Chapter 25
SADIE
I ran out of Danny’s apartment so fast, I almost tripped on my way down the stairs.
I couldn’t slow down and give him the chance to put on clothes and come after me.
I’m too furious, and he should stay the hell away from me.
I’ve already said too many things no sane person would have.
I’ve gone berserk, and I need to calm the fuck down before I can make sense of everything.
The adrenaline cleared any remaining vestiges of alcohol in my blood.
I’m painfully sober as I drive away from Danny’s building.
I don’t know the direction of any pharmacy that’s open now, but it doesn’t matter.
I don’t think I can face the pharmacist alone.
I should have let Danny come with me, but somehow, his presence would only make things more humiliating.
It’s not his fault the condom broke. And I’m the one who gambled and decided to trust a rubber barrier that’s not one hundred percent foolproof. I have no one to blame for this mess but me. I took out my frustration and anger on Danny, and I already regret it so much.
My hands are shaking when I call Vanessa. It’s past midnight, and I’m sure she’s asleep, but I have no one else to call. I can’t tell Katrina; she’s too much of a gossiper, and I don’t consider her my friend anyway.
The phone rings four times before Vanessa’s sleepy voice comes through. “Hello?”
“Hey, Vanessa. Sorry to call you so late.”
“No worries, Sadie. Are you okay?”
“No. Can I come over? I need a favor. It’s an emergency of sorts.”
“Yeah, of course. I’ll text you the address.”
“Thank you.”
I have to park first before I can copy the address on Google maps; I can’t multitask while driving, and even if I could, I shouldn’t.
I’m relieved when the automated voice says I’m eight minutes away from her house.
I put the car in drive and veer back onto the empty street.
A minute later, Danny calls. I press the decline button.
Does he seriously think I can talk to him right now?
If I wanted to have a conversation, I wouldn’t have left his apartment.
The ping on my phone lets me know he left a voice mail. Not satisfied, he also texts me several times. Glancing at my phone screen, I see the notifications pop up one after the other. My guilt doubles. I was horrible to him, and here he is, trying to reach out.
Finally, the robotic lady tells me I’ve arrived at my destination.
I park in front of a small house with a cute front yard and a porch.
The light outside is on, and when I exit the car, I catch Vanessa peeking from the window.
She has the door open for me before I reach the front steps.
She’s in pj’s, making me feel guiltier that I decided to bother her.
“Hey, are you okay?” She watches me intently.
I walk in and survey the small living room to make sure we’re alone.
Maybe guessing my train of thought, she says, “Heather is asleep.”
“Oh, I didn’t know you lived with your sister.”
“I couldn’t talk my parents out of that one. It’s okay. We both have busy schedules and don’t see each other much.”
“I miss my brother, but I don’t think I could live with him, at least not without a referee to intervene.”
“Sometimes I feel like that’s what I need. But quit stalling. You woke me from a pleasant dream, tell me why.”
I can’t hold her gaze, so I choose to stare at the floor instead. “Can you come with me to the pharmacy? I need a morning-after pill.”
Vanessa touches my shoulder. “What happened? Did someone—”
“I wasn’t raped. I just couldn’t deal going with the guy. He offered.”
“Was it Danny?”
Blush rushes to my cheeks. “Yes, how did you know?”
“You two have been pussyfooting around each other since the Red Barn party. I never bought your friendship. I knew there was more.”
I sigh. “Well, now there’s nothing. I totally lost it and acted like a deranged psycho. He’s probably never going to speak to me again, which is fine. This awful situation just worked as a reminder of why I didn’t want to date anyone in the first place.”
“I get that. Soccer is also my number one priority. There’s no room in my life for boys. Too much drama, you know?”
“Yep, don’t I?”
“Do you want something to drink?” she offers.
“No, I’m good, thanks.”
“Okay, well, make yourself at home while I go change.”
“All right.”
Vanessa disappears down the corridor, and I start to browse through the picture frames she has on the bookshelf in the living room.
It’s mostly pictures of her with her family.
In one of them, they’re standing in front of the huge statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro.
I barely have time to look at them all before she returns wearing a pair of jeans and shoes. She kept her pajama top.
“Ready?” she asks.
“Yep. Let’s go.”
During the short drive, Vanessa doesn’t try to get more information about the fight with Danny, and for that, I’m glad. As I’m parking the car in front of the pharmacy, another text message from him comes through. It’s short and shows completely on the notification.
DANNY: I’m really sorry. Please text me back. I’m worried.
Vanessa’s gaze is also down, so she must have read the message too.
“You should text him back, Sadie.”
“I will. After I buy this bloody pill.”
“You’ll be fine. I’ve taken the morning-after pill before. It works.”
“Deep down I know it will, but my brain acts like an arsehole sometimes. If something has a 0.1 percent chance of going bad, that’s what my mind gets stuck on.”
“I hear ya. Well, there’s nothing for it but to go in, get the pill, and hope you’re not carrying a mini Danny in your womb already.”
My eyes widen. “What the fuck, Vanessa? Is that supposed to make me obsess less about this situation?”
“I was joking, but you have to admit, you and Danny would make adorable babies. Oh, what if it’s twins? Can I be the godmother of one? But it has to be the smart one. I definitely don’t want to get stuck with a Heather version of your baby.”
My mouth is hanging open as I stare at Vanessa. “You’ve lost your mind.”
“Hey, I’m just helping out your asshole brain. I’m sure it hadn’t thought of the twin angle yet.”
“It had not. But now it’s taken it a step further and is showing the possibility of triplets.”
“Jesus, I didn’t know Danny had super sperm.” She scoffs.
“Well, he had a super cock. It managed to break the condom.”
“Or maybe you have a super vagina. Have you thought about that?” She raises an eyebrow.
I snort. “Danny accused my vagina of having thorns.”
Vanessa laughs. “He said that? Oh my God, I’m learning a whole new side of Danny all thanks to you.”
“Should we go in now? I think you’ve taken the piss enough already.”
“Sure, but did it work? Are you feeling less anxious?”
I want to say no, that she only made it worse, but that’d be a lie. I am feeling better. I guess by coming up with all those crazy scenarios, she helped me realize I was creating a storm inside a glass of water.
“Yeah. Thanks for your help.” I look at the pharmacy building and let out a heavy sigh. “Let’s get this humiliation over with.”