Falling From Disgrace

He found Adrianna in her bathroom, dressed in a grey v-neck shirt and cut-off shorts. She was bent over at the waist, blow drying her hair and shaking her ass to the R&B song blasting from her stereo. Unnoticed and amused, Jack just leaned against the doorframe and watched her.

When her hair was dry she shut off the blower, wrapped the cord up and placed it underneath her sink, still moving to the music by tapping her bare feet. As she applied moisturizer to her arms then legs, Jack was sure she would look into the mirror across from her any second and notice him standing there but she seemed to be avoiding her reflection. Jack wondered why.

It wasn’t until after he watched her reach into her medicine cabinet, remove a bottle of pills, and take two of them with water from the sink, that Adrianna finally looked into the mirror and saw him standing behind her. She gasped in surprise.

“Jesus Christ!” she cried, spinning around to face him. “You scared the hell out of me, Jack!”

“Sorry,” he apologized with a smirk. “I was enjoying the show.”

Adrianna looked at him in his dark jeans and blue shirt that matched his eyes. He looked so good but she scowled and exited the bathroom, walking right past Jack without greeting him with a kiss hello. He followed her into the kitchen where she aimed a remote at the stereo in the living room to shut the music off and then busied herself with washing the few dishes and cups in the sink.

She wasn’t in pain anymore but she was still in a foul mood. Waking up in Jack’s bed and him seeing her so vulnerable like that had disturbed her. After coming home, taking more pills, and then crashing, she avoided his calls, not up to answering any questions she knew he was going to have. She had planned on calling him that evening to let him know she was fine and that she’d see him later during the week but he had just shown up again and she knew he saw her take the Vicodin in her bathroom. She was annoyed, anxious, and embarrassed.

Jack could tell Adrianna was in a bad temper but when she was finished at the sink he stood before her. He bent at his knees, bringing himself to the same height as her and looked at her expectantly. “Hi,” he spoke, the word coming out almost like a question.

“Hey,” she answered and then half-grinned at him, her eyes conveying that she was, for some reason... worried?

Jack kissed her and then straightened, pulling her into an embrace that she did not return. He ignored that though, and kissed her temple before asking, “Are you feeling better?”

“I’m fine,” Adrianna answered tersely, pulling herself from his arms. She stood across from him, leaning her back against the stove.

“You don’t seem fine,” he pressed.

“Jesus, Jack, I’m fine! Give it a rest, okay?”

Jack was taken aback by her outburst but he went to her once again and brushed her bangs across her forehead. “Alright, Ilsa, take it easy.”

Adrianna’s face twisted in confusion and she scathed, “Ilsa?”

Jack waited a beat for her to catch on and when she didn’t he said, “Rick and Ilsa? Tell me you’ve seen Casablanca.”

Adrianna shook her head with a, “No.”

“Holy shit, you’ve gotta be kidding me!” he teased. “You claim to be a movie buff and you haven’t seen Casablanca? That’s practically blasphemy.”

“No, I haven’t seen it, alright?” she huffed and then stalked towards her living room where she deposited herself on the sofa.

Jack sighed and ran a frustrated hand through his hair, not knowing what he was doing wrong. “Did you eat?” he called out to her.

“No.”

“You want me to order a pizza or something? I’m starving.”

“I don’t care.”

Jack sighed again and pulled out his cell phone. After being told their food would arrive in about forty-five minutes, he helped himself to a soda from her fridge and then reluctantly joined Adrianna in the living room. Figuring she needed some space, he didn’t sit beside her, but on the adjacent loveseat.

“Mind if I put the television on?” he asked, reaching for the remote. “The Sox are playing.”