Relish

CHAPTER TWO † USER

CHAPTER TWO † USERBY THE END of the day, I’d worn down my nails to bloody stumps. I’d barely moved from my spot in front of my computer. Hour after hour I

thought of ways to appease Larry. Imagining a night without him in my bed scared the s**t out of me. We didn’t even need to have s*x. I just needed another warm body there, someone to hold on

to in case things got too intense in my head.

I’d lost precious time worrying over our argument. The pictures in my gallery lay untouched. After Larry left, I took a shower to chase away the chill, but as soon as I sat down to work, I

couldn’t concentrate. Fear of losing my edge pushed me to pace my tiny living room. I avoided looking at the couch because a mere glance led to thoughts of Googling him and finding out where

the band played next in their tour.

Helsinki.

Damn it!” I gnawed at what was left of my thumbnail. Having their schedule memorized reinforced my current pathetic state. No matter how painful each beat of my heart became, I continued

to stalk the band. The hackers Yana employed kept news of Vicious to a minimum. Only things she approved made it on the Web. The lack of information killed me. I listened to their songs on a loop

while working on the pictures. I obsessed about what each member could be doing. Add a wall of pictures, news clippings, and string connecting everything together, and I would be that fan.

The sun had already set for hours when I finally slumped on my couch. Exhaustion beat down on my shoulders. The worst part was if I closed my eye and concentrated hard enough I could still smell

his sweet spicy scent on the cushions. Luka had cast a spell on me that I couldn’t break. Maybe I wanted to return to my normal life so much that I failed to see the truth. My life would

never be normal again. Living with Vicious did that.

The thought practically killed me inside.

I hung my head over the edge of the couch until I caught sight of my digital clock. If I got up now and waded my way through the snow, I would make it to Pot Luck in time. A decision had to be

made. Rebounding on Larry wasn’t fair to him. He’d been nothing but good to me. The guy deserved better. Thinking I could put myself back together with his help screamed desperation.

I’d reached a whole new low and it scared me enough to jump up to my feet. I grabbed my heavy jacket off the hook on the wall and shrugged it on.

At the door, I paused and considered bringing my camera along. I hadn’t taken a picture since New Year’s Eve. It pained me like losing a limb. Luka couldn’t take that away from

me, either. If I wanted to survive this, I had to do something.

Heart filled with determination, I opened the door to my apartment. The camera could wait; facing Larry couldn’t.

All the cool kids gathered at Pot Luck. Having the best burgers attracted the artists, the nerds, and the jocks alike. For a snowy Monday, the place was packed to the walls. I

stomped in, yanking off my beanie and shrugging off freshly fallen snow. It fell when I was about a block from the restaurant and made my journey all the more uncomfortable. I only hoped I

wouldn’t get sick. A cold now would be the cherry on my chocolate sundae from hell.

I needed a drink!

Removing my gloves then jacket, I scanned the crowd for Larry. No one had to wait to be seated at Pot Luck. For nights when the place was full, grabbing a table became a nasty game of musical

chairs. Survival of the fittest. Stand up for even a second and you lose your table.

Waitresses balanced trays above their heads just so they could navigate the crowd. I silently thanked the wall-to-wall body heat thawing my bonesickles. I stood on my tiptoes, but only got a

sore neck from craning to pick out Larry’s soft brown locks from the huddled masses. He was here. A-type personality Larry always arrived on time. I felt his good breeding emanating from

somewhere in the dining room.

Using my arms, I swam through the crowd. Conversation stopped when I passed. I attributed it to the shock of seeing my eyepatch for the first time. Nothing worth acknowledging. Been there, done

that. Stare all you want, folks.

I elbowed my way between two sorority sisters and finally spotted Larry in one of the coveted booths. He munched on a fry like the piece of potato mattered more than passing the Bar. I

recognized the crease on his forehead and the valley between his pushed-together eyebrows. The Dragon had emerged, which meant Larry was doubly lethal. His brooding caught the attention of women

within staring distance.

A part of me wanted to take perverse pleasure in kissing him in front of an audience. Marking my territory as it were. But I couldn’t do that. Even as a joke. It would send the wrong

message. I’d hurt Larry enough. I slogged through fifteen inches of snow so I could do the right thing. No matter how scary that seemed.

Larry looked up from his plate of burger and fries as if he felt me, too. The brooding disappeared. I tasted my cherry lip gloss when my lower lip darted out from between my teeth. Guilt at

shattering the hope in his expression kept me rooted where I’d stopped. Only when he scooted out of the booth (and a waitress balancing mugs filled with root beer on a tray scowled at me) did

I regain the ability to walk.

I plastered a smile on my face when Larry leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. The hearts of women in Pot Luck broke. I winced from the daggerstares hitting the bull’s-eye centered on

my back.

“A booth, huh?” I asked as I slipped into the seat across from him.

He raised his hand to catch the attention of the wait staff. “Do you want anything in particular? You need to order now if you want to get it any time this century.”

