TËSSÃ ãñd DARÆY: A Love Written with fire

With that shock still coursing through my veins, I walked out of the club, my legs moving faster than my mind could process.

It wasn't fear. No.

It was that kind of adrenaline-fueled, what-the-hell-did-I-just-do feeling—the one that makes you feel powerful for a second and then immediately sends your brain into panic mode.

I was practically running home, like I had just punched a ghost instead of a very real, very alive Justin.

By the time I got to my room, my breathing was erratic. I had to sit down. Process.

My chest heaved, and my fingers trembled as I reached for the bottle of water my roommate handed me. I gulped it down, my throat dry from all the rage.

And then Ruth, my ever-so-direct roommate, just stared at me and went—

"What the hell happened? You're sweating like you just fought a war."

I wiped my forehead, still catching my breath, and then—

"You wouldn't believe what I just did," I said, my voice still high from the lingering rush.

"What?" they all leaned in.

I let the words slip out like a secret too heavy to hold.

"I punched Justin. Right. In. The. Face."

The room erupted.

Gasps. Screams. Utter disbelief.

"Dude, what the actual hell?!"

And then Ruth—RUTH—of all people, threw up her hands.

"HEY! That is my regular provision store! Don't you dare! Why the hell would you do that?"

I blinked at her, still trying to recover from the sprint home.

"Your what?"

"MY REGULAR PROVISION STORE, BITCH!"

The absurdity almost made me laugh. Almost.

But before I could even get a word in, the others jumped in.

"Are you crazy? Why would you get involved in Divine's case?"

"Like, seriously, if it was our Divine, maybe. But that Divine? Hell no."

"Bitch, no. Seriously. No."

The betrayal hit.

For the first time ever, my roommates had turned their backs on me… for Justin.

"What the hell, guys?!" I threw my hands in the air.

I was fuming all over again.

"We get why you're mad," Light said, trying to calm me down. "What he said to you was totally wrong. No argument there. But… let's be real. You should never have gotten into Divine's fight in the first place."

I scoffed.

"I didn't do it for Divine!"

They all exchanged looks.

Then Biancus, with her all-knowing tone, smirked.

"Yeah, yeah. You did it because you thought Justin was your best friend."

That one hit deep.

"News flash," she continued, her voice annoyingly smug. "Guys like Justin don't keep best friends or girlfriends. That's why you were reduced to a f*** buddy."

Ouch.

I opened my mouth, closed it, then opened it again.

There was nothing I could say. Because she wasn't wrong.

The weight of it settled in. The fight. The anger. The fact that I had given Justin the power to even think he could treat me like that.

The room went silent for a second, and then Biancus—because she just had to—dropped another bomb.

"Anyway, I know where all this is coming from."

I turned to her, narrowing my eyes.

"Oh, you do?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"Yeah," she said without hesitation. "It's coming from Daræy."

I let out a breath.

"Dude. Seriously? Everything has to go back to that guy?"

"Of course," she shrugged, like it was obvious. "If you were still friends with Daræy, you wouldn't have had the time to turn into Justin's best friend. And if you weren't his best friend, you wouldn't have had the need to talk to him or advise him. The only person willing to listen to your advice is Daræy."

I hated how that stung.

Because no matter how much I tried to deny it, deep down, even I had thought about that last night.

Not everyone was like Daræy. Not everyone would listen. Not everyone would care.

And now?

Now, I was left missing the one person who always did.

"You idiot," I thought bitterly, my chest tightening.

"I miss him so much."

I missed him.

Of course, I did.

Daræy was the one person I could talk to however I wanted, and no matter how high up he was, he would always bring himself down to my level.

He was my friend. My real friend. And I had thrown that away over what?

Ego? Pride?

I let out a bitter laugh.

Let's be real—on a normal day, if I saw Daræy on the street, I wouldn't dare call him. If I wasn't his friend, if we hadn't met the way we did, I never would have gotten the chance to even breathe in his space.

People like him—people like them—they weren't just rich.

They were stupidly rich. They weren't just good-looking. They were ridiculously good-looking. They lived in a world so far removed from mine that if I had never stepped into it, I would've thought it was something straight out of a movie.

And I was throwing all of that into the bin over something so stupid.

My chest tightened.

One part of me wanted to tell Daræy what happened today. Wanted to hear what he'd say, wanted to know if he'd laugh or be pissed, or if he'd just shake his head and call me a dumbass in that exasperated way of his.

But another part of me—the stubborn part—held me back.

Because telling Daræy would mean letting him fight my battles.

And bitch, he would not like that.

I sighed.

So I bottled it up.

Later That Evening

Divine called.

Her voice was softer than usual, hesitant. Apologetic.

"Hey… I'm really sorry. I heard what happened."

I scoffed, rubbing my temple.

"Of course, you did. It's all over everywhere, huh?"

So it wasn't just Daræy's news that traveled fast. Justin's did too. We just never cared to look for his news.

And now? His news was me.

I groaned.

"Oh my God. Do people know my face? Because I hate when people stare at me."

Divine sighed on the other end of the line.

"I really am sorry for putting you in this situation," she said. "I didn't mean for things to blow up like this."

"Yeah, well. Damage done."

She was quiet for a moment. Then,

"To be honest… I was just a f*** buddy. I wanted more, but he didn't. He told me from the start what he was into, so I guess I can't really blame him."

I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, so now you're being reasonable?"

"I was stupid," she admitted. "But that's just it. We didn't break up or anything. It wasn't even a real relationship. It was just a… fallout."

