Chapter 17

___________________

Alex

“SO, WHAT’S GONNA HAPPEN to him, once he’s released?” Rose asked as we walked through the hospital and into the parking garage.

“Don’t really know. It could take a while to get him assistance through the VA.” I unlocked the car doors and we got in.

“We have to do something to help him. We can’t just let him go back onto the streets.”

I turned my head in her direction and rolled my eyes. “We? What are you gonna do, have your father write out a check to pay for his living expenses?”

Her jaw dropped, and her eyes glassed over, making me instantly regret my words. She was trying, and I didn’t have to be such an asshole to her.

“If that’s the only way…then yes.” Her voice faltered. “I’m sure my father owns property in the city somewhere, and—”

“Look, Rose, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that to you. I know you’re only trying to help, but some things aren’t always cured by throwing money at it. William may be just a homeless guy to most people, but he’s a Marine, and they’re stubborn.”

“Oh, so that explains why you’re the way you are.”

I narrowed my eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Because you were a Marine.”

Were. That word in that sentence always struck a chord with me. “How the hell do you know that?” I snapped, knowing more than likely my uncle had divulged that information.

“Geez, someone is sensitive! You think you’d be proud of that instead of trying to hide it. What’s the matter, did you fail out of boot camp or something?”

“You know nothing about it or me, for that matter, so just keep your mouth shut!” I hollered.

Her eyes widened. “You know what? You’re right. I don’t know anything about you except you’re a complete and utter dick.” She got out of the car and slammed the door. I let out a frustrated breath and threw my head back against the seat before jumping out and going after her.

“Where are you going?” I shouted.

She picked up her pace until she reached the elevator then frantically pounded on the button.

“Come on, let me give you a ride,” I pleaded once I caught up to her. “You know that’s not gonna make it open any faster,” I said as she continued her assault on the button.

“Just go!” A lone teardrop streamed down her face when she finally turned around to face me.

“Rose, I’m sorry. That’s just something I don’t like to talk about with anyone.”

“That’s fine because I don’t want to talk about it to you anyway. In fact, I don’t want to talk to you about anything.”

“Okay, that’s fine. We don’t have to talk, but can you please let me give you a ride back?”

“I can get my own ride, thank you!” she snapped just as the elevator doors opened and she stepped in. “What are you doing?” she yelled when I followed behind her.

“You’re going to let me give you a ride.”

“No, I’m not!”

“Yeah, you are.” I hit the emergency stop button.

“Alex, stop that! Make it move again!” she demanded.

“Not until you say you’ll let me give you a ride.”

“No!” she shouted, reaching around me and pressing multiple buttons at the same time. The elevator ascended then came to a bumpy stop. “Wha-what just happened?” Her voice shook.

“You made it get stuck by hitting all those buttons!”

“I made it get stuck! If you hadn’t stopped it in the first place this would’ve never happened!”

“No…if you had just gotten in the car like I asked, this would’ve never happened.”

“Oh my God! We’re stuck!” Panic overtook her.

“It appears we are.”

“Well, do something!”

“What would you like me to do?”

“Pry the doors open!” She paced back and forth like a caged tiger.

I hit the emergency call button and took a seat on the floor.

“Wait…that’s all you’re gonna do?” she asked.

“There’s nothing else to do. That will alert the maintenance people, and now we have to wait for them to fix it.”

Her eyes widened. “Wait? I can’t wait!” She looked down at her watch. “I have to be somewhere in a few hours.”

“Don’t know what to tell you.” I shrugged and pulled out my phone to check my email.

“How can you just sit there and be so calm?” Rose barked.

“What would you like me to do? Pout like you?”

“I’m not pouting…oh my God, what if they never find us? What if we starve to death? What if you’re the last person I ever talk to?” she moaned, sliding her back down the elevator wall and taking a seat. She buried her face in her knees, and I couldn’t help but chuckle over the state of hysteria she had gotten herself in.

The silence between us was welcoming, but in a way, not so much because it allowed me to obsess over the email I had just read from Vanessa. How I wished I could go back in time and do things differently.

