6. Chapter Five
Chapter Five
Scarlett
Silver Valley is a nice, quiet suburban area with a few basic amenities.
Their college was perfect for studying music, which is how I ended up out here.
Cressidan City College would have been marginally better, but going there would have meant letting Mom and Dad pay my fees, and I figured if I wanted to live like a Beta, that wasn’t going to get me off to a great start.
Got to be willing to take the bad alongside the good