HEATED // EGD

E L E V E N

I threw my head back and rolled my eyes at the idea of Ethan walking out after what he did to Dal. I wasn't about to just let him go like that. I go to follow him but wince in pain as soon as I stepped foot on the ground.

I looked down at the ground to see small splotches of blood from where I'd stepped since I got off the stool.

"Dear God," Dallas muttered as he noticed the blood on the floor.

I hadn't noticed that I had stepped in glass earlier due to the intensity of the moment. Dallas was quick to wrap his arm around my shoulder and let me wrap mine around his to help support my weight on my non injured foot.

"Here, sit on the couch," he directed me as he helped me limp on my good foot over to the couch so that I could sit down. "I'll be right back," he told me before jogging to the bathroom.

There went my plan to follow Ethan.

Dallas returned to the living room with a first aid kit in one hand and tweezers in another.

He kneeled down and held up my foot so that he could take a look at it. Using the tweezers, he pulled out a couple small pieces of shattered glass and went on to the first aid kit. He put a little bit of rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball and dabbed it lightly to disinfect the wound. It stung but I tried not to complain about it; I was stupid enough to step right where the broken glass was.

"I'm surprised you didn't want to become a paramedic or something considering that you've always been quick to get the first aid kit out whenever somebody gets hurt." I told him in attempt to make small talk.

"Believe me, I did. But my dad would only pay my tuition if I were to get a business degree and I didn't want to risk being in debt for the next fifty years."

"I'm sorry about that."

"He is how he is." Dallas shrugged his shoulders. He began to wrap my foot in gauze although the glass didn't cut that deep. "If I'm being honest, Naomi, I don't think now's a good time for Ethan to be in a relationship and all though I think you guys would be good for each other, the timing is just so off. He's in such a dark stage in his life right now and I don't want him to hurt you. He's a great guy, but after tonight, I think he might end up being another Parker for you. And I don't want you to ever have to be in a relationship like that again."

Dallas' words stroke fear into me. For the first time, Ethan showed signs of being anything like Parker when he became aggressive with Dallas. I knew that Ethan wasn't nearly as bad as Parker, but the thought that he could potentially be anywhere near as hostile when angered scared me.

One thing time has taught me is that when I like someone, I lack the capability to see their flaws and warning signs. I was nervous that I had already began to do so with Ethan without even realizing it.

I didn't want to ignore Dallas' warning the way I ignored Wes'. I would be cautious this time. I was beginning to become fully on board with the thought that, at that time, being in a relationship with Ethan would be a bad idea.

"I think it's bad timing as well," I told him.

. . .

My eyes were shut. Darkness surrounded me. The tv was on but the volume was kept quite low and all I could hear was the quiet muffle of the dialogue of some tv show. I had slept on the air mattress just as I had been doing for the past three weeks.

My eyes fluttered open to see Ethan watching TV while sitting crisscross on the couch.

His under eyes were darker than usual, indicating a lack of sleep the night before. His face was puffy, most likely from having had woken up only a little while prior.