Page 31 of Tiny Fractures

“Ran was ready to beat Corbin’s ass, but you passed out right then. It was like slow motion. Ran caught you just before your head was about to hit the tile,” Shane tells me, his already deep voice low, quiet, mindful of a sleeping Ronan in the living room.

“Vada and Tori went to town on Corbin,” Shane chuckles, “and Steve and I made sure that motherfucker left knowing not to ever show his face here again. Ran was just really worried about you. You were completely out of it. So Ran took you to the guestroom so you could sleep. He locked the door behind you to make sure nobody could walk in on you, and Vada called your mom to let her know you were already asleep and everyone was spending the night at my place,” he tells me.

I feel relief at his words, knowing my mom knew where I was, that I was safe, and she wasn’t up all night worried sick.

“But… wait, why did I wake up on the couch?” I ask.

My question must be funny to him, because he laughs. “You wandered back out of the room at like three or three-thirty last night. Ran and I were still up just talking about…” He trails off, clamping his mouth shut for a moment. Then he continues, “You came out to the deck and told Ran you didn’t want to be alone.”

“What?” I say, mortified.

Shane chuckles again. “Yep. So Ran asked you if you wanted him to sleep with you. You very adamantly said ‘yes,’ took his hand, and led him back into the living room. He was so confused,” Shane tells me with a barely contained laugh. “And then you just decided that the couch was the perfect spot for the two of you. You laid back down, waited for Ran to lie down next to you, and passed out again without another word.” Shane’s face is alive with amusement.

“Oh god,” I sigh and rest my head in my right hand, my elbow on the countertop, feeling embarrassed.

“No, Cat, you’re fine. Everything is fine,” Shane says again, his tone sincere as he pulls me into a one-armed hug. “This wasn’t your fault, okay?”

This is a refrain I’ve heard over and over in the past. But it is my fault. I know better than to drink, especially drinks I didn’t make or didn’t carefully watch being made. And who knows what I did or said to Corbin to put myself in this situation in the first place? What made him think I was the catch of the night for him?

Tears sting at the back of my eyes. I swallow the lump forming in my throat, blinking furiously to prevent the tears from falling.

“Hey,” Shane says, and he wraps his other arm around me, too. “You’re okay. Ran got to you in time. Nothing happened. Corbin didn’t touch you, and you didn’t do anything to deserve this, okay? He’s just an asshole who can’t get any, so he feels he has to drug girls to make shit happen for him, but you’re okay. Ran would never let anything happen to you; none of us would.”

My heart gives a weird jolt in my chest at Shane’s words. Ronan would never let anything happen to me. He cares about me; he took care of me last night—truly took care of me. He didn’t take advantage of me even though I was about as vulnerable as I had ever been in my life. He carried me into a bedroom—didn’t touch me, didn’t violate me, didn’t take inappropriate pictures of me—and made sure to lock the door on his way out to keep me safe. And when I rudely told him I needed him to be able to sleep, he obliged, probably spending some pretty uncomfortable hours on the narrow sofa while I slept contently cuddled up against him, soaking up his comforting scent and body heat.

And in that moment, it dawns on me that I can trust him.

Shane sweetly makes us some egg, cheese, and bacon breakfast burritos that help settle my stomach, and I quickly begin to feel better while we chat. The house remains quiet for a little while longer until Steve and Vada eventually emerge from one of the bedrooms and quietly make their way into the kitchen.

Vada immediately pulls me into her arms and hugs me tightly, apologizing profusely and repeatedly.

I wave her off. “Not your fault,” I say. “I should have known better,” I add with a shake of my head.

“Nah. It’s not your fault either,” Steve says, a crease on his brow. “Assholes like Corbin piss me off to no fucking end. It shouldn’t be on you to make sure some motherfucker isn’t trying to roofie you. Fucking bullshit,” Steve growls again, grabbing the second half of Shane’s breakfast burrito and taking a huge bite from it.

“The fuck?” Shane says, a consternated expression on his face as he watches Steve chew.

I laugh, feeling some of the ickiness from last night’s experience fall off me.

“Sorry, I get hungry when I’m angry,” Steve says with a chuckle.

“Okay, well there’s a whole-ass fridge with food inside it you can eat,” Shane grumbles.

“Are you about ready to head home, Kitty Cat?” Vada asks me, her normally bubbly spirit slightly subdued this morning.

“Yes. I’m in desperate need of a shower,” I admit, running my hands through my knotted hair.

“Yeah, I’m heading out, too,” Steve nods, his mouth still full of burrito. “You got Ran or should I wake him?” Steve checks with Shane because Ronan and Steve drove here together last night, whereas I rode with Vada.

“You don’t think hitchhiking would be a good option for Ran?” Shane jokes.

“Nah, he’s too pretty for hitchhiking. He’d get kidnapped in seconds,” Steve says, making Vada giggle.

“Then I guess I got him,” Shane nods with a chuckle. “I’ll get him home when he wakes up.”

Steve and Vada head to the front door, and I give Shane a quick hug, then follow Vada to her car.

Ronan

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