𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞

F A R R I S

"And she didn't even try to stop me!" I pace, accidentally catching a glimpse of my mussed-up curls in the mirror. Now that I'm aware of my actions, I slip my hands into my pockets to keep them from tearing my hair out by the roots in frustration.

"And have you stopped to think that maybe you didn't give her a chance to?" I glare at Alexander but he doesn't flinch, still just sitting there, unbothered, with the cutest damn dog in the world sleeping peacefully on his lap.

"Go to hell." I snap, but there's no real heat behind my words. Alexander knows better than anyone that I'm all bark, well, mostly bark and little bite. If I bite, I bite pretty damn hard. The door swings open and my glare is now directed at the tattooed vixen who let herself in. "Did you invite her here? Whose side are you on?" I turn back to my roommate.

"I'm not on a side. And no." He turns to Maddison. "What's up? You don't really want to be here right now. Ferret's throwing a tantrum."

"Oh, fuck you very much," I say, my temper rising with his condescending tone and nickname.

"What else would you call this? She doesn't owe you a damn thing. I haven't even heard her side of the story yet but I'd love to see you try to say any of this shit to her face." He glares right back, standing up and looming over me. Our two-inch height difference has never made me feel so small. "Go on."

"Retract the claws, kitties." Maddison cuts in, looking at her chipped black nail polish like it's the most interesting thing in the room. "I came here to see how dickhead is doing, but I see he shoved his own head up his ass."

"Don't you fucking start—"

"Stop me then." She squares up, tilting her chin up so that she can look down her nose at me despite being shorter. Her chest presses against mine, but it doesn't make my heart beat fast because she's pretty, it's the look in her eyes that has me breaking eye contact. "She didn't go." Her voice is softer than I've ever heard it and I know that my eyes betray me when I look back at her.

"She didn't?" I will my voice not to crack but it sounds broken even to my own ears.

"No. Not that she owes you anything. You shook her up..." She sighs, patting my chest with one hand which is about the closest thing to a hug I'll ever receive from her. "I know why you're hurt right now...and I think you know too." She says, but continues, knowing that I won't reply. "Maybe you might know why she's been pushing you away now..." She trails off, her voice back to her normal uninterested one and I move away to sit on the couch, my head feeling foggy.

"I feel like I'm going through withdrawal," I mutter but I don't think either of them hears me.

"If he doesn't..." Maddison says to Xander before lowering her voice and continuing a conversation, one that is obviously about me, right in front of me but I couldn't care less. Reaching for the remote, I switch the tv on and start a mindless show, unable to focus on anything.

Maddison's last words to me don't register in my brain until much later, but when they do I stand up like my ass is on fire. "Xan!" I call out before I enter his room. The empty bed and chair at the desk make me confused. Did I not even realize that I had been alone all this time?

I close the door behind me and slide my phone out of my pocket, pulling up our text conversation but my thumbs hesitate on the keyboard. What do I even want to ask him?

Massaging the space between my eyebrows at the formation of a new headache, I gulp down my nerves before pressing the call button.

"What's up?" Reed's voice sounds through the phone and I sigh inwardly in relief. Although, I wasn't expecting her to pick up so now I have no idea what to say. "Farris?" I deflate a bit at the sound of my name; each time she calls me anything other than 'Fare' it chips away at my sanity.