The confidence—and dare I say happiness—in his tone worried me. Maybe meeting him for dinner sent an even worse message. Still, I ordered a burger with a side of onion rings when the

waitress (the one who wanted to run me over earlier) came to our booth. Larry tipped well, so she kept her hostility at a bare minimum. The situation reminded me of when Luka brought me to an empty

restaurant at the start of my month with Vicious for fusion Japanese food. The waitress there acted like she wanted to stab me with a butter knife.

Like a prize fighter, I took my hits gracefully. Why did I continue to torture myself with memories of him? It wasn’t like I enjoyed remembering what I’d been through. I focused on

the guy sitting across from me.

“You came,” he said, confirming my suspicions.

I shook my head. “This is not what you think.”

“It’s dinner, Dakota.”

“The way you’re looking at me right now…” I paused, taking a breath. “Look, I don’t want to rehash our argument from this morning. I’ve been replaying

it all day.”

“You were thinking of me instead of working?”

“I’m sorry it happened,” I said at the same time Larry had asked his question. “Wait. What?”

His grin couldn’t have been prouder, like he’d finished tenth at a marathon of a thousand participants. “You’ve been thinking about me.”

“Larry.” I rubbed the frown and the last of my gloss off my lips. “This is not a date.”

“But you came anyway.”

I opened my mouth to rebut just when my burger and onion rings arrived with a tall glass of soda. No matter how drunk I wanted to get right that second, Pot Luck didn’t serve anything

stronger than beer. The taste of malt made me gag. I took it as a sign. Stumbling home inebriated in the snow presented a host of problems. I couched the idea of having a drink and took a bite out

of my burger instead. My eye rolled back into my head the second the juices of the hundred percent pure beef patty coated my tongue.

“Has anyone told you how sexy you look when you eat?” Larry asked, resting his chin on his palm while nibbling on another fry. “It’s so erotic, like you’re

coming.”

I blushed. How could I not? Chewing the huge bite in my mouth took up most of my concentration. Normally, Larry getting explicit wouldn’t have bothered me. Tonight, reacting to his

observations only dug my grave deeper. Swallowing, I set the delectable burger down and leveled a serious stare at him. Now or never.

“Larry, look. I’ve been thinking about it.” I sighed, gathering my courage and considering having my burger to go. “I’m sorry. When I got back, I was in a terrible

place. Unfortunately, I used you to bring me out of it. I shouldn’t have done that. You deserve better than to be used by me.”

With each word that left my lips, Larry’s smile faded a little more until nothing of it remained. “What are you saying?”

“You were right when you said we should break up. I don’t want to keep putting you in a position of waiting for nothing.”

“Dakota…” He reached for my hand and this time, I was the one to pull away.

“I made a mistake.” I shook my head. “I shouldn’t have dragged you into all this. I messed up during my time with Vicious. I should have known better.”

“But you didn’t,” he said.

A pathetic chuckle closed my throat. It took all my strength to keep speaking. “Yeah. That I did. I don’t want to hurt you any more than I already have.”

“Look, D, I’m sorry I pressured you this morning.” Larry caught my hand in his, refusing to let go when I tugged. “I don’t know what came over me this morning. I

meant what I said when I agreed to no strings attached. I get that we only have a few weeks left together. Let’s just enjoy each other’s company and part as friends.”

The hope blossoming in my chest broke my resolve. “You serious?”

He nodded. “This is just dinner. You and me enjoying a burger at Pot Luck.”

I turned my hand into his and entwined our fingers. The tears of relief welling in my eye made me look down. I blinked repeatedly to hide them. No nights alone. I might make my deadline after

all.

“Hey,” Larry whispered. “What’s up?”

Using the thumb of my free hand, I swiped at the stray tear that refused to stay in. “Don’t mind me. I’m just being hormonal.”

“Staying with Vicious really did a number on you, huh?”

I shushed him, flicking my gaze at the tables nearest us. “Not so loud. You could start a riot. I’m already worried my photos will get stolen from the Showcase.”

Larry let go of my hand and settled back until the back of his head rested on the vinyl behind him. “I suggest you chain them to the wall.”

That got a laugh out of me. “I don’t know how the hell I’m going to finish in time.”

He took a sip of his soda. “You’ll make it. I’ll help in any way I can.”

I didn’t know how much more guilt my poor heart could take. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“For using you.” I stared dejectedly at my golden brown onion rings the size of flying saucers. “You can still back out of this, you know. I won’t hold it against

you.”

“Dakota, look at me.”

It actually took me a couple of seconds to do as he’d asked. Another few seconds passed before Larry spoke again. The tension between us snapped like an over-stretched rubber band.

“Know that I’m your friend. It hurts me to see you suffering.” He crossed his arms and gripped his biceps hard. “If it weren’t for that NDA, I would hunt that guy

down and beat him bloody. But,” he raised his hand to cut me off, “there’s nothing I can do now but support you. They’ve taken so much from you already. I’ll be damned

if I let them keep you from graduating. This is your future. Take those photos and show the world what you’re made of.”

A grin stretched my lips. “Well said, Counselor.”