Page 99 of Naive in Love

“Come on. Sit up, slowly.” He grabs my shoulders and pulls me up to a sitting position. I look around, recognizing my surroundings.

“What happened?”

“Let’s get out of here, then we’ll talk.” He helps me stand.

I’m still dizzy, and my legs are unstable, so he holds me. My steps are timid, but my strength and bearings slowly come back with each step.

Back in my apartment,he sits me on the couch, then goes into the kitchen. He brings back a glass of orange juice, handing it to me as he sits beside me. I take a drink, then place the glass on the coffee table.

“What happened?”

“You fainted.” He confirms my suspicions. “I asked your classmate to hold on to you as I dealt with Caleb, and all of a sudden, he calls me to me and you’re sliding down out of his grip.”

“Oh.” I run my hands through my hair, pulling it to the side. “How long was I out?”

“A couple of minutes. As soon as you passed out, Caleb left. Which was good. I don’t know what I would’ve done if he tried to touch you.”

I take a moment to let everything process. I can’t believe Caleb and his actions affected me that way. I am disgusted; he does not respect me and my decision for him to stay away. No means no.

Ethan once again came to my rescue. The strength and confidence he emanates saved me. I hate to think about how this morning would have turned out if he had not come.

"What happened today, baby?" His eyebrows pull in, framing his eyes, which look so sad and overwhelmed.

"As I was about to go to class, he showed up. He pulled me into a corner. He was furious I had blocked his calls and he couldn’t find me this weekend. Said it was enough time for me to think and we were getting back together.”

“Why would he think you are available?” There’s an annoyance seeping through his words.

“Because he doesn’t know we’re together. I thought it would piss him off more, and I just wanted him to stay away.”

“You were worried about pissinghimoff?”

“Yes…I mean, no. It’s that, I’m not going to get back with him because of him. His actions and the way he treated me. Even if we, you and me,” I wave my index finger between us, “didn’t get together, my answer to him would still be no.”

“So the fact that I told him we were together…?”

“Is fine. I don’t care if he knows I’m just—”

He interrupts, “Just what, Sophia?”

“Just that I’m scared of him,” I admit.

“You are scared of him because of us?”

I’m doing a poor job of explaining myself.

“Kinda. Because he stayed with me to piss you off and to prove he could. So knowing I am with you now…I don’t know, may make him even angrier. It makes me nervous. When he came by the apartment that last time, he wouldn’t leave. Even when I asked him. And today, I tried walking away, and he grabbed me and pulled me. Even with everyone around us. I don’t trust him.” My voice drops to a whisper. “I’m scared of him.”

I register everything I just said and realize I confessed Wes’s secret. I never meant to, but Caleb’s actions have caused so much turmoil. I watch as Ethan processes what I admitted.

“Explain what you meant when you said he stayed with you because of me.”

“Remember the day on campus you saw Wes talking to me?” I wait for him to answer. “Wes was telling me things about Caleb that I didn’t know. He said Caleb had a reputation of going through girls, never staying with one long. He said Caleb stayed with me because he knew you were interested and wanted to win the pissing contest. He was competing with you by using me.”

“Dammit!” Ethan’s rubs his face roughly in frustration. “Fuck! I knew it. I fucking knew it. I should have said something.” He drops his head back hitting the wall behind him with a loud thud. His hands are still covering his face as he continues cussing and berating himself. I need to put a stop to this. While I am touched he is so passionate about protecting me, there is nothing that can change the past.

I crawl up on his lap and pull his hands away from his face so that he can look at me.

“We can’t change what happened, so please do not beat yourself up for this. Please. Don’t let him come between us now.”

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