“ANSWER. THE. FUCKING. QUESTION,” he says through clenched teeth.
“Ethan.” I whisper, bracing for the explosion. He grabs my upper arm and begins to drag me outside. I look around to see if anyone is watching and see Mike and Jake begin to walk in our direction. I shake my head at them, and mouthDon’t, please. There’s confusion and uncertainty in their eyes, but they stop and watch as I am dragged outside.
We get to my car, and he finally stops and drops my arm. It’s throbbing where he gripped me. I look up at him, not knowing what to say next. After a few seconds of tense silence, he says in his most controlled voice, “What exactly happened at the beach with Ethan?”
“Nothing really,” I say calmly, trying to buy myself time to think about what to say. He raises his eyebrows in disbelief and lets out a puff of air while shaking his head.
“You really think I believe that shit? Do you think I’m a fucking moron?” His stance is stiff and his look cold and calculating.
“No, I don’t. I…uh…I am… I’m just saying that nothing really happened.” I pause. I know I am going to have to share something, so I continue. “Ethan told me he had feelings for me is all,” I blurt out quickly.
“What the fuck, Sophia! You have your panties in a wad because I’m passed out, but you have a dick declaring his feelings, and you want to be pissed at me! Fuck you!” The tears stuck in my eyes start to flow. He takes a couple of steps to storm away, so I follow and grab his arm.
“Talk to me! Please,” I beg.
“Talk about what? The fact that my girlfriend lied to me. I’m out!” He tries to pull his arm out of my grasp, but I am holding on. He jerks away and pushes me forcefully, causing me to stumble and fall. I watch as he walks into the bar, leaving me on the ground outside, crying in the cold night air.
I pull my keys from my purse, needing to escape quickly. I hop in my Mustang, speeding out of the parking lot. I’m having trouble seeing the road with the combination of tears in my eyes and the alcohol I have consumed. Less than a mile from home, my phone rings, and Caleb’s name pops up on my display. I hit the button on my steering wheel to answer.
“Hello?” I mumble.
“Are you still sticking with the story that nothing happened?” he yells over the phone. I am terrified and do not know how to respond. My mind races.
“Yes,” I answer, crying, as my hands tremble and grip the wheel harder.
“Then why are these pricks at the bar so worried about you? Wondering where the hell you went and if you’re okay?”
“Because we’re friends.”
My sight is completely obscured by tears.
“What the fuck ever!” he says, then silence. The background bar noise I heard before is gone now, and I realize he hung up on me.
I’m having trouble controlling my trembling hands. My body jerks upward as my seatbelt tightens around me, and I hear a loud crashing sound. I slam on the brakes, looking around unsure what exactly happened. My car is tilted to the side. I quickly unbuckle and step out of the car to see I jumped the curb. The passenger front end is up on the curb with a flat tire.
I begin to freak out because I have been drinking and driving. I could get arrested. I jump back in my car, throw it in reverse, and drive very slowly to the apartment complex entrance. The car is making an awful scraping sound, and the ride is bumpy. I park, grab my purse, and run up the stairs to my door. All the lights are off, so I assume Lena is already in bed.
I throw myself in bed, thinking about everything that went wrong tonight. I never should have been driving drunk. The adrenaline that has kept me going since the confrontation with Mike leaves my body, and I feel an overwhelming sense of hollowness. The things I have done, stupid decisions I have made, and people I have hurt in the process rip me up inside.
I am startled out of my thoughts when my phone rings. I look at the screen and see Ethan’s face sexily smirking. My body starts shaking again with the unfinished pain of his leaving. I ignore the call, silencing the phone.
“Sophia?” Lena yells through my door.
"I'm here," I call out to her, sitting up.
She walks into my room, takes one look at me, and rushes to my bed, asking, "What happened?"
She is clutching her phone. I cringe at the thought of who could be on the other end of the line. I look her in the eyes and glide my sight down to her hand, raising an eyebrow in question. She silently mouthsEthanto me. I raise my hand waving it back and forth by my throat indicating for her to hang up.
She brings the phone up to her ear and says, "She's here. I'll talk to you later." I am expecting her to hang up, but she keeps the phone to her ear and turns her back to me.
"No…I don't think that’s a good idea… But…No… I'm not sure… She hasn’t said anything yet… Hold on." She turns around facing me and extends her hand, holding the phone to me. "He wants to talk to you."
My eyes widen, and all I can do is shake my head furiously back and forth. She shakes her arm and hand, bringing the phone closer to me. I continue shaking my head, pleading silently for her to hang up.
Her lips turn downward in a frustrated frown before bringing the phone back up to her ear and saying, “Let me talk to her first. I’ll call you tomorrow… Okay… Bye.”
“Spill.”