Page 41 of Infamous Heart

This is where Xander would have threatened to kill him. He’d have meant it and had Sebastian not had superpowers, I might be worried. Chad didn’t offer any promises of bodily harm, instead he held onto my hands. Every few seconds as space between us remained quiet, he tightened his grip, reminding me he was there.

“He’s out of my league.” I thought Chad might chime in to argue my point of view, but instead, he leaned against the counter, letting me speak. “He’s rich, or at least my definition of rich, and he has my dream job. The loft is amazing, and he’s just,” I couldn’t reveal his secret, no matter how hurt. “He’s amazing.”

“You’re talking a lot about him. What about yourself?”

“Me?” I laughed, but stopped as the taste of alcohol resurfaced. “I don’t have a job. I’ll have to get some shit job soon to pay the rent. I have a useless college degree. How can I live up to that? I feel like I was on the receiving end of a pity date.”

“Do you want to hear my opinion?”

“No,” I returned a squeeze, “But you’re going to tell me, anyway.” I forced a smile that lasted just shy of a split second.

“Rude,” he started. “You don’t have a job because you’re talented and those assholes at the Beacon didn’t respect that. You got fired because you decided to value yourself.”

“Look where self-esteem got me!” How fast did it take for alcohol to kick in? The warmth in my stomach had spread to the rest of my torso.

“It got you out of an abusive relationship. As for this man—“

“Sebastian.”

Chad made a sour face. “The same goes for Sebastian. If he’s not going to value you, then you have to do it.”

I’m sure with a good night’s sleep, I might not be teetering on the edge of emotional oblivion. If it had been an isolated incident, I might have shaken it from my shoulders. But Dan had been the first to point out my inability to succeed. Now it looked like that lack of success with work had infected my relationship as well.

“How do you know if somebody is good?”

Chad pulled his hands free. Scrunching up his face, he searched for the appropriate answer. I had seen him every day for the last few years, but I had never noticed his beard and how he squared the hair along the jawline. A literal light hung above his head, making him appear almost comical.

“I guess once you meet the right person—“

“Not good for you. Just, good.”

“You’re asking the hard questions tonight.” He raised the bottle of bourbon to his lips, taking a swig. “I guess that’s unique to each person. But since actions speak louder than words, I think a good person is somebody who does good things.”

“If they don’t do good things, are they bad?”

“Griffin, did he do something to you?”

I quickly shook my head, and even after I stopped, it seemed the room didn’t get the memo. “Like a superhero,” I said, “if he doesn’t help people, is he a bad guy?”

“Maybe? I guess that’s in the eye of the beholder. Let’s say, Cobalt, for instance, does something I deem good, and you say is bad. What does that make him?”

The liquor was having the desired effect. The words were bouncing about my head, but I struggled to get them out of my mouth. “But there’s right and wrong, right?”

Chad shrugged. “Cobalt does plenty of things I don’t agree with. The property damage? Sometimes he stops the villain but doesn’t prevent a civilian from getting hurt. But I must assume he’s doing what he can. He’s not good, nor evil, he’s Cobalt.”

I could barely follow the logic. But Chad’s tone was soothing, kind, and free of the judgement I received all day.

“You have a crush on him?” I couldn’t help but smile. I tried poking him in the chest, but my depth perception had fallen victim to bourbon, and I jabbed at empty air.

“Have you seen him in that suit? Rawr. He’s a sexy man.”

I couldn’t argue with the logic. No, really, I was too drunk to put up a fight. At this point, anything Chad said would need to be treated as gospel.

“I’m drunk.”

“Yes—yes you are. Let me flip off the lights and I’ll walk you home.”

“You’re good people, Chad. I want you to know that. Good people. You’re like the best people.”

---