Page 34 of Stuck-Up Big Shot
“Thanks, Ben. I just felt compelled to share it, you know? It was really cathartic, and had you not invited me, I may not have had the chance to meet these kids. It felt good working with them. In fact, I think I will come back. It’s reinvigorated my desire to finish school.”
We walk hand-in-hand toward the back of the room as participants fold up their chairs and chat in groups around us. I’m not kidding when I tell him that this day really helped revive my passion for this work, and I can’t wait to come back here to volunteer more often.
“Oh, come on. You’d have finished your masters no matter what. Out of the two of us, you always were first in everything. Remember that time when we were kids—”
Ben’s sentence is cut off by a booming voice. One I’ve become all too familiar with recently, but it seems to rattle Ben, who is surprised by the interruption.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Sutton?” Miles’s voice is ice-cold and accusatory, and he is undoubtedly pissed off. He’s visibly shaking and stands in front of me with a menacing, contemptuous glare.
I feel Ben’s protective instincts kick in as he steps forward, forcing his way in to create a buffer between Miles and me.
“Miles, hey, man. Not sure what’s going on here, but why don’t you lower your voice so we can talk about this?”
Ben, ever the people pleaser, places a gentling hand on Miles’s shoulder, whose body seems to buzz in protest, his eyes wild and hands fisted tightly at his sides with controlled rage. Over what, I’m not sure? It hadn’t even dawned on me that there was a possibility he might be here today. I haven’t seen him in days—a week, in fact.
Miles jerks his shoulder away, staring hard at Ben and then pinning me with his riotous blue gaze.
The words he forces through his mouth arepop, pop, pop. Like confetti poppers or gunshots. “I. Need. To. Talk. To. You. Now.Button.”
Oh wow. He went there. Using the nickname he gave me when I was just a kid, because he teased me, saying he thought my name was weird, and that the end of my nose looked like a button.
The memory has me nervously sucking my lip between my teeth, and I glance at Ben, who is completely out of his depth obviously unaware of what’s going on between Miles and me. I’ve given him no indication that Miles and I know each other or have a shared history together.
Ben’s expression holds wary protectiveness, telling me in his gaze that he will gladly do what I want him to do. I scan around the room to see if there’s anywhere Miles and I can go for privacy and then decide the kitchen might be empty. Giving Ben a hug and a kiss on the cheek, I tell him, “I’ll be fine. I’ll call you later.”
Turning back to Miles, I tip my chin toward the kitchen. “Come on, Miles. Let’s talk in there.”
I don’t look behind me to see if he follows because I know he will. I pass several people along the way, and Darnessa comes rushing up to me, throwing her arms around me.
“Thank you, Miss Sutton. You gave me the push I needed to sing in front of everyone. Did you like it?”
She steps back, her chin dropping to her chest, looking up from underneath her lashes in a shy gesture.
“Darnessa, I am so proud of you. You were incredible. See? I still have chills from listening to you.” I hold out my arm for her to inspect, although truth be told, the goosebumps are from seeing Miles and the uncertainty about why he’s so angry with me.
She smiles timidly and shrugs, her toes tapping on the floor excitedly. This would be a picture-perfect moment had it not been marred by Miles’s outburst a moment ago.
And I don’t want any of that to taint Darnessa’s enthusiasm, who seems oblivious to any tension between us.
“Honey, it was all you. But listen, I need to talk to my friend, Miles, here privately for a moment. Can we get together afterward?”
As if she hadn’t even noticed him standing behind me, her head snaps up to meet Miles’s gaze, who plasters on a polite smile for her, at least.
“I caught the end. You were amazing.”
And just like that, Miles turns on the charm, and it’s so obvious to see Darnessa melt from the weight of his compliment.
“Thanks,” she mutters, cheeks glowing with warmth from his praise. “I’ll see you later, Miss Sutton.”
She turns and then runs off toward a group of girls, who embrace her with the kind of love and friendship she deserves, as I try to swim through the current of emotions I’m experiencing right now. Pride and happiness mixed with indignation over the way Miles is acting.
I open the swinging door with a bang of my palm and step in the darkened kitchen. A small window above the sink, adorned with a tattered ruffle valance, lets in a small amount of light, but dusk is settling in over the city, and it washes the room in a gray monotone color.
My feet stop in the middle of the room, a center island in front of me, and then spin around quickly to face him. What I don’t expect is to find him so close to me, his body hovering over mine. I back up, and my butt hits the counter behind me as he steps forward and invades my space.
His chest heaves, nostrils flare, and we’re locked in a staring match. This might be his fight, but I’m not backing down. I did nothing wrong.
“I can’t believe how rude you were in front of all those kids,” I huff, extending my hand to point toward the room we just exited. “What is it you think I did, Miles? Please, tell me. Enlighten me on how awful I am when all I’ve tried being is nice to you.”
