
He glared at me. "That's not true."
"Then pull over and let me out of the car. I can find my own way home."
As I expected, Wolfe clenched his jaw and kept driving. The bridge was getting closer. I sat back and watched the buildings blur past for a while. A ride back home with Wolfe Sterling. Clancy would be impressed. And it was all because Ade didn't show up when he was supposed to.
Speaking of Ade...
Pulling out my phone, I quickly looked through for any new messages. There was nothing new except for my half-finished order of lube. I didn't even want it any more. But just then, we passed one of those flailing arm balloon man that was advertising the grand opening of a furniture store. I was so amused by the sight that I forgot to cancel out the order.
Nosy as ever, Wolfe leaned over, noticed the screen, and then began laughing. "Why do you need strawberry shortcake flavored lube, Florence?"