Page 14 of Just Friends

“Sometimes.” He reached over and took another handful of popcorn from the dish in her lap.

“Jeez, what do you do with those handcuffs?” A mischievous grin passed over his face.

He raised an eyebrow. “You wanna find out?”

She glared at him. “Seriously, why are you here?”

He motioned at her. “Just checking on your burns.”

“I thought maybe God saw an opportunity for humiliation.”

“Humiliation? Honey, one of the last drug overdoses I worked, we discovered the guy with the needle still inside his arm, his pants down around his ankles, and a vacuum cleaner hose stuck to his…” he pointed toward his crotch.

Her eyes widened. “No.” Rebecca hid her face behind her hands. “Wow…what a way to be found.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “So, ordering a vibrator doesn’t even scratch the top million of the most humiliating things I’ve seen. Not even close.”

What was she doing trying to make this guy blush? She wasn’t equipped for that. “I guess not,” she whispered.

He retrieved the television remote from the cushion in between them. “What are you watching?”

Grateful for the change of subject. “A scary movie,” Rebecca replied. He pressed the button and let the beginning of the film play for a few seconds before pausing it again.

“That’s Hocus Pocus.”

“It’s a Halloween movie.”

Amusement shown in his eyes, but he didn’t laugh. “Fair enough.” He started the show back, and they watched in silence; he often stole her snack despite her smacking his hand every time.

After the movie ended, he slid next to her. “Here, let me check on your burns.”

“I can change the bandages myself,” she said.

“Sure,” he replied. He eased the tape aside. “I want to see if that one spot is a second-degree burn.”

Despite her best efforts, she winced in pain at the removal of the bandage. “Sorry,” he whispered. His fingers grazed her arm while he studied the burns. “It looks like right there went into second-degree. If it were any larger, I’d make you go to a doctor. It’ll probably blister.” She glanced down and her breath caught. She was wearing a tank top sans bra, and that’s how she’d been running around in front of him. No wonder he’d wanted to inspect her burns. She closed her eyes. He worked on bandaging up the injury, his touch delicate, without noticing her realization.

“I know it hurts,” he said, his voice full of compassion. He leaned forward and left a soft little kiss on the top of her gauze. Electricity shot through her body straight to her nether region, and she wished his mouth had been about two inches south. She drew in a quick gasp horrified at the thought. Weasel must have mistaken her reaction for discomfort because he rose.

“Where’s your pain medicine?” he asked. He disappeared into the kitchen before she could respond. Cabinets opened. By the time her breathing normalized enough for her to tell him to stop rummaging through her things, he had returned with two tablets and a refill of her soda.

“Don’t go through my stuff.”

“Why? Any illegal weapons here.”

She smiled at him. “Maybe.” She swallowed the pills with the drink.

He released a heavy sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and first finger, and mumbled something under his breath about women.

She laughed. “I’m kidding,” Rebecca remembered that her tata’s were hanging loose and pulled the blanket off the couch behind her, wincing as she wrapped it over her shoulders.

Weasel sat on the coffee table across from her, his hands on her knees. “I can teach you how to handle a weapon––”

“I already told you, I don’t want it,” she interrupted. “You took it, right?”

“I’ll put it in my gun cabinet for now, but if you change your mind…” He held her knees. His eyes surveyed her. She looked elsewhere. “He hurt you. Is that why you bought it?”

Rebecca shook her head. “Just let it go.” She’d tried to push the reasons out of her head that she once believed that she needed a gun for. That Kyle had cornered her, yelling, and had raised his fist, which made her cower, and she despised herself for that. She hated herself for staying after he hit her one time. Then, the only thing he had to do was threaten her to get his way. But ultimately, she didn’t like how the gun felt in her grip, and she didn’t need it anymore.

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