Now That You Are Here

They Are Villians

I bend down to the floor, picking up the broken coffee mug glass. My phone starts to ring, but I don't pick it up. I want to be alone. Being alone means you're safe. Twenty minutes pass, but I don't remember what happened. The pieces of glass are still on the floor, and now I'm down there with them. Maybe I've just been staring off in space. I reach up to touch my face and feel wetness against my fingertips. So, I've been crying. On the kitchen floor. I close my eyes, letting more tears drip, not even trying to wipe them away.

I shoot up and slam my head against the counter.

"Fuck!"

I rub the back of my head and try to move around but my back feels like there's a thousand knives poking into it. I look at the time to see that it's six thirty in the morning. That's why I hurt all over. I slept on the hard kitchen floor. I hear a knock on my door, and I don't even try to clean myself up. I smell my hair to see that I have dried coffee in it. That's gross. I open the front door to see Grady standing there.

"I heard what happened."

"Brixton, huh?"

He steps forward, tugging at my hand gently.

"He's far worse than you right now, and you have coffee and glass in your hair."

Really? Fuck. I wonder if there's anything I can do.

No, Reign. He yelled at you and broke your heart.

"I don't care."

"Yes, you do. We both know you do."

"How bad is it?"

"I have never seen him that wasted. He punched a hole in his apartment wall. Lincoln and Kyle are helping him right now, but my friendship duty is to help you."

"He's friends with you guys? When did I become friends with you? You pranked with a fake date."

"That's right. Well, I sincerely apologize. In return, I'm gonna save your relationship."

"Why? Why should I stay with him?"

"Brixton wrote a drunk letter to you last night. I have your answer in my pocket."

"I wanna read it."

"You can't. No one can. It's a drunk letter with words that don't exist. But I think he pretty much says that you're the light of his life, and he's incredibly in love with you."

"I'm sure he is. Yesterday was a great example of just how much he loves me."

"Stop with the sarcasm. Would you hear him out? Even if it doesn't save your relationship, just hear him out so he can sleep and not drink himself to death."

"Why should I help him?"

"Because you two are still in love with one another."

"He doesn't deserve me."

"No one does. Hear him out. I promise to clean the coffee and glass off the ground while you clean yourself up. Shower, change, yes? If this doesn't work, I want to go on a date with you."

"We can talk later about that."

Grady smiles at me and pushes me down the hallway that doesn't contain my bedroom.

"Wrong way, Grady."

"I'm just gonna go to the kitchen."

I laugh as I go the right way towards my bedroom. I take a ten minute shower, brush my teeth, put on a light layer of makeup, and change into clean clothes. I walk into the kitchen to see Grady standing there, eyeing me up and down.