“Zoe, you in there?” I heard a woman’s voice off in the distance.

I stuffed my head farther under my pillow and tried to ignore the sounds. Five days ago, I made a decision that caused memories to come crashing down on me. Instead of facing them, I did the next best thing. I ran and hid in my bedroom. I didn’t have depression. For me, I just had a history of disappearing from the world. Somehow Tyler and Stephen managed to make me feel like running and hiding that night.

I was struggling to think, feel, and pull my smelly ass out of my bed. My furry kids, Lucky and Sammy, had even started to distance themselves. I guess a shower should be in my future.

“Get up,” the voice said and pushed on my shoulder.

“What the fuck?” I threw the pillow in the direction of the voice and lifted up. “How the hell did you get in my house?”

Charlie lifted her hands above her head. “Don’t be mad. I have a bit of a past.”

“A klepto past.”

“Potentially.” She sat down on the edge of the bed. “Girl, when is the last time you took a shower?” She was fanning the air in front of her.

“Well, nobody invited you in here,” I huffed and threw the pillow back over me.

“Sweetie.” Charlie rubbed my back. “Talk to me.”

The moment she said sweetie my body recoiled. “Please don’t call me that.”

“What? Sweetie?”

“Yeah,” I mumbled from under my pillow.

“Um, okay.”

I threw the pillow back once again and sat up against the headboard. I rubbed my eyes and ran my hands through my hair. “So, you know how to pick locks, eh?”

“Yeah, not one of my finer qualities.” Charlie shrugged and reached for my hand. “What is it?”

“It’s stupid.”

“Obviously it’s not stupid. You have been hidden in here for five days. From the color on your face, it looks like you haven’t been getting much sleep. Are you at least eating?”

“A little.”

Charlie stood and walked over to the doorway. “I brought stuff to make tacos. Come join me.”

I wanted to follow, but somehow my body was in control. Instead of following my friend, I stayed rooted to the spot. It was weird; I felt afraid to leave my room.

She came storming back in and threw back the covers. “Nope, you are coming no matter what.”

“But,” I stammered and stumbled as she pulled me down the hallway.

“No buts,” she demanded and forced me to sit in a chair at the kitchen island. “It’s taco Tuesday and we need to celebrate.”

“I’m confused,” I said and rested my elbows on the counter. “How did you even know I was home?”

“The smell.”

I tried not to laugh, but it was her delivery when she answered. Charlie had a dry sense of humor that I adored. “Fair enough. Now how did you really know?”

“The weird message you sent to the gym. It felt off.” She sat down beside me. “I didn’t want to invade your space, so I let you be. Now we are on day five, and I can’t wait any longer.”

“I’m sorry.”

She reached for my hands. “Zo, why are you apologizing? You obviously have something going on. It’s okay. I’m your friend and plan to help you in any way.”

I felt my body relax at her words. For the first time in less than a week, I didn’t feel lost or scared. I squeezed her hands. “Thank you. I needed that.” There were two bags on the counter. “How about I go and freshen up and you start the tacos?”

“Thank God. Holy shit, girl.”

“That bad?” She didn’t reply. “Fine, give me ten minutes.”

“You may need longer than that.” I gave her the middle finger as I made my way out of the room. Charlie cleared her throat and yelled, “Then we can talk?”

I turned at the end of the hallway. “Then we can talk.”

“Better?” I said and walked back into the kitchen.

“So much.” Charlie walked over and wrapped her arms around my waist. “I love you, Zo Zo.”

“Should I be worried?” I leaned away to get a better look at her face.

“What? No. I just thought you needed to hear that.”

She was right, I did. I made my way to the kitchen island where there were several bowls with different toppings for our tacos. “You know it’s Friday, right?” I thought about her claim we needed to celebrate taco Tuesday.

“You caught that mess up, eh?”

“I may be locked in my bedroom, but my phone still tells me the date and time.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Charlie grabbed a plate and handed it to me. “Just eat some tacos and hush, woman.”

After filling my plate with real food, I walked over to the kitchen table and sat down. It had been days since I ate anything normal. Instead, I lived on ramen noodles and peanut butter out of a jar. I had a habit of stocking up on those items. After five days, it was time to stock up again.

Charlie’s mouth was full as she began to ask a question. “So,” she said and worked to finish chewing the bite. “I have a feeling you have a more private life than Tyler.”

She was partially right. I was not one to share my past with anyone. I did chat and share my life from the moment I stepped foot in Las Vegas. “I don’t know about that.”

