“Alright, alright,” Snake says loudly, tossing the bag of Doritos onto the worktop and quickly rushing around the counter into the living room. Rolling up his sleeves, he edges around the couches and grabs at Dean, wrapping his arms tightly around his torso as he tugs him up off of Tyler. “Fucking cut it out already!” he yells. Roughly, he throws Dean to one side, toward me.
Even Emily rushes in to help, extending her hand to Tyler as she pulls him up from the ground. His jaw is clenched tightly as he glares at Dean from across the room, but then the adrenaline rush seems to fade, because he glances down at himself and his eyes soften up. There’s a lot of glass stuck to him and he doesn’t hesitate to reach for the hem of his shirt, quickly pulling it off. A series of scratches now decorate the skin on his back, but I’m more focused on his right arm. There’s blood gushing from his tricep, flowing straight down past his elbow, dripping onto the carpet. When he finally notices it, all he can do is blink as Emily runs into the kitchen to grab the first-aid kit.
With tears flowing down my cheeks, I glance over to Dean to see if he’s okay. He doesn’t look too hurt in comparison with Tyler, although his jaw is deeply grazed and his left eye is swollen. Panting heavily, he squeezes that eye half shut as he looks back at me.
“Get outside,” he orders, his voice still as harsh as it was when he first turned up at the door. He doesn’t wait for me. Storming across the apartment, he stomps out the door and into the lobby.
Feeling sick to the pit of my stomach, I look back to Tyler before I make my move. He’s still standing amongst the glass where the coffee table once stood, his expression a little spaced out, as though he’s in a daze. Emily’s by his side again and Snake is offering his assistance, the two of them tossing bandages around. I want nothing more than to help too. After all, I caused all of this, but I know that right now I need to deal with Dean.
Trembling with nerves, I force myself toward the door, following Dean out into the lobby. The second I get there and stand before him, he slams the door shut behind us. This time it appears he doesn’t want an audience, and at this point I feel too broken to speak, so I don’t. I just wipe the tears away while I struggle to meet his eyes.
“You’ve been cheating on me,” Dean mutters, like he needs to say it out loud so that he’ll believe it. Cautiously, his narrowed eyes meet mine, and my heart shatters at his expression. Devastated. Destroyed. “I’ve loved you and the entire time . . . the whole entire time you’ve had this thing with Tyler. He’s my best friend, Eden! He’s your brother!”
“I’m sorry!” I cry, my voice cracking. It’s far too late for apologies, but it’s the only thing I can do. I don’t think Dean’ll ever forgive me. I can tell by the loathing that has spread over his features. I’m not used to seeing Dean like this. I’m used to seeing his soft eyes and his gentle smile. I don’t think I’ll ever witness them again. “I don’t know what else to say.”
“Don’t ever talk to me again,” he warns. His voice is raspy and coarse. Taking a step back, he increases the distance between us and roughly shoves his hand into the back pocket of his jeans, pulling out his wallet. His grazed cheek has started to bleed and I fight the urge to touch him, to help. “Here,” Dean spits after a few seconds. Harshly, he tosses a five-dollar bill at me. It hits my chest and I catch it before it falls to the ground, and when I glance down to look at it, I realize it’s our five-dollar bill. I look back up, my heart breaking even more than it already is. My lips are quivering as Dean mutters, “Five bucks for both of you to stay the hell out of my life.”
Stuffing his wallet back into his pocket, he rubs at his cheek and turns his back on me. Without waiting a second longer, he storms off, marching down the lobby toward the elevator without even so much as a glance over his shoulder. I watch him leave, tears streaming down my cheeks as I stare after him, feeling entirely helpless. I press my back to the door of Tyler’s apartment as my knees weaken beneath me and I simply cannot remain standing any longer, so I slide down the door into a seated position. Burying my head in my hands, I sob even harder, and I listen to the sound of Dean leaving.
The one thing I always hoped was that I would never lose him. I always hoped he’d be able to understand and be able to forgive us, even if it took a while. I always hoped Dean would be okay, but I clearly didn’t hope long and hard enough, because everything I hoped wouldn’t happen is exactly what has.
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