She’s staring directly at me, but her gaze is unfocused, herface bathed in a sickly green hue from the restroom lighting. Tears well in her large eyes. “Fuck, I’ve missed you,” she says, flinging her arms around me, and I’m inundated with notes of sweet green apple, jasmine and musk.
I stiffen and gingerly pat her back.
“Rose? Is everything okay?” Parker’s voice rings out from the other side of the door, startling Rose. She pulls away from me, shaking her head. “Rose, please come out,” Parker calls again.
She wraps her hand around the door handle, her onyx eyes glistening. “I’ll kill him for what he did to you,” she whispers over her shoulder, then she flings open the door.
I grab her hoodie and chase her into the bar where Parker is waiting.
Rose crashes into his chest, muttering under her breath. He wraps his arms around her, and I notice a few small, rounded Band-Aids spotting his forearms. He turns to me and my heart stutters, but his gaze is focused on the patrons behind me. “What did she say to you?”
“She—Nothing. She was confused.” Why is he more concerned with a restroom conversation than the state of his—friend? Girlfriend? “It’s okay,” I mouth to Anna, who’s watching us from behind the bar.
Parker picks Rose up, the muscles in his arms shifting to easily accommodate her weight. In his arms, her tall frame folds into something tiny and fragile, like a bird fallen from a nest. “I’ll take you home, Rose,” he says, stepping past me.
I chase him to the door. “She needs help, Parker.”
“If you want to help her, then help me get her back to our apartment.” He shifts on his feet beside the door, his rigid arms encasing Rose. “Can you get the door?”
I hesitate. “She needs to see—”
“Trust me, she’ll be fine after she rests,” he says, and I tense.
He’s talking as if I’m overreacting. As if Rose’s turn isn’t concerning. As if—
“Has this happened to her before?” I ask.
He slowly turns toward me, almost unwillingly. His golden gaze settles on mine and the air vanishes from my lungs. “Ella, please help me?”
I want to refuse, but my skin’s crawling at the number of people staring at us. “Fine.” I open the door for him. “I’ll help you, but tomorrow you need to take her to a doctor.”
We step out into the brisk, clear night, the drunken chanting and conversations fading with each step from the door. I wrap my coat around my chest, and jog to keep up with Parker’s long strides.
Rose is mostly silent in his arms, but with each sharp inhale or incoherent mumble, his head drops to her face.
How did I get myself into this situation? I should excuse myself and go back to the bar, but Parker asked me for help and there’s no way he’ll be able to get the apartment door open while holding Rose. Plus he’ll need someone to enter the code to get inside the building.
I sneak a glance at him. His mouth is tense, eyes focused on something in the distance.
“How long have you known Rose?” I ask, breaking the silence.
“About three years,” he says in a rough voice.
We cross the road and walk between two buildings. Campus is littered with Halloween decorations. Carvedpumpkins with evil faces track our steps as we pass. “She’s lucky to have you. To take care of her like this.”
“Yeah, well, it’s easy when she’s this docile. Normally she’s a colossal pain in my ass,” he says, his tone lifting despite his harsh words.
“Does this happen to her often?”
“Sometimes.” His brows draw in and he scans Rose’s face. “Trust me, she’ll be back to her old,charmingself soon enough.” His eyes flicker to me, as if he can’t quite look away.
“What?” I ask.
“I’m sorry for ruining your night.”
“You didn’t. I was about to leave anyway.”
“Didn’t want to stay and party with the cheerleaders?” The corners of his mouth twitch.
