Chapter 65 She's Alive At Least
I wake up the next day face down on Sel’s sofa, my right arm completely numb from where it had been hanging off the side all night. The minute I open my eyes, there is a sharp shooting pain in my head, and I quickly close them again and groan.
“Well she’s alive at least.” I hear someone say from above me.
Turning my head to the other side, I open one eye to look up at Nico and Sel standing over me, each holding coffee, and smirking at me like parents who are about to tease me for something.
“The fuck are you doing?” I croak, starting to shift myself over to lie on my back.
“You’ve been asleep all day. We had just come to check if you were still breathing.” Sel teases.
“Very funny.” I mumble, rubbing my eyes and yawning. “What time is it?”
“4pm.” Nico answers, taking another sip of his coffee.
“The fuck?!” My eyes fly open, and I sit up, whimpering as the headache stabs my brain again, and rummage around my body for my phone.
“Your phone is still on lockdown, you’ll just have to trust us about the time.” Sel says. “And don’t worry, we only got up about an hour ago.” She adds.
“I feel like a truck hit me.” I groan.
“Yeah well… we finished off the tequila. And the rum. And the weird vodka Sel’s been keeping in her freezer since the Cold War.” Nico replies, nodding to the coffee table which looks an absolute mess of various shot glasses, cards, cups, food wrappers, spillages, and lighters. I notice that the mess continues on the floor and to the other side tables as well. It is like a teenager’s first house party has thrown up everywhere.
“I’ll clean it.” I sigh.
“Coffee first.” Nico orders, handing me the second cup he has been holding.
I take it gratefully, as they both wander round and plop themselves right next to me on the sofa, the bounce making my head pound again.
“I’ve ordered some bacon muffins.” Sel breathes, leaning her head back on the sofa and closing her eyes. “Shouldn’t be long.”
“I could kiss you.” I comment, leaning my head on her shoulder briefly before drinking some more of my coffee.
The three of us sit in silence for a minute.
“So,” I start. “When are you gonna shout at me for last night?”
“There’s no shouting.” Nico says.
“Yeah. No judgement at all.” Sel agrees.
“You’re both fucking liars.” I laugh, making them laugh as well. “And both judgy as hell, so I know you’re holding out on me.”
“Too hungover to judge you right now.” Nico sighs. “Maybe tomorrow.”
“Alright, just give me a warning so I can prepare myself, yeah?” I reply, nudging him gently with my elbow.
“No preparation needed for that.” Sel says. “Although you might need some for today.”
“Why? What are we doing today?”
“Getting your shit back from David.”
“Absolutely not.” I scoff, getting up from the sofa and heading over to the kitchen. I can hear them following me. “I don’t need anything from him ever again.”
“Oh yeah? Your charger? Laptop? The only shampoo that’s made your hair not look like a dull mop?” She teases, flicking some of my hair over my shoulder. “What David packed was shit. And you only had your crap clothes left at yours.”
I slap her on the shoulder, but I know her teasing is coming from a twisted place of love.
“Don’t worry we’ll come with you.” She reassures me. “After our bacon muffins.”
True to her word, a few hours later, I, Nico and Sel are standing on the curb staring up at David’s building. Watching. And hesitating.
“Marcus says he’s not there.” Sel says. “So come on. In and out. Then back to mine.”
“Right. In and out.” I breathe.
Climbing the stairs, I start to think about whether David would have already scrubbed my fingerprint from the scanner, or changed the code to the door. But when the scanner turns green underneath my forefinger, I figure that maybe he has been a bit too distracted to do any of that.
Breathing in, I push the door open. The apartment seems cold. Empty. Now that I know David isn’t waiting inside with a smile, everything just seems kind of…bland.
I realize that I haven’t moved from the doorway until Nico nudges my shoulder as he and Sel walk past.
“Wow, I knew Reid had money but sheesh.” Nico comments, looking around the expensive place in awe.
