the dark days (book one of the darkness saga)

Chapter 5

Dameon POV

— 5 years ago —

I was anxious to be back.

Or was I afraid? Afraid to see her?

After leaving this town, I didn’t think I’d ever been back. I knew I wanted to come back because of her. But I also learned not to let her be part of my mess of a world that would be asking for too much.

I didn't even know who or what I was supposed to be. I knew that if she were anywhere near me, I had to learn to control myself first.

Have you learned enough, Dameon? I asked myself.

How I wished I could have at least explained to her why I left or why I never wrote back. Why after that fateful evening with her dad, I had to run away from her.

God, what must she think of me?

Brushing the hair off my forehead, I looked at Xavier, standing next to me. It was hard pretending to be happy for my best friend, who was marrying the love of my life.

Don't make a scene, Dameon.

My mantra is going into this. I can’t allow my selfishness to ruin her day. She was happy now; I had no right to act jealous. I left, and Xavier stayed. He has always been good to her. Better than I could ever be. If I couldn’t have her, at least she was marrying the next best person I could think of.

Right, keep repeating that to yourself until you believe it.

Looking at the simple arrangement of dandelions along the aisle, I smile because these are Lexie’s favorite flowers. They're the one plant I had to be careful to tread around back when we were ten chasing frogs.

Xavier clears his throat while setting my boutonniere straight. “Thanks for coming and agreeing to be my best man, Dameon. You're a lifesaver. My next best guy doesn't mean s**t to Alex. We're happy you're here. Well, Alex is anyway.” He jabs my side with his elbow.

“Bro, after all these years?” I whisper under my breath.

“Yeah, man, you know she cares for you. Along with Sharon and Shiela, or how about Erin?” Xavier chuckles as he pats my shoulder.

“Hey, you make sure you take care of her, man. And I mean it.“ I wag my index finger at him. All the while thinking you don't know what you got, you lucky bastard.

"Come on, man, who do you think you're talking to here? I got this, alright? Just don't go crying like a baby at your best man's speech." Xavier ends with a chuckle.

I roll my eyes at him. This was going to be much harder than it looked.

How can I be happy when watching the woman I love to marry my best friend? I might punch him in the face and whisk her away before they kiss in front of everyone later.

Xavier shifts his weight and looks back at me, “Look, Dameon, it wasn't exactly a secret. I knew you had a thing for Alex since we were kids.“

I gave a fake chuckle, “Well, hot dang, what a coincidence? Didn't you, too? That's why you insisted on hanging out with us, right?”

Unfazed, he retorts. “Come to think of it, all the boys did." He laughs, “It’s a good thing we scared them all away.”

"That, I can agree with." I clap his shoulder and laugh with him. He's so comfortable joking about it. At least he thinks it's over for me.

He clears his throat, looks around, and takes a more serious tone, “Dameon, I know that we promised not to drag her into our world...” His eyes trail off to the entrance of the church. And there she was.

The most beautiful sight in the world. His bride. He smiles from ear to ear, his eyes full of love.

Under my breath, I finish his statement for him, “...but you fell hard.”

I, too, looked at Alex standing as she stood at the church entrance. She was breathtaking in her simple 'Jane Austen-styled' gown. The neck scoops, pushing the limits of modesty, showing just enough cleavage as it flows down her curvy body. The classic simplicity of the dress complements her perfect shape.

I was surprised; I'd never seen her pretty up like this. I wanted to take her; I wanted her for my own. But I lost that chance years ago.

Xavier speaks, breaking the silence as soft music plays in the background. Alex starts walking down the aisle.

“Dameon, I am madly in love with her. She brings me calm. And I know that she loves me. I promise you that I will always love her.”

I was taken aback. Did Xavier acknowledge that I felt jilted by their marriage? Did he know my true feelings for Alex? Was I that obvious?

Stop gawking!

I said nothing as I just watched Lexie, her hair in soft circles, as dewy brown eyes looked at Xavier. She smiles as their eyes meet.

As I watched her take Xavier’s hand, my heart broke to pieces as they said their vows and as they kissed.

That could have been me if I wasn't such a coward.

— Present Time —

I punch through the drywall in the emergency room. People around me just watched as I hit the wall again.

