Chapter 14
WONDERLAND
I shriek again, leaping around the bathroom.
I’ve been hiding in here for so long, the space is humid from my damn sweat.
At first, it started as a way to decompress and gather myself before facing both Devon and Michael.
The longer I sat in here, the more I started to really freak out.
I was about to just leave when I saw movement out of the corner of my eye.
“Oh my god!” I cry and leap into the shower. I slam the frosted glass door as the giant beast of a spider crawls across the plush bath mat. “Help!”
“The door is locked!” Devon booms as the handle rattles.
Shit.
“I can’t move!”
“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” That’s Michael.
That hellish abomination inches closer. I could count all eight beady eyes if I tried. Whimpering, I pace in the shower and glance up, wondering if I can scale the walls like Nightcrawler.
“Please!” I beg. “Just go away!”
“What?” Devon barks. “You just said to help! Open the damn door!”
“No! No! Go away! Stay the fuck away from me!” It leaps forward. Leaps. Like it’s drawn to my cries.
“I’m so confused,” Devon says, but it’s muffled.
“Lex, if you don’t tell me right now what’s going on, I’m calling the cops,” Michael warns.
Oh my god. Back plastered against the tile wall, I wave my hands around like they’ll see it through the door. “S-s-spider! SPIDER!”
“You gotta unlock the door,” Devon says, calmer now with a hint of a laugh.
“Let us in,” Michael snickers.
“Do not laugh at me!” I wail. “I’m trapped in the fucking shower, and it’s—no! Oh hell no!”
I fling the shower open and jump over the mat as it rounds on me. My heart slams against my ribs; sweat slicks my fingers, slipping three times before unlocking the door. I finally swing it open, straight into my face. Pain explodes across my nose and cheeks; burning heat seeps into my lip.
“Holy shit,” Devon squeaks, yanking me by the collar and out of the bathroom. It must be due to sheer terror because I latch onto him. My arms band around his middle, and I hide my face in his chest. I can’t see anything through the fuzzy black dots anyway, and my head throbs.
“That is…huge,” Michael rumbles, and I hear his big boot slam.
“Let me see,” Devon says gently, pulling my face away from his chest. “Got yourself real good.” He whips off his t-shirt to blot at my bloody nose.
“It’s dead,” Michael announces.
I’m shaking from adrenaline, in pain, and there’s a very half-naked Devon touching me. I just…held him. Again!
Michael comes up next to him, face worried. “That’s going to leave a shiner.”
“Is it broken?” I ask.
Devon pulls the cloth away from my nose and gently touches the bridge of my nose. Tingles shoot down my arms. “Not broken.”
I happen to glance down and see all his tattoos and pierced nipples, then force my eyes back up to his face.
He didn’t have any of that…before. I knew about the piercings, but it’s different having them inches away.
“Let me see if they have anything we can use for an ice pack.” Michael takes out his phone and calls down to the lobby.
Devon continues to plug up the bleed with his shirt, his free hand brushing some stray hairs out of my eyes. “You okay?” he whispers.
I nod. “I’m scared of spiders.”
"Couldn't've guessed.” Those fingers smooth down the crease between my eyebrows. “I’m scared of them, too. Good thing he was here, or else we’d both be fucked.”
I snort, and the motion makes my face hurt worse. “Fuck,” I groan. “I got it.”
He lets me take over, scratching his chest and drawing my attention back to his nipples. Silver barbells make them look puffier. My mouth goes dry as images flood my mind. Tattoos cling to lean muscles, and a dark trail disappears into his jeans. I swallow hard.
“They’re bringing up an ice pack. Lex, come sit down, please.”
I do what Michael says and plop onto my bed, my head throbbing. I check my nose: the bleeding has stopped. Michael goes into the bathroom, returns with a wet washcloth, and hands it to me. I take it, murmur a soft ‘thanks,’ and wipe away the blood.
Both hover before me like I'm something fragile. Nervous energy flutters in my chest and stomach, shame coloring my cheeks. “I’m fine,” I try to reassure them, the words sounding thin.
Michael is the first to step away, but Devon lingers. “Let me,” he says and eases the rag from my hands. He cleans me carefully and studies every inch of my face. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry about earlier. I know you were upset, and I should’ve just bucked up and fixed it.”
I almost say I’m fine, but I hold off. I already said it. “Thanks,” is what I settle on, knowing I should cough up an apology, but I can’t seem to do it yet.
“Next time,” Michael interrupts, “tell me there’s a spider. I can’t help you if I don’t know what’s wrong.”
I look at him, and he’s got his arms folded and hands balled under his armpits. “I panicked.”
“I know. That’s why I’m saying next time.”
“Okay,” I whisper.
He nods once and moves to wait by the door for the icepack.
The rest of the night goes off without another issue.
We eat our Chinese takeout while Devon and Michael bicker about what to put on for a movie.
The room comes with free cable, but even so, there are only so many channels.
Devon wants another true crime documentary, while Michael wants to watch an action flick.
I swallow my last bite of rice and sit up straighter. “Can I see the remote?”
They both stop to look at me. Michael says, “Of course.” Devon adds, “Sure.”
Michael hands me the remote, and I note how he’s holding it so I can't touch him. Ignoring it for now, I flip through channels until I find something they both might like. Legend is only about ten minutes in, so I click on it.
“Oh, I love this movie,” Michael says happily, settling beside Devon on the bed. “Same.” Devon grins and elbows him. Michael elbows him back.
Even though we’re all in the same room, I feel left out.
Separated by the gap between queens, I cross my legs, fluff the pillows, and tune out the movie to work on my laptop.
There are quite a few things I need to finish before bed.
One, I’m hesitant about. I’ve been thinking about inquiring for a while, but haven’t pulled the trigger.
I leave the tab open, then click away. Thirty minutes pass as my fingers tap the keys, and I feel eyes on me.
I sneak a glance in my peripheral to find both of them staring. I face them fully, arch an eyebrow, and they both turn away. It’s…weird. Returning to my task, I get another five minutes before the sensation returns.
“Am I typing too loudly?”
“Do you not like this movie?” Devon asks, seemingly genuine.
I chew my cheek for a few beats. “I’ve seen it.”
“But you don’t like it?” Michael pries.
“I do. It’s just I have to get this done and—”
“You can do that later,” he insists.
“We have a full schedule tomorrow, I won’t have time.” Seriously, I won’t. I’m trying to gather some influencers in the scene to help promote the new video once it goes live.
Devon sighs, gets up, and walks over to my bed. He leans over me, gently closes the laptop, and sets it on the nightstand. “Watch the movie with us.”
I gape at him. “I wasn’t finished. I didn’t get to save my work.” Or finish my application.
The one no one knows about.
The one I’m still not sure I should send.
“What was so important that you can’t do it another day?” He gives me a look that says, ‘Well?’
Pursing my lips so I don’t have to admit what I was doing, I gesture towards the laptop again. “Stuff.”
“The stuff can take the back burner.” To my shock, he lowers onto the bed, taps my thigh so I scoot over, and reclines against the headboard.
My stomach clenches at his nearness. “Why are you sitting next to me?”
“To keep the stuff over there, and you right here.” He winks.
My blush is instant. “Fine. I’ll watch the movie,” I grumble.
He brushes his knuckles over my forearm so briefly that I think I imagine it. “Watch the psycho twins kill bad guys.”