#Chapter 03 Happy New Year

#chapter 3

“Yooo Alex! What’s up, man?”

I vaguely hear someone call out to him as I cling to his wrist.

Of course, someone here must recognize Alex. For better or for worse, he’s one of the most popular people at Redmond.

Someone makes a noise of confusion. Then, the pain in my other arm disappears, and I’m losing my balance. But the hand on my wrist changes positions, catching me softly. My vision starts to clear in his hold, still shaking.

A quick glance back toward the inside of the house shows Oliver hovering nervously. Curious onlookers peer at us.

“Heyo.” Alex’s voice rumbles against my cheek. Aren’t I ruining his shirt? “Sorry, just dropping by, but I’ve gotta jet.”

Then, he’s turning me away, easily supporting my weight. He waves back as he leads us away.

“I’ll catch you guys later!”

“Oh, uh, sure…”

Suddenly, I feel a hand grab my left arm tightly. A whimper escapes me as I get pulled backwards, but Alex turns. He dislodges the hand and stands firm, glaring back with furrowed brows.

He moves me behind him, out of the way of piercing gazes.

It’s slowly becoming easier to breathe, but my whole body still tingles with anxiety. My fingers curl into the back of his jacket as I keep from behind him.

Oliver had tried to grab me, his hand still outstretched.

“Back up. Cynthia made her choice,” Alex says flatly.

“She didn’t even say anything,” Oliver retorts, catching my gaze. I shift further behind Alex, curling inwards. “Look, I really need to clear something up with her. She’s my friend.”

“Really?” His laugh sounds particularly unfriendly. “Couldn’t tell with how roughly you handled her.”

“She’s just…slippery, that’s all—”

Oliver reaches toward me again, holding his hand out for me to take. I have no intent on doing so, but…

As if to solidify my refusal, Alex suddenly feels… Bigger.

He’s already tall and has a good amount of muscle, but it’s almost like he increases in size.

A pressure forms around him that makes me freeze. Even some of the voices from the party stop.

“Cynthia made her choice.” His voice comes out as a rumble that vibrates so lowly, it twinges in my chest. “Take the no, Oliver.”

…And that’s the last of it.

Alex turns around, ushering me away from the house and to his car.

He sits me down in his car seat without hesitation, despite the icing, closing my door for me. My fingers still feel numb, and everything…doesn’t feel real.

A moment later, he gives me an empty paper bag. I numbly grab it. Something jolts into action in my brain and I start breathing into it, guiding my lungs.

He reaches past me and I feel something tighten against me with a click, then the car shifts as it starts moving.

— — —

My blood has returned to my limbs by now, and despite a headache, I can breathe again. However, my phone just keeps…

Ding! …Ding! …Ding!

When my phone starts to ring again after several text messages, I give up. I pull out my phone, squinting at the brightness before finding Oliver’s contact.

Block.

All of the text notifications and calls stop immediately. At least, mine do.

…Brng!

Still facing forward, I glance over to Alex. He has a single hand on the wheel, leaned casually in his seat. His phone pings with occasional texts, but he doesn’t bother trying to pick it up.

“...Uhm…is that…from the…party?”

“Ah, maybe.” He responds easily, shrugging. “Though, I was supposed to meet up with someone, so it might be them.”

“I…I’m sorry…uhm…you can just, uhm…bus station. You can drop me off.”

“Huh? Ah, no, don’t worry ‘bout it.” My silence wasn’t a good reply. “...Seriously, don’t. I want to get you home, okay?”

I manage to nod.

“Dammit…I shouldn’t have said that. Sorry.”

…Was he talking about telling me he had something to do? Or was it about what he said at the restaurant?

We lapse back into silence for a while, and I feel the tightness in my chest loosen.

“...You were, uhm…right.”

“Huh?”

I smile derisively down at my lap.

“No…qualified boyfriend…would’ve been late.”

Really, I don’t think he has anything to apologize for. He showed me the truth. I was the one being blind, constantly making excuses for Oliver.

All of this just my own blindness.

I feel Alex glancing at me. Then he hums, his leather seat squeaking slightly as he shifts.

“...Aight. Know how to get to your place from Evers Road?”

“Yeah… Uhm…we’ll take a left…”

Minutes later, we stop in front of the dinky one-story I share with my mom at a small neighborhood's forest-side corner. The house, and my mom, sleeps.

…It’s best if I don’t tell her about any of this. She doesn’t need to know. Though, I’m not sure how to explain the cupcake icing without going into it.

I’ll…figure it out.

“Hey…”

I look over at Alex, who’s leaning on the steering wheel.

“Don’t worry ‘bout your car. It’ll be back here by morning—you won’t even know it was ever missing.”

I try to thank him, but I’ve gone mute. Just the thought of speaking exhausts me.

“...If it’ll help, I can take your car for a spin. Any bloodstains on the front bumper definitely won’t be Oliver’s.” He winks. “Just roadkill.”

What a bad joke. But it does make me smile just a bit.

However, it drops off as Alex leans in.

I lean away, watching his face approach mine. He starts getting dangerously close, looking away from my face. I’m not sure how to respond, a deer in headlights.

He’s so close… Ah. He has speckles of gold in his brown eyes.

Then, I hear a click. The seat belt loosens, sliding up against my arm.

His hand retreats from the buckle before he looks up at me. He blinks, then a grin spreads on his face.

“...Oh, want a New Year's kiss after all?”

With a whimper, I turn and stumble out of his car with a hot face, quickly retreating to my house. I hear a laugh behind me, but it’s not cruel.

His car doesn’t start leaving until I step inside my front door.

Though I try to shut the door quietly, it still clacks slightly. My mom stirs from her nearby bedroom.

“...Cynthia?”

“I’m home—” I lower my voice. “I’m home, Mom.”

My heart jumps into my throat as I hear her bedsheets move.

“I’m just going to go to bed, okay? It’s late and I’m tired.”

The moving sounds pause.

“...Alright hon,” she replies, her voice drawling with sleep. “Happy New Year.”

“...Happy New Year.”

I wait until I hear the sheets move back in place. Then, I sigh with relief, bending down to take off my shoes and making a beeline to my bedroom.

When I walk in, I get whiplashed.

Pictures I took of Oliver and me together. His sweaters lay out on my bed from when I was deciding what to wear earlier.

Reminders of the lie he set up.

I left my room, coming back with a trash bag. Everything with an inkling of him made their way inside.

Oliver had been my best friend. The guiding light helping me through my dad’s darkness.

When that sperm donor wasn’t screaming at us, he was beating us up before saying sorry.

Oliver had been one of my few supports during that time. Gentle, kind. He had never grabbed me or raised his voice at me before.

My mom and Oliver. That’s all who I thought I needed.

I hadn’t wanted to lose him by dating him. Dating, marriage…all of that made me feel queasy. If I ended up in something like my mom, I would’ve died—that’s what I’d thought.

But I also didn’t want to keep being haunted by the past, to move forward with my life.

Hah.

After sneaking out the back door, I quickly dump everything I have of Oliver’s into the trash can, holding back my tears.

I was so stupid, wishing on something as fragile as that.