“Put your dick back in your pants, Nico.” Sel says, rolling her eyes and storming ahead toward my room. I close the door behind me, taking slow steps forward to join my friends in my room.
My old room. Which is exactly how David and I left it. Closet door hanging open, a couple of loose hangers on the floor. And a smashed lamp by the wall. That must have happened after I left.
Sighing, I head to the bathroom to grab my toiletries and come back out to Sel rifling through my clothes and Nico going through my drawers. Everything is getting piled on my bed, so I start packing it in the empty suitcase I have brought from Sel’s.
Then I hear the door open. And close.
The three of us freeze and stare at each other. My heart is thumping erratically, my mind panicking as I hear footsteps.
Sel suddenly shoves herself in the closet, and Nico slams himself to the floor, shuffling underneath the bed. I scramble, trying to think of something, somewhere to hide.
I dart into the bathroom and quickly close the door.
I hear the footsteps getting closer and closer, until I am sure he is in the room, and close my eyes, trying to breathe as slowly as possible.
The footsteps stop. Then there are a couple more, and it stops again. The anticipation is killing me until–
“Nora?”
That isn’t David’s voice. That is Harlan.
“Nora and friends, I know you’re here.” He repeats.
I slowly open the door, seeing Harlan looking at me with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, while Nico and Sel also slink out of their hiding places.
“Fancy seeing you here.” I comment.
“Yeah, what a coincidence.” He smiles, which makes me smile at the familiar interaction. “I only came for a file. Thought he kicked you out?”
“He did, and he packed a load of shit while he was doing it.” Sel scoffs, resuming her task of picking out my clothes.
“Language.” Harlan teases, before stepping toward me. “How are you?”
“Hungover.” I state, going to my suitcase on the bed to start packing everything away. Mostly, I am doing it to get away from the look in Harlan’s eye. He looks concerned, like he cares. Which I know he does, because I also care about him.
“Well, you’ll be glad to know he’s being an ass to everyone.” Harlan breathes from behind me, and I lock eyes with Nico briefly. “So just take whatever you can, because I’m not sure when he’ll remember to change the locks.”
“You mean you’re not going to tell him I was here?” I ask, turning round to see him smile.
“My memory is awful these days, you know.” Harlan winks, then walks out of the room.
Sel and Nico give me pointed looks, but I have no idea what they mean so I just shake my head at them.
“Ugh, you’re an idiot sometimes.” Sel hisses, pushing me toward the door after Harlan.
“Alright I’m going!” I reply, stumbling out of the door. Harlan turns to face me, abandoning his walk to the door. “Um…” I breathe in, and walk closer to him. “I… how much do you know?”
“I know he’s your dad. Malcolm Voss, obviously, not David. That would be one too many shades of weird.”
“Okay. And...?”
“And what?”
“Well I hardly stopped talking after telling him that, did I?”
Harlan breathes in, and looks around before returning his gaze to me.
“He hasn’t said anything else.” He finally says. “But I can tell there’s a story there. At the ball, I saw your reaction to him. I saw how surprised you were. And not a good surprise.”
“Understatement of the year.”
“As long as you told him the reason, he’ll come round.” Harlan says, his hands going to my arms in a comforting gesture. “Like I said, he’s being an ass right now. He’ll stop soon enough.”
“Then what? We go back to playing happy families?”
“Maybe you’d at least get laid.” Harlan shrugs, and I smack him in the chest as we both laugh. “Just give him some time.”
“Time isn’t what he wants.”
Harlan gives me a sad smile, before ruffling my hair and leaving the apartment.
Sel and Nico help me pack the rest of my things and leave David’s place, and I give the building one last look before getting into the taxi.
I can’t quite place the reason why a tear slides down my cheek.
Whether it is the thought that Harlan is right, that this is just a heart-breaking blip in David’s and my life, or the thought that he could be wrong, and this will be the last time I ever have anything to do with David Reid.