"My debt is paid off? What do you mean? I still have 3 months left."Damien cleared his throat and took a deep breath like he was about to drop a bombshell."I got the hospital bill a few weeks ago. My insurance had it reduced severely and covered most of it. I only ended up paying about $600 out of pocket, and you essentially paid that off in your first month," he explained.I was stunned. Both from finding out Damien hid this from me and that an insurance company in America actually did what they were supposed to."Why didn't you tell me?" I asked gently. Surprisingly, I didn't feel upset or angry. I actually felt a little proud of myself. He obviously kept this from me for a reason, most likely selfish ones. But from his words, I gathered he wanted to keep me around as long as possible. I placed my finger up to my mouth to hide the smile forming on my lips. Damien rubbed the nape of his neck uncomfortably."I just... I didn't want you to leave," he mumbled."Why not?" I asked, inch
Damien's in time out for the embarrassment I had to face in front of his online friends. There's not much I can do to really punish him, but I have continued sleeping on the pull-out couch against his protests and resisted every move he made on me. Every time I saw his muscular frame and attractive, heart stopping smile, I wanted to rip his clothes off. After awhile, I didn't know what I was even punishing him for, as my resilience began to falter.Part of me was relieved they were random strangers on the internet, and I would never have to face them in person. But I started suspecting that wasn't fully the case after a few awkward interactions with Matthew. I constantly ran into him even though our last meeting seemed like a forever farewell, but we were neighbors. It was simply unavoidable. Every time I greeted him with a friendly wave, he would look down, trying his best to avoid eye contact. The uneasy aura lingering in the elevator ride up with him was the last straw."Matthew, w
Damien led me through a path, our palms separating from the sweat pooling between them. The sun shone brightly and a thick humidity hugged us as we walked. The lake loomed over the distance, ripples sparkling from the sunlight like diamonds hitting the water. An occasional breeze cascaded from the water to us, sending a warm, floral scent in our direction. Most would consider this a perfect Summer day, but all I could worry about was ruining my new dress with sweat.Before we left the hotel room, Damien had pulled out a pink, floral sundress with the shortest skirt I had ever seen, off-shoulder ruffled sleeves, and laces at the front. It was a lot more feminine than what I usually wore, but I loved it nonetheless. He beamed as he explained how Ron helped him pick it out for me, and he insisted that I wear it before 'the thing' he has planned. I still hadn't met this Ron, but at least he had good taste. I eyed him suspiciously at first, unaware of his intentions, but put it on after so
Six Months Later: "Come on, we're going to be late." I ushered Damien out against his protests and shut the door behind me. "I think I forgot something inside." He turned to open the door. I swatted his hand away and narrowed my eyes. "Stop stalling. He's waiting for us," I scolded Damien. I pulled on his hand and he followed along, grumbling the entire time. Once we arrived at the apartment parking garage, his whole demeanor changed. "Hi Betsy. How are we this fine evening?" Damien asked, his eyes sparkling. I stared at the motorcycle in front of me that was repaired long ago, just waiting for Damien's leg to heal. Sometimes I felt like he loved 'Betsy' more than me, but I'm not sure I want to find out. I'm still deathly afraid of driving, so I avoid it as much as I can. Sometimes I drive for longer trips, but nowadays, we take his motorcycle out everywhere. I don't fully agree with him riding it because I think it's dangerous, but me being behind the wheel might be more dangero
Okay, I need to admit something— I'm a terrible driver.Just the worst. Every morning as I'm gripping my steering wheel, knuckles white as ghosts, I curse the unmotivated DMV woman who let me pass my driver's test. The way she flicked that pen on her paper so slowly and carefree, I should've realized that she had already accepted a fate of death getting in that car with me. I really hope she's doing okay regardless. One thing's for sure, though, I'm definitely not okay.The minute I stepped into my car this morning, something just felt off. It took me an extra 10 minutes to get dressed, adding an extra 10 minutes to my commute. On top of that, my fuel tank was a tick short of empty, so I had to make a stop. On top of that, I had to take a detour due to construction on my daily route. I thought everything that could go wrong had gone wrong.While bobbing my head to the rhythms of soft classic rock, the warm, flowery breezes of the fresh Spring morning tickled my face through the car wi
"Live with you? You can't be serious!" I jerked back in shock, unable to comprehend this man's intentions."Why not? You said you would do anything, right?" Damien's voice was serious and his gaze was unwavering."I-I mean yeah... but... that's not what I meant.""What did you mean then?" Damien tilted his head slightly and flashed me a mischievous grin. His smug face made me irrationally angry. I reached for a set of controls next to his bed."What are you doing?" He asked."Calling a nurse. You've obviously been given too many painkillers, and now you're acting insane."Damien chuckled softly. "I can assure you I'm not being delusional. Tell me something, Val. What outcome were you hoping for when I woke up? That you say 'sorry' and I say 'it's okay' and we both move on with our lives? I don't know if you realize the kind of costs that come with injuries like mine. I assume the treatment for my internal bleeding along with broken leg... broken arm... hospital stay...hmm. Even with i
"You look like a mess.""I know""You're still wearing the same clothes from yesterday.""I know.""Your makeup—""YES I KNOW!"Damien looked at me, eyes wide. He turned away from me and started laughing. Is this what I should be expecting for the next 6 months? Being berated by this stranger while spoon feeding him Jell-O? I felt ridiculous."Come on. Don't be so serious. This is going to be fun!" Damien's eyes were bright with excitement."If you're going to make fun of me, I'll just go back home. My roommate can do that much better than you can."Damien's smile turned serious. "Is that why you're back here? Your roommate?"I sighed and sank into the chair, "Among other things, I guess."Damien looked me over then frowned. "They're making me go home today," he stated trying to change the subject."Already?! You just got here.""Yeah, well. Right now I'm taking up prime real estate that they could use to make money off someone else," he chuckled.I frowned. How messed up was it that
Damien's nap gave me the opportunity to whisk away into the bathroom for a much needed shower. It felt good stripping off the clothes that were a reminder of the awful things that transpired in less than 48 hours. I stepped into a walk in shower that was almost as big as my bedroom. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but it could definitely fit 4 people in there with a little bit of squeezing.I half expected Damien to have one bottle of shampoo that he used on his hair, face, and body. He seemed like one of those guys. Instead I found a neat row of apple scented shampoo, conditioner, and pine scented body wash.Suddenly I was reminded of when my face was nuzzled against Damien's head for a brief moment in the shuttle. I remembered his scent really vividly: apples and pine. I popped open one of the bottles and took a quick sniff. Real creepy, Val, I thought to myself. What the hell was I doing? I took out my own little toiletries from my bathroom bag and lined them up next to Dam