Nothing But Trouble

25/shattered phones

chapter 25: shattered phones
blake ren

"I can't fucking get the cap off, Blake! Ugh, this is so stupid," Riley screeched through the phone. I winced and made some distance between my eardrum and the speaker.

        "I promise it's not that bad. If anything he's the one embarrassed. I mean he was in the middle of shitting for fuck's sake, Riley." I heard her angrily rattling a bottle of pills that she was trying to rip open. "Put the goddamn bottle down!"

        "No! I don't want to have to ever see him again after I practically committed breaking and entering while he was in a private pooping session!" I tried to maintain my composure and briefly closed my eyes. A quiet snort accidentally escaped me and I quickly covered my mouth. "Are you laughing at me, Blake Ren?!"

        "I stubbed my toe!" I said defensively. Bad cover up. Literally horrible. Riley let out a loud tortured wail. I moved my phone to hold it between my ear and shoulder as I pulled up the strings of our overflowing garbage bag to tie it close while she continued to berate herself.

"But like also I'm not in the wrong because I was just coming over to feed his roommate's cat," she confirmed again. I hauled the trash out of my apartment door and yanked it shut.

"Exactly."

"Right. I was just..two hours late. And by then his roommate was already home and could have just done it himself," Riley said in a defeatist tone and sighed. I could just see her sitting inside her closet with her hand over her face in shame. It was exactly how I've found her every time she's in an embarrassing situation like this. Not that she lets herself into her neighbor's apartment to feed their cat and find their roommate playing Candy Crush on the toilet often.

"There was no way you could have known he was home. It was just a misunderstanding," I tried to reassure her as I dragged the thirty pound bag in the brisk evening air to the trash compactor behind the complex. The little bitch boy Vince didn't ever take the trash out so it's always me lugging it to the dump when it's begun to overflow with rank trash, fucking men. Eyeroll. Correction, *exhausted eyeroll.

I was waddling backwards trying to lift it at least a couple inches above the ground before having to drop it back down and take a breather because of how heavy it had gotten.

Riley sighed in my ear. "No I know. You're right. I'm just awfulizing. I mean it's just like what if he was my soulmate and his first impression of me scared the shit out of him."

"Literally though," I replied automatically. She let out a noise of protest and I bursted out laughing, only furthering her dismay.

I took a look at the three levels of stairs I was going to have to carry this baby down. I had a fleeting moment of desire to throw it over the railing and go back inside. Was I that much of an asshole? Like I was definitely an asshole, but like that much?

"I'm gonna buy them a pizza as an apology."

"Wait can you save just like one slice for me pretty please." I stepped down onto the first step and blew out a breath. I had to restrain myself from dramatically wiping off the 'sweat'.

"Yeah sure lemme just send it over missing a slice or two. They won't even notice!" Riley answered sarcastically.

"Well if you don't wear a top when you give it to them, I promise they will be much more interested in your two slices of pepperoni pizza they would much rather have in—fuck!" I swore as I bumped into somebody behind me and dropped my phone from between my shoulder and ear. My mouth fell open as I watched it slip through the open space between the steps and smack harshly onto the cement down below.