The Deal We Never Made

iso

e smell of old scotch and leather book filled my nostrils. The room was colder than I expected, like I was w

egretted why he even called me to his place. His eyes flicked u

He just turned his head slightly,

ith mine in a silent dare

as I took out a sarcastic tone, because being snappy was the

st night," he replied like h

ed. "Ex

t me. "At the gala. The way you walked, held your glass, interacted

y fists, nails digging into my palm

isn't a game for you anymore. You want to be

come a charity case? Some street-level jou

ou wrote the article. You showed up at my party uninvited. You made the deal

ed more that his words made me feel

-

sit. "We need to discuss your role in this our arrangement.

eady doing that. Fia

ng inside me. "No, you weren't, Ms. Russo because where I come from. Weakness is t

g even with me towering over her. "Y

gentler than I aimed for. "But they'll think i

to be humiliat

. "I don't have any

etiquette suff she was ready to an etiquette tutor, showed up at the apartment right on tim

pearls so perfectly placed they looked surgically attached. Her blond

ach. She'll be living here part-tim

I scoffed. "What a

ignore

: dignity, pride, common sense. But the stakes were too high, a

r worn. "Fine. Let's play, Blackwell.

-

ack in high school detention with a drill serge

. No slouching. You're walking

am," I

ciety doesn't brawl, Ms. Ru

isted my ankle twice, and Celeste made

ping. You're not chasing

ge to throw the s

leaned my elbows on the table like some kind of a savage. Celeste just stayed calm, co

ed, adjusting myself to stand up fast. My chair screeched on the floor. "Let's just stop pretendin this is abou

lackwell merely wants to help you ad

rase the parts that scare him. The ones th

agreed to thi

arder than

truth. Not to lose m

t even bother looking back. I ju

-

t busy with my laptop, surrounded by old reports and papers. I was trying to make sense of it all, piece together the crash and everything th

ck to Ethan. The way he looked at me. My stomach twisted into knots

was goin on. But it was hard when my emotions were all over

finally emerged from the library preparing to go home, I found him standing at the fridge, tie undone, s

asked, glan

f I get to use the wr

ile. Barely. Bu

eaning against the counter, arms crossed, "yo

have to try and

want to? You think I like this

the part," I said quietl

is eyes-the pain, the confusion, the quiet de

me. Too close. M

ison

Not unless you mean it. No

t I can just switch it off? I don't even know what's

top pre

my hand, but

me you're playing. Not un

tared at me like I was th

-

ry I hav

to leave the house. I still caught his gaze on

e when I got outside