Page 9 of Ravaged Innocence

“You can,” I agree. “But I’m going to get it for you.”

She sighs angrily. “Fine. Whatever.” She grabs a small key from the key hook next to the front door. “You need this. I’m in dryer number five.”

I take the key. “Eat your dinner,” I say in a hard tone. I didn’t want her up yet. I wanted to lie beside her and ease the tension away from her mind, but she jumped right up and moved into action. I wonder if my little bee knows how to stay still.

After I gather her laundry—without prying through her panties like some prepubescent boy—I bring it back up to her apartment half-expecting to be locked out. She left the door open a crack. I’ll have to talk to her about safety.

When I get inside, the pizza box is still closed, and she’s on the bed belly down. Her arm hangs off the side, and her cheek is pressed flat against the pillow.

It’s already eleven o’clock.

I put the basket of clothes on the couch, catching sight of a cell phone sticking out from beneath a rolled-up yoga mat. I grab it and plug it into the cord dangling from the narrow nightstand beside the bed.

As I slide the box of pizza into the empty fridge, I notice the open textbook on the table.Anatomy and Physiology of the Human Body.

I check in on her once more, pulling a blanket up over her, then flip off the lights. There’s no room in her tiny bed for me, unless she sleeps on top of me. An idea that has amazing merit, but she looks exhausted, and she needs her rest.

I sit on the couch and watch her until my own eyelids are too heavy to ignore.

Avery

I’m prettysure I failed my test. I definitely missed most of the bones in the hands and feet. Every time a question about them popped up, my mind instantly wandered to Luka and his hands. And where they’d been on my body, and how good they’d felt. I barely finished the test in time.

Dr. Scotts, my professor, already thinks I don’t take school seriously enough. While the majority of the students in my class are taking a full load, I’m only taking two classes. It would probably go unnoticed except Dr. Scotts is not only my anatomy professor, but also the director of the Medical Assistant program I’m currently in. Which means he knows all and sees all when it comes to my courses and my grades. And now, falling on my face with this test, I’ve given him even more reason to doubt how serious I am about this certificate.

I shouldn’t have laid down when Luka went to the laundry room. The second my head hit the pillow, I was out. My body was sore, my soul was tired, so of course my brain hit the shutdown button.

When I woke up this morning, I expected to find him sitting in the kitchen and glaring at me. What I found instead, was my cell phone fully charged and my laundry folded in the basket. I did a quick search to be sure he wasn’t hiding in the bathroom—even though it’s not big enough for anyone to hide in, let alone him—but it was empty.

He was gone, and it should have left me relieved.

It didn’t.

Where did he go and will he be back? That thought is on my mind and at some point I should unpack the realization that the big Russian man fucked me to exhaustion in my own bed. Or maybe it’s best to leave that memory tucked away in the dark.

“That was a tough one.” James falls in step with me as I make my way to the stairwell.

“It was.” I nod in agreement. “But you always think it’s tough and then do amazing.” He’s one of those people that’s ashamed of how smart they are, so he plays it cool.

“I bet you did fine.” He gives the obligatory answer during this sort of conversation.

My phone vibrates in my purse as we descend the stairs, but I wait until we’re at the bottom before digging it out. I stop walking to check it, and James sticks with me. I’m sure he has another class to get to, but I’m also sure he’s been working up the courage to ask me out since the beginning of the semester.

Class is over,yes?

“What the hell?”It’s Luka. He programmed himself into my phone while I was asleep last night. Of course, he did. I really need to put a lock on this thing.

“Everything okay?” James asks when I throw my phone into my purse and head toward the door.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.” I throw him a smile as he catches up to me, repositioning his backpack on his shoulder. “I just need to catch a bus.”

“Oh. Well, if you need a ride, my next class isn’t for another hour. I can take you.”

“She has a ride,” a dark voice says in a very thick Russian accent from behind us. I stop dead in mid-step.

“Oh. I didn’t realize.” James’s cheeks go pale when he looks behind me. “Do… do you go to school here?”

“He doesn’t,” I answer swinging around to face Luka. “Thanks James, but I’m good. I’ll see you on Wednesday.”

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