Eastern Lights (Compass 2)

“Are you kidding me? Those are such lame choices!”

She shrugged. “I’m not going to be judged by a man who orders boneless chicken wings.”

“They are delicious.”

“They are chicken nuggets. Besides, anyone who doesn’t think those are the best chips on the market, are wrong.”

“With each second that passes, you become much more terrifying.”

She laughed. “Okay, chip snob, what are your favorites?”

“That’s easy: Cheetos, Cheetos Puffs, and Cheetos Paws—though, I haven’t been able to find those gems in ages, unfortunately, and they were my favorite.”

“You can’t just name Cheetos for your top three favorites! Those are all the same.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Clearly, you’ve never tried the variety of Cheetos. They are far from the same. One day, I’ll teach you the ways of the most perfect chip brand in the world. For now, let’s just get you home.”

Just then, her cell phone dinged, and she pulled it out. The mirth in her stare slowly evaporated as her smile faded, too.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

“No…it’s Jason. He said he’s stopping by my place tonight.” She paused and shook her head. “His place, I mean.” Her eyes stayed glued to the cell phone, and I watched as her hand trembled with nerves. “That’s the first message he’s sent me since he left me. Do you know how many messages I’ve sent him since the wedding day?”

She turned the phone screen toward me. She began scrolling up, through dozens and dozens of text messages she’d sent him, begging him to contact her, begging him to reach out.

His responses were nonexistent up until that evening, and all he said was, “Hey. Back in town. Stopping by my place.”

That was it.

What a piece of shit.

Her eyes glossed over when she looked up at me, and dammit, all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her and tell her she was going to be okay.

“I’m not ready to see him. I can’t go back there. Oh my goodness, I can’t face him, not after what happened. I wasn’t mentally prepared for this, and now I have to—”

“You’ll stay with me tonight.” I placed my hands on her shoulders, stilling her movements.

Her deep brown eyes looked at me with major concern. “What? No. I already took up enough of your day today, Connor. I cannot expect you to take me in as a stray for the night.”

“I’m not taking you in as a stray. I’m taking you in as a friend who’s had a bad day. Besides, you shouldn’t be alone with your injury.”

She laughed a little, though it wasn’t filled with amusement. More like disappointment. “Five stitches to the head.”

“You need someone to be there for you tonight if the pain gets too bad.”

“I don’t think that’s how it works. All I have to do is pop the prescription and call it a day.”

“Listen, Doritos lady, you’re going to let me take care of you tonight.”

“Is that an order?”

I laughed as I finished off the Cheetos and tossed the bag into a nearby trash can. “It’s an official order. Now, come on.” I held my arms out toward her. “Hop in.”

“Hop in?”

“Hop into my arms. I can’t walk you out when you’re injured.”

The spark in her eyes slowly came back. “Don’t be silly, Connor. I’m not getting into your arms for a head injury.”

“You are. I’m going to carry you out of this emergency room come hell or high water.”

“I promise you that you’re not.”

She shouldn’t have made promises she couldn’t keep because within a second, I scooped Aaliyah up into my arms, and I carried her away with me as she laughed nonstop and begged me to put her down.

The fact she was laughing made me feel like it was a job well done.

Plus, I liked how she felt pressed against my body. Almost as if she was meant to be there.

When we reached my apartment, I walked Aaliyah to the spare room. “You rest for a while, and I’ll go pick up your prescriptions.”

“You don’t have to do that, Connor, really. I can handle it.”

“I know you can, but you don’t have to. Don’t argue and let me do this.” She nodded in agreement and handed me the paperwork needed for the prescriptions.

I headed off to the drugstore, and as I stood in line waiting to pick up Aaliyah’s pain meds, my mind began to swirl back to memories I wanted to keep buried…memories of standing in lines and waiting to pick up medicine for my mother. Each step I took toward the pharmacist, my chest grew tighter. My breaths were becoming labored as I tried to inhale and exhale in a normal pattern.

When I reached the front of the line, the woman behind the counter smiled and said, “Hi, there. Picking up a prescription?”

“Yes. For Aaliyah Winters.”

She walked over to the bins of pills and began thumbing through them.