Page 22 of Beyond The Break

“I’m not.” I cross my arms.

“You are. You got all defensive over me at the bar, now you’re taking me to get food because I didn’t eat.”

Her words piss me off because it seems that everyone around me expects the absolute worst. It bothers me more than I let on. Sure, I’ve been a bit dickish to her, but that doesn’t mean I hate her. I wasn’t raised to just sit back and do nothing when someone is in danger.

I clench my jaw again. “Despite what everyone thinks, Eliana, I’m not a complete asshole. I’m not just going to stand by and watch you get drugged or starve.”

“Right,” she says, furrowing her brows as she studies me. “Well, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I walk ahead of her and toward my car, needing to cool off.

SEVEN

ELIANA

I followGriffin as he walks to his Jeep, but I stop when I spot the rest of the team piled into the van. In the back seat, Zale furiously rolls his window down and sticks his head out.

“Eliana,” he calls out. “You’re one of us now. An attack on you is an attack on the team. So, make sure you’re not blaming yourself in that pretty little head of yours.”

I don’t expect his words to hit me as hard as they do, and I fight back the warmth prickling in my eyes and the tightness forming in my throat because I have been blaming myself. If I wasn’t there, that weirdo wouldn’t have approached me with the stupid bottle and the others could have continued with their fun night.

Who knows what will happen to them now that the bartender told Gabriel. What if he kicks Zale and Griffin from the team? Or what if the police show up at the house and take them away for injuring that creep? I’ll only have myself to blame if that happens. I clear my throat and force a small smile on my face.

“Thanks, Zale.” I say, my voice shaky.

“You get her home safe, Fin!” Maliah calls from the passenger’s side before she looks at me through the windshield and wiggles her brows, a grin creeping onto her face.

I feel my face flush from her silent insinuation. Kairi flashes me a toothy smile too before backing out of the parking lot and pulling onto the road that leads to the Shredder House.

“You coming?” Griffin holds the passenger side door of his jeep open as his eyes focus on mine.

In the light of the parking lot, I get a better look at him. He’s wearing a black T-shirt, fitted black jeans, and sneakers. I find myself staring, until he raises an eyebrow at me questioningly.

I dip my head and walk over quickly, getting in before he slams the door behind me. Once he hops into the driver’s side, he starts the car and pulls out of the parking lot with an aggression that scares me into instinctively gripping my seat belt to make sure it’s still there while an anxious feeling crawls up my throat.

“Please slow down,” I say, hating how scared I sound.

He doesn’t slow down though; he keeps increasing his speed as we continue down a dark and winding road. The sound of screeching tires, shattering glass, and the screams of my parents echo in my head, and I squeeze my eyes shut as my breathing becomes labored while the flashbacks from the accident pour in.

“Griffin,” I whimper, “please.”

I feel his eyes land on me, but I keep mine squeezed shut. The car deaccelerates and we drive in silence for a while until my heartbeat and breathing have returned to their normal rhythm.

“What was that?” he asks softly.

I feel embarrassed that he saw me like that, so close to breaking down, but I’m also pissed that he was driving like an insane person. I turn to glare at him, and he raises a questioning eyebrow in response.

“You tell me.” I cross my arms over my chest.

He sighs and returns his attention to the road, choosing to sit in silence instead. After a few minutes of driving through the dark roads, I realize that we aren’t driving towards the house, we’re driving away from it.

“Are you planning on dumping me at the edge of town or something?” I ask.

His eyes search mine before he sighs and looks away. His grip on the steering wheel tightens, knuckles turning white.

“Do you really think I would have stepped in today if I wanted you gone that badly?”

---