Marked By My Best Friend's Dad

FROM FREEDOM TO...

~Iris

I woke up smiling, actually smiling for the first time in weeks.

Sunlight streamed through the thin curtains of my tiny off campus apartment, the one I barely used anymore because I was always at Alice’s dorm.

My bed. My sheets. My space. No overwhelming scent of pine and smoke lingering on the pillow. No throbbing mark on my neck pulling me toward someone I didn’t want to want.

I touched the spot instinctively. Smooth skin. Nothing there.

Free.

I’d never felt happier.

I rolled onto my back, staring at the cracked ceiling, and let out a long, shaky breath that felt like laughter.

I was done with Duncan Blackwood. Done with the bond, the heat, the guilt. Done with waking up sore and confused and craving more.

Last night was closure. Rough, mind blowing closure, but closure all the same.

I stretched, feeling the pleasant ache between my legs, and grinned wider. Okay, maybe it hadn’t been a total closure. But the mark was gone.

That had to mean something. The Moon Goddess had finally taken pity on me and snapped whatever crazy thread she’d tied between us.

I grabbed my phone from the nightstand, no new messages from unknown numbers, no demanding texts. Just a few missed calls from Alice and one simple good morning emoji from her this morning.

I typed back quickly.

“Hey, I slept at my place last night. I needed some space. Coffee later? Miss you.*

Sent.

I tossed the phone aside and hopped out of bed, practically bouncing to the bathroom. The mirror showed me flushed cheeks, messy hair, and eyes that looked… lighter. Like a weight had lifted.

I brushed my teeth, humming some stupid pop song, and danced a little in my oversized T-shirt while I made coffee.

Today was going to be good.

I grabbed my bag and stepped out of my apartment, locking the door behind me with a satisfying click.

The morning air felt crisp, clean, like a fresh start. I was heading to Alice’s place unannounced, ready to fix things, to lean into what felt safe and familiar again.

Then I saw the Lamborghini parked at the curb, sleek and black, engine still purring.

Eunice stepped out, heels clicking on the pavement, red dress hugging every curve like it was painted on.

I froze.

“I’m sorry,” she said, pouting those full lips as she looked up at my little building, “but this house is far too small for a beautiful girl like you.”

My stomach dropped.

“What are you doing here, Miss Eunice?” I demanded, gripping my bag strap tighter. “How do you even know where I live?”

She just smiled, that slow, predatory smile that always made my skin crawl.

“Is that any way to welcome a visitor?” she asked, tilting her head.

“Whatever trick you’re trying to pull, you’re not coming inside,” I snapped, frowning hard enough my face hurt. “I’m sure of that.”

She shrugged, unbothered. “Fine. How about I give you a ride to school, then?”

“No chance,” I growled. “Go play with your bitches. You’ve got plenty, Sasha, Sandra, whoever else is on the list this week. Leave me alone, Eunice.”

I just got free from the brother. Now the sister shows up like a bad rash that won’t go away.

She stepped closer, too close, her perfume wrapping around me like smoke. Her eyes raked over me, head to toe, slow and deliberate.

“I will never give up on you,” she said, voice low and deadly serious. “Even in your death, I’d still crave this body.”

A chill ran down my spine despite the morning sun.

Then, like a switch flipped, her expression softened into that fake sweet smile.

“Day one of asking you out on a date,” she chirped, blowing me a little kiss before turning on her heel, hips swaying as she slid back into the Lamborghini.

The engine roared. She drove off with a wave out the window.

I stood there on the sidewalk, heart pounding, breath coming fast.

I sighed heavily, exhausted.

One Blackwood gone from my skin.

Another one apparently moving in for good.

Perfect.

Just perfect.

I flagged down a cab on the main road, slid into the back seat, and immediately shoved my earbuds in.

The playlist hit just right, some bouncy, feel good track that made my shoulders loosen for the first time in days.

I couldn’t help it. I started dancing in my seat, head bobbing, fingers snapping, hips swaying against the seatbelt like I was in a club instead of a beat up taxi.

The driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror, grinning.

“Jackpot?” he asked, voice cutting through the music.

I popped one earbud out, still smiling wide.

“Huh?”

“I said, jackpot?” he repeated, nodding at my vibe. “You look like you just hit the lottery, girl.”

I laughed loud, free, the kind that bubbles up from your gut when everything finally feels right.

“More than a jackpot, nigga!” I shot back, popping the earbud right back in and cranking the volume.

I leaned my head against the window, watching the city blur past, still moving to the beat.

Just me, the music, and the whole damn day ahead of me.

The cab slowed to a stop outside the academy gates. I reached for my wallet, still buzzing from the music and the stupid, giddy high of feeling free.

The driver glanced back, grinning. “No need, miss. It’s on me.”

I blinked. “What? No, I…”

“Really,” he said, waving me off. “You made the whole ride fun with that dancing. Consider it paid.”

I laughed, surprised and a little flustered. “Thanks… that’s sweet.”

I grabbed my bag and stepped out, waving. “Bye, then!”

He leaned out the window just as I turned. “Hey, any chance I could get your number? For, uh, next time you need a ride?”

I froze for half a second, then dug into my pocket, pulled out the loose change I had, whatever cents were left from breakfast and flung them through his open window like confetti.

Coins pinged off the dashboard and seats.

“There,” I called over my shoulder, already walking away fast. “That covers the tip. Keep the change!”

I didn’t look back to see his reaction.

Just kept going, laughing under my breath, heels clicking on the pavement.

I just dodged a random flirt.

I reached Alice’s dorm door with a stupid little smile still on my face, the high from my freedom morning carrying me all the way up the stairs.

I didn’t knock. We never knocked when visiting each other.

The moment my hand touched the handle, I heard it, a soft, breathy moan drifting through the wood.

My steps faltered.

Alice wasn’t the type to masturbate. I figured maybe she was finally letting go, maybe missing me the way I’d missed her.

I pushed the door open.

The sight hit me like a fist to the chest.

Alice was slouched in her desk chair, skirt bunched around her waist, legs spread wide and hooked over the armrests. Her head was tipped back, eyes half closed, fingers tangled in dark hair.

And between her thighs, on her knees, was Sandra, one of Eunice’s regulars, the mid height brunette who always smirked at me in the halls like she knew something I didn’t.

Sandra’s mouth was on Alice, working her slowly, tongue visible for a split second before Alice’s hips rolled and another moan spilled out.

My bag slipped from my shoulder and hit the floor with a heavy thud.

Alice’s eyes snapped open.

Sandra froze, lips still covered with Alice's orgasm.

For a heartbeat, no one moved.

Then tears flooded my eyes so fast the room blurred.

Alice’s face was drained of color. “Iris…”

I couldn’t breathe.

I just turned and ran, the door banging shut behind me, tears already streaming down my face as I bolted down the hall.

Everything I thought I’d won this morning, freedom, a fresh start for us shattered in one second.

And the worst part?

The mark on my neck might be gone, but the pain in my chest felt exactly the same pain the mark gave me.