Dania {18+}

Chapter 32

Reyn and I sat on one side of the breakfast table while Rylan sat on the other.

I hesitantly reached out for Reyn's hand under the table. Our dark, dingy surroundings had me on edge. It made me crave his warmth.

The house smelled stale as if the air had been stagnant for too long. It was much, much worse than the smell of my apartment when my mom suddenly showed up.

I wasn't even sure if you could call the table in front of us a 'breakfast table'. It was a white, plastic, foldable table with mismatched plastic chairs surrounding it. Looking around me, I realized it was the only piece of furniture in the small apartment except for the couch in the living room. The air was humid. I wouldn't have been surprised if there was a mold problem within the walls. Fortunately, I didn't see any growing anywhere.

A gnawing feeling ate at my stomach.

When I glanced over at Reyn he had the same uncertainty in his eyes. She was definitely paid enough to be living a comfortable life. It didn't make sense that her apartment would be barely furnished and in an area where all the buildings looked so dilapidated. Like they were one hard knock away from toppling over and disintegrating.

I made eye contact with Rylan after I finished taking in everything.

"Is everything okay, Ry?" My voice shook with hesitance. I was afraid the answer would be something hard to stomach.

I was startled when she began to shake. Reyn placed his hand on my thigh and rubbed it in a soothing manner while his other hand scooted my chair closer to him. Goosebumps prickled at my skin. Going back home seemed more and more like a great idea.

I watched with concern as tears flowed down her cheeks and her hair stuck to her face. Sweat formed around her hairline. She looked like a character out of a horror movie. Her eyes were unfocused as she looked back up at us. The light that shone from above exaggerated the shadows of her face making it look ghastly and distorted. Shivers ran down my spine. Reyn sat stiffly in his seat. Just as I was about to excuse us to leave, Rylan spoke up.

"I screwed up Dani. I'm sorry." She kept mumbling apologies over and over again while rocking herself back and forth in her chair, her arms wrapped around herself as if she would collapse without the support. She looked sickly and weak. She looked like she needed to be admitted to the nearest hospital.

"Sorry about what?" I pushed.

"I- I don't know where to begin. You're going to hate me." The last part came out as a whimper. What could she possibly have done to make her feel so bad? The feeling in my stomach spread to the rest of my body. I placed my hand on Reyn's.

"Start wherever is comfortable." It took everything in me to keep my voice from wavering.

"Do you remember that one time we snuck out to that party senior year? That college athlete had a house party a town over." She wrung her hand against each other, bending her fingers against each other as she did in a way that almost seemed painful.

"Yeah, of course. We had so much fun even though we were freaking out the entire time." At any other time I would have laughed at the memory but the energy in the room was so tense that I kept a straight face.

"Do you.. Do you remember when we played seven minutes in heaven?"

"I- not really...," I tried searching through my memories but most of that night had been a blur. I remembered downing some shots shortly after arriving. The majority of the rest of the night was a haphazard amalgamation of loud music, strobe lights, and other drunk people falling over each other. I barely recalled getting back home the next morning. "Why is that important?"