“Since I only know your life in Las Vegas. It’s correct,” Charlie said and grabbed the container of sour cream. “Ty seems freaked out. He’s also been distant, and he never does that to me. You’ve been MIA. Want to start with Ty?”

“Um, I guess.”

“Wherever you feel comfortable.”

“Tyler introduced me to a friend of his.”

“Who? Stephen?”

My eyes lifted at the mention of his name. “Wait, you know?”

“It’s a long story.”

“Looks like we both have stories to tell.” I wasn’t sure how to process this bit of news. Tyler had made it seem like I was the only one who knew his secret. I let out a deep sigh, preparing to share why I was locked up in my house. “Yeah, it was Stephen.” I proceeded to share what Charlie probably didn’t know about me. “You know I’m bi-sexual, right?”

“I guessed. Not my business, though.”

“Guessed?”

“Noir Nightclub.”

She was right; the club did welcome everyone. “True. Well, I guess Tyler figured me out on his own. Probably the same way you did. It’s not like I keep it a secret.” I stopped to take a bite of my taco and then wiped the side of my mouth. “Anyways, he stopped by my house one morning and confessed.”

“You’re blushing. Sounds like it’s more than just a confession that happened that day.”

My mind was replaying the moment in his SUV. I still couldn’t believe I let him touch me in that way. That was not my normal; I was not a simple lay for men. There was something about him, though. Something about how he made me feel. When he showed his bossy side, my body reacted. “Um, that story is for another day.”

“Oh, now you have me curious.”

“Yeah, well plan to stay curious for a while.” I struggled to hold in a laugh. That was mean but it felt too personal. Charlie was my friend, but not in the same way her and Lily were besties. “Tyler took me to meet Stephen.” I was hoping she would figure out why. She did. I watched her reaction. “Good. So you get it.”

“Holy shit.” She sat back in her chair and had this deer-in-headlights look.

“Yeah, it was a surprise to me, too.” I let out a deep sigh. “Well, okay, the three of us did have a moment on the dance floor at Noir. It was just dancing, nothing else.”

“I’m going to go out on a limb and guess it was more than just a dance with those two involved.”

Charlie had a point there. “Um, you’re probably right.” I grabbed a black olive and popped it into my mouth. “I may have overreacted the other night. It was all hard to process. Practice was normal with Tyler that day. We were hitting on each other non-stop. Then he demanded I get in his SUV and take a ride after practice was done.”

“Demanded?” Charlie scowled at my words.

“Yeah, has he been known to control situations?”

“Um, I have no fucking clue.”

“Well, he wasn’t all dominant or anything, but he was having fun telling me what to do.”

Charlie reached for my hand. “Is this what set you off?”

I knew what she meant. She wanted to know if his controlling ways put my mind in a downward spiral for five days. “Maybe. I don’t know. I was enjoying it.”

She threw her hands up and covered each ear. “TMI.”

I pulled them down. “This is not a conversation about sex.”

“Oh,” she said and visibly relaxed. “Okay, then continue.”

“Honestly, I think it was when I met Stephen. He has this aura I can’t pinpoint.” I grabbed a chip and dug it into the salsa. “Like, on one hand he seems delicious and makes me curious. Then on the other hand he reminds me of some of the slimeballs I dated.”

“Can I ask you an honest question?” Charlie said and quickly followed up with, “If it is too personal tell me.”

“Yeah, go for it,” I said and patted her hand. “You’ve seen me at my worst. What do I have to hide now?”

“Why lock yourself up in your room for five days?”

“That part is harder to answer. My body sometimes decides for me.”

“So, you want to know Stephen more, and yes I mean sexually?”

I paused for a beat. “I’m curious.”

“What if Stephen is an amazing guy? Maybe he just likes to share that crappy side that freaked you out to only outsiders.”

Before I said anymore, I let what she said work into my mind more. It was true; the man didn’t know me from Jane Doe. What if the way he talked to me was all an act? Maybe he struggled to trust outsiders. I could relate with that emotion.

I shook my head at my thoughts. “I feel dumb now.”

“Why? You are allowed to feel all your emotions.”

“I let my past speak for me. Decide how to feel.” I stood and walked over to the sink to fill my water glass. “I never gave Stephen a chance.” I held my hand up to continue. “In my defense, I really do think he expected we went to his house to fuck.”

“Well, maybe you need to have a long chat with Tyler first.” Charlie grabbed a few bowls and carried them over to the sink. “He was wrong to take you there that night.”

“Yeah, I won’t lie. It made me feel uncomfortable.”

“But still curious.”

“Yeah, that too.”