“Oh my God, it’s getting hot in here. What if we run out of air?” Rose complained, breaking my thoughts of the she-devil whose email I had just deleted.

“We’re not gonna run out of air.”

“It’s totally plausible, you know?”

“Then you better stop talking so we don’t.” I threw my head back and closed my eyes. I was exhausted. I hadn’t been sleeping much. I had so much on my mind, and it didn’t seem to be ending anytime soon.

“Where are you from?” Rose asked.

“What?” I opened my eyes and looked at her.

“Your Southern accent?” she clarified.

“Accent? I don’t have an accent?” I teased.

“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes.

“Georgia,” I replied.

“Hmm…I’ve never been,” she replied, burying her head into her phone.

I checked her out while she was thoroughly engrossed in whatever she was reading. Her dark brown wavy hair hung loosely around her suntanned face. Her big brown eyes were always so expressive, even more so when I’d piss her off, and her plump red lips…I tried not to focus too much on them because they’d always send me into some inappropriate daydream. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, she was pretty damn hot, and if she was just some random girl I knew nothing about, I’d definitely be interested in her.

“What happened to your knee?” I blurted out.

She lifted her head from her phone and stared down at it as if she were noticing the bruise for the very first time. “I tripped.” She studied my face to gauge my reaction. “Go ahead and laugh.” She scoffed.

“Why would I laugh?”

“Because you seem to relish in my humiliation.”

“Nah, only when you’re making obscene sounds.”

She frantically shook her head. “I didn’t—”

“I know. I know, I’m just messing with you.” I chuckled.

“Sorry we can’t all be as perfect as you.” She pouted.

“I never said I was perfect.”

“No, you just make it your mission in life to prove that other people aren’t perfect…mainly me.”

“I don’t think that’s what I do.”

“Oh, so you just hate me for no particular reason.”

“Who says I hate you?”

“Well…you could’ve fooled me!”

I decided to stop the conversation there. I didn’t want to get into the real reason why I judged her so harshly, which would take us back down the path of my personal life. We weren’t friends and we never would be. We were colleagues who were slowly learning to tolerate one another. I didn’t want her thinking otherwise because I spilled my guts out of boredom from being stuck in this elevator with her.

“Great, my battery’s dying,” Rose whined, breaking me from my daydreaming. Placing her phone in her purse, she threw her head back against the wall and sighed heavily. “This sucks,” she whispered, pulling her legs into her and resting her head on her knees.

I didn’t respond, but I was in total agreement. How damn long did it take to get an elevator up and running again?

“Let’s play icebreaker,” Rose suggested.

“What?”

“It’s a game. You tell me three facts about yourself. Two of them are true and one is a lie. The other person has to guess the lie.”

“Umm…nah, that’s okay.”

“Oh, come on! I’ll go first.” She insisted.

I didn’t argue, oddly wanting to see what she was planning on divulging about herself. It wasn’t like I’d be unable to spot the untruth. She was as transparent as glass.

“Okay, here it goes…I love lemon meringue pie, my favorite movie is Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and my biggest fear is having my heart broken.”

This was almost too easy. Since she was only in the market for one thing from a guy, the last thing she was worried about was getting heart broken. If anything, she was the one who’d break the guy’s heart after she got what she wanted. I was just about to reply when the elevator jerked and moved.

“It’s fixed!” Rose exclaimed, jumping to her feet with a smile plastered on her face. “Yes...yes…yes!” she shouted when the doors opened to the parking garage.

“So, I guess this means you’ll let me give you a ride then?” I asked as we stepped out of the elevator and toward my car.

She stopped walking and stared up at me. “Only because I’m extremely happy we didn’t die on that elevator.”

I rolled my eyes and shook my head over her overdramatic take on the situation.

“But just for the record, I still think you’re a dick.” She bit back a smile.

“Thanks…I’ll take that as a compliment coming from you,” I replied, unable to hide my amusement. Funny how if anyone else called me a dick I would have been offended, but coming from Rose, it was kind of an endearment.