"It's alright, folks; he just needs to let off some steam." Justin ushered people to look away and move on.

“She’s going to be fine, Dameon.” He tries to comfort me.

“You didn’t see the state that she was in.” I snap back at him.

I look at Lexie’s motionless body on the bed. If it weren’t for the beeping of the heart rate monitor, you would think she was dead. I shook my head at the thought.

Half her face was covered in dried blood mixed with dirt; her cheek was swollen and bruised. The nurses cut her hoodie open, revealing her body covered with old and new bruises. Her abdomen was swollen with a dark purple bruise the size of a basketball.

"Sir, you're going to have to wait outside. You don't need to worry; we will do our best to help your friend." The doctors order me to leave the room.

My friend. She should have been my wife! Not Xavier's.

I hesitated until Justin peeled me off her bed and tugged me out of the room.

“I saw enough.” Justin shakes his head, referring to my accusation before.

“I should have arrived sooner. I should have hauled my ass over there as soon as Austin called me. But I allowed my ego to take over. I had to question Austin's motives. He told me what was happening. Instead of overthinking, I should have just gone there and saved her from that asshole.” Falling to the floor, I lean my head on the wall.

Justin sits beside me.

We both turn our attention to the doors of the room Lexie was in when it opened. I could hear them talk about her broken bones and how they needed to check for internal bleeding.

As Justin speaks, my hands form into a fist, “She’s tougher than she looks.” He sympathetically looks at me.

I’ve told so many stories about Lexie to Justin. One I was particularly fond of was when we were freshmen.

— First High school year —

Being the troublemaker I was, I went after the Hockey team captain's girl. Considering she was a senior, Xavier would always joke I didn’t stand a chance. And boy, I loved a good challenge.

So when I finally made out with the senior's girlfriend, I made sure it was for the world to see. I could have handled that feeble team captain. What I didn't count on was that the whole team was also invested in them. Before I knew it, the entire team was on top of me, ensuring I didn't forget my stupid stunt.

High school gossip spread like wildfire. On overhearing that the hunky freshman was being beaten to a pulp by the entire hockey team, Lexie ran as fast as she could to the hockey rink where my ass was being handed to me.

She picks up a puck and throws it at the back of the captain’s head. The entire team stopped, surprised that it came from a furious petite four-eyed 16 yr old girl in her oversized hoodie.

“Damn, man, I think someone asked his baby sister to come to fight his fight.” they all started laughing.

“If you want to mess with him, you need to deal with us first.” She declared as she looked behind her. She huffed as she motioned for a very reluctant Xavier standing a few feet behind her to come forward.

Xavier stood beside her, frustrated he was in another predicament because of me. I could see Xavier trying to talk Lexie out of it. Lexie huffed as she tried to look menacing to 11 practically grown men, each one at least twice her size.

“Like what I said, you mess up our friend; you deal with all of us!” She declared again. The boys erupted in laughter.

Lexie was not having any of their nonsense. She grabbed a hockey stick and threw it straight at the captain's face, breaking his nose.

“f*****g b***h!” He mumbled under his cry of pain.

Lexie picked up another hockey stick from the ground and gripped it tightly. She raised it in the air and charged. A few of them ran away as they saw Lexie charging. They were scared of being beaten by a girl. The others just stood in awe. Lexie got in a few good swings until one of them tackled her. She hit her head on the ice, instantly losing consciousness.

I looked at Xavier, and that was all the cue we needed. One by one, the hockey team fell as Xavier and I worked together to beat the crap out of them.

That was why we were the first freshmen ever to be inducted into the hockey team without tryouts. Of course, we got detention for that, but the coach was so impressed that he invited us to the team. I even thought for a while; that the coach even considered Lexie.

He introduced her to the karate team instead.

— Present Time —

“And that's how three dorks became jocks,” Justin finishes my story mockingly. "Or at least the two of you became jocks while little Lexie stayed her geeky self. Why didn't she even need to change who she was because she had you guys to protect her from the bullies. The end."

He's heard this story one too many times. But considering the circumstances, I'm glad he still humored me.

He's right, though. Lexie is far more formidable than she looks.