61
The faint hum of voices from inside faded as I stood at the top of the stairs, gripping the polished wooden railing. My arms folded tightly across my chest, a futile attempt to keep my emotions in check. Bunny, ever the peacemaker, was already downstairs, leaning against the front door with his arms crossed. His brow furrowed in frustration as he tried to reason with her.
Adeline descended the stairs with the precision of someone who knew they were in charge. Her movements were sharp, deliberate, each clack of her heels echoing like a judge’s gavel. She wore a smirk that sent my irritation soaring, her eyes darting to Bunny as though she were daring him to defy her.
“No,” she declared, brushing past him without missing a beat. “They’re leaving.” Her voice was final, cold as the night air seeping through the cracks in the doorframe.
Bunny raised his hands in mock surrender. “Adeline, come on. This is extreme, even for you.”
She turned sharply, her hair whipping over her shoulder like a weapon. “Extreme? Bunny, I’ve tolerated enough. They’re in my house, wearing my clothes—” her gaze flicked briefly in my direction, “—and bringing their drama into my life. That’s not extreme. That’s called enforcing boundaries.”
Boundaries. The word rolled off her tongue like poison. I bit the inside of my cheek, refusing to rise to the bait. But my pulse quickened, anger bubbling beneath my calm exterior.
Dominic’s footsteps creaked on the stairs behind me. When he finally appeared, he looked disheveled, his shirt untucked and his hair sticking up in different directions. He looked... defeated. And for some reason, that made me angrier.
“Adeline,” he said, his voice softer than I’d ever heard it. It was almost jarring, seeing him like this—pleading. “You don’t have to do this. Let’s talk—”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” she snapped, cutting him off. Her arms crossed over her chest, mirroring my stance. Her nails tapped rhythmically against her elbow, a taunting beat that grated on my nerves.
Dominic tried again, stepping closer, his voice calmer this time. “You’re upset. I get it. But don’t take this out on her.” His head tilted in my direction, and I stiffened.
Adeline’s laugh was sharp and humorless. “Oh, her? Don’t pretend this is about Eleanor. This is about you, Dominic. You show up after years, drop your problems at my feet, and expect me to just... what? Welcome you with open arms?”
I couldn’t take it anymore. My jaw ached from clenching it so tightly, and my fingers were digging into my palms. “I don’t need your pity or your charity,” I said, my voice cutting through the tension like a blade. “If you want us out, fine. We’ll leave.”
Her smirk widened, and for a moment, I thought she was going to clap. “Good. Then we’re on the same page.”
Bunny groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “This is ridiculous. You two are acting like—”
Adeline cut him off with a wave of her hand. “I don’t care, Bunny. If they’re not gone in five minutes, I’m calling the cops.”
Dominic’s shoulders tensed, and his hand twitched at his side like he was fighting the urge to reach out to her. Instead, he exhaled slowly, defeated. “Adeline, you don’t need to do this—”
“I don’t need to, but I will,” she interrupted, her voice icy.
I didn’t wait for the rest of the argument. With my head held high, I strode to the door, my boots clicking against the hardwood floor. The cold air hit me the moment I stepped outside, sharp and biting against my skin.
The sky was an endless black canvas, dotted with faint stars barely visible through the haze of city lights. My breath puffed in front of me in soft, white clouds as I walked down the steps to the curb. I didn’t bother looking back.
The faint sound of the door closing behind me was followed by Dominic’s footsteps. He caught up to me quickly, his pace hesitant.
“Eleanor—” he started, but I cut him off with a sharp glare.
“Don’t,” I snapped. My voice was colder than the air around us, my anger simmering just beneath the surface. “Just don’t.”
The car was parked a few feet away, its windows fogged from the cold. Dominic moved to open the passenger door for me, but I brushed past him without a word, sliding into the backseat instead. The door slammed shut behind me, the sound echoing in the quiet street.
He froze for a moment, his hand still on the passenger door. Then, with a heavy sigh, he climbed into the driver’s seat. Bunny followed, settling into the passenger side with a frustrated groan.
The silence in the car was suffocating as Dominic started the engine. The heater hummed to life, but it did little to thaw the ice between us.
I stared out the window, watching the streetlights blur into streaks of gold as we drove. My reflection stared back at me, pale and tense, my lips pressed into a thin line.
Finally, Dominic broke the silence. “Eleanor, I didn’t plan for this—”
“Of course you didn’t,” I shot back, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “You never plan for anything, Dominic. You just drag people into your mess and expect them to deal with it.”
He flinched, his hands tightening on the steering wheel. “I’m trying to fix it.”
“Well, you’re doing a fantastic job,” I snapped.
Bunny shifted uncomfortably in his seat, glancing between us. “Hey, maybe we can just—”
“Stay out of it, Bunny,” I said sharply. My gaze was still locked on Dominic, daring him to say something else.
But he didn’t. His jaw clenched, and his eyes stayed fixed on the road. The silence returned, heavier than before.
I turned back to the window, my breath fogging the glass. The city lights stretched out before us, cold and unforgiving. And for the first time in a long time, I felt like I had nowhere to go.
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