A fallout.

And yet, somehow, I had gotten myself thrown into the middle of it.

I leaned back, exhaling sharply.

"Damn. I really hit this one hard, huh?"

Knowing I was wrong, I started racking my brain for ways to apologize.

Should I call him?

No. Apologizing over the phone was so not it.

Should I text? Hell no, that would just make me look even more pathetic.

What the hell do I do?

I was supposed to go back to Yentown today, but my roommates—oh, my very wise and very judgmental roommates—told me to go back to the club and apologize.

"You started the mess there," Biancus had said. "You should fix it there."

And she wasn't wrong.

Justin would definitely be back at the club. Probably drowning himself in alcohol to wash away the humiliation of getting punched in the face by me.

I sighed.

I really should thank the guys for holding him back.

Muttering curses at myself, I packed my bags for my trip—because whatever happened, I was still leaving today—and made my way to the club.

Now, here was the problem.

I was banned.

Yeah. Apparently, punching certain people in the face gets you kicked out of places. Who knew?

So, I did what any desperate, half-regretful person would do.

I sat outside.

And I waited.

And waited.

And waited.

It had been an hour plus, and the dude still hadn't come anywhere near the damn door.

Did he know I was out here? Was he doing this on purpose?

Or was I just that unlucky?

I groaned, leaning against the wall.

"What if he actually punches me?" I muttered under my breath.

Justin wasn't the type to hit a girl… was he?

He wouldn't, right?

I shook my head. I was the one who threw the first punch. I had to own up to it.

And then—finally—he stepped towards the entrance.

This was my chance.

"Justin!" I called out.

He turned, his face immediately twisting into a furious scowl. He was ready to lash out, fists clenched, body tensed like he was actually about to swing.

The guys around him were already shifting, getting prepared to hold him back again.

And then I blurted,

"I'm sorry."

Silence.

The guys froze. Justin froze.

Even I froze, shocked that I had actually said it.

"Well, that was unexpected," someone muttered.

Justin's scowl deepened.

"Sorry, I guess," I mumbled, rubbing the back of my neck. "Yeah, I am sorry."

He stared at me, arms still tense, eyes burning with resentment.

Then, his voice low and sharp, he asked,

"What are you apologizing for?"

"Are you apologizing for punching me?"

Justin's lips curled into a grin, the bruising on his face making the expression look even more ridiculous.

I scoffed. "Of course not."

His grin vanished instantly, replaced by pure irritation.

"Wait," I held up a hand before he could explode again. "Punching you was for a whole different reason."

He raised a brow, arms crossed, waiting.

I took a deep breath.

"I'm apologizing for disturbing your sleep and thinking the matter was something else. I thought she was your girlfriend and that you had a bad breakup. As a friend, I just wanted to be there for her. I guess I forgot about how to be a friend to you… or how you felt. I should have asked how you felt first."

I glanced up at him. He was still listening, his jaw set, his breathing heavy.

"But for punching you for being a total douchebag?" I scoffed. "Obviously not."

His nostrils flared, but I didn't stop.

"You insulted me and called me names that I am not. And when people push to my sexual side, insulting me that way, I don't accept rubbish. And that was utter rubbish, what you did. So don't ever do that again."

For a second, Justin just stood there, staring.

Then, to my utter confusion, he smirked.

"Seriously, Tessa, you have a way of going through things. So punching me was your only way?"

I crossed my arms. "Well, when I got here, you were smiling, and I got irritated. So, yeah, I punched you."

Justin shook his head, a low chuckle escaping him.

I turned to the guys beside him. "By the way, thanks for holding him back. Because if you didn't, I have no idea where I'd be right now."

They all burst into laughter.

And just like that, the tension melted.

Justin and I stood outside the club for a while, just talking.

He admitted that the moment he heard it was Divine, he got irritated.

"She and Anita are basically the same person," he explained with a tired sigh. "They go from one guy to another, expecting more from you, like you owe them for being with you. It's annoying. It got really annoying. And I took it out on you."

I narrowed my eyes.

"You knew I wasn't that kind of person."

He rubbed his neck, looking guilty. "Yeah… I just wanted to make you angry."

I rolled my eyes. "Well, from what you saw, I hope you know it definitely worked."

He grinned. "Oh, trust me, I know."

Justin offered to take me back to Yentown, and after some hesitation, I agreed.

We got into his car and hit the road, and honestly, I hadn't expected to have that much fun.

We stopped at random roadside stalls, eating whatever caught our eye. We sang along to the radio, screaming the lyrics to our favorite songs.

And that's when I discovered something.

Justin loved Bruno Mars.

And, damn, he had a lovely voice.

He wouldn't shut up about how he had won singing competitions before, bragging about his glorious voice like he was God's gift to music.

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't stop laughing.

It was stupid. Silly. Fun.

And just like that… we were friends again.

I wish it was that easy with Daræy.

Goodbyes and What-Ifs

When we finally reached my place, Justin pulled up in front of my house, killing the engine.

I sighed, grabbing my bag.

"Thanks for the ride," I said, stepping out.

He nodded. "See you on Monday, I guess."

I smirked. "If you don't get another punch before then."

"Oh, please," he scoffed. "Not everyone is as violent as you, Tessa."

I stuck my tongue out at him before shutting the car door.

Justin chuckled, revved the engine, and drove off.

And as I watched his car disappear down the road, I couldn't help but think—

Would fixing things with Daræy ever be this easy?