Lessons

Heated Tension

"You know what? I think it will be better if I move back into my apartment for a while." Nyx gave no room for arguments as she began to pack a bag, never once sparing me another glance as I tried to get her attention.

What started as a minor disagreement slowly escalated into a yelling match, and I had no idea why or how it happened. Low blows were exchanged, and Nyx seemed just shy of name-calling before she had gone eerily silent and calm, refusing to respond to me. When she did, her words were clipped, further igniting my frustrations as she refused to see my point or contribute to the conversation.

"So you're just going to up and leave like that?" I questioned, crossing my arms over my chest as my narrowed eyes watched her movements.

Nyx froze in place, whirling around to face me, eyes aflame.

"Don't fucking say it like-" She cut herself off, turning back to her bag with a shake of her head as if giving up on speaking.

"I might come back later. Don't expect to hear from me." She bit out, the frustration tangible in her voice, and I couldn't understand why; she had no right.

"So first, you blow up on me. Then refuse to actually talk to me and shit and just brush me off like I'm nothing. Then when I justify myself, you get mad and decide to up and leave?"

Nyx stared at me, a plethora of emotions crossing her face before she closed her eyes, head tilting towards the ceiling as she sighed.

"I have nothing to say to you right now. I'll probably come by in a day or two to get ready for my trip." With those words, she left the room, the sound of the front door opening and closing reaching my ears soon after.

I watched the closed door for a moment as if, at any minute, she would come back and apologize, and things would go back to how they were beforehand. It didn't help that she was going out of the country for a school trip in a few days and would then be gone for over a month. It also didn't help that tensions had been simmering after our run-in with Rebecca and Lynden. We were doing so well for so long that the fallout of such a petty argument seemed to come from left field. It was a bit awkward when we got home that day, but there hadn't seemed to be that much of an issue about my past relationships, so I brushed it off. I sighed, running a hand through my hair before heading to the kitchen for a drink.

****

~Nyx~

I was still angry when I made it back to my apartment. It wasn't as loud as earlier, more like a low simmer at the bottom of my gut that I tried hard to ignore as I made my way inside. I knew it would end up this way. Things had been tense between us, but it seemed as though he didn't want to talk about it, so I didn't think to bring it up. It took a lot to set me off, but Trent kept pushing and pushing, insisting that his opinions were the only correct ones when I wanted nothing more than to drop the entire situation after I had gotten angry. At least until I could calm down and talk it out with him instead of responding rashly. I'd tried to tell him that, but he didn't listen, wanting to do it then when he had already come about the situation the wrong way.

I knew that leaving despite his mounting protests was the best choice because I knew myself. I knew that if I continued to grow angry, I would get nasty with my remarks, that I would spit venom that would cut Trent deep and regret it when I cooled down later. So leaving was the best option for me, and despite the low-level annoyance I still felt even hours later, I continued about my night, showering and then curling in front of the TV to watch something, hoping that it would distract me from my jumbled thoughts.

It took a while, but by the third episode of Criminal Minds, my initial anger had all but vanished, but I was no closer to returning to our shared place. Trent and I had argued before, but this was the first time it had gotten as bad as it did. Usually, I would be able to rein in my temper, or we could quickly work it out. But it's time; it was as if he pressed all the right buttons that set me off in the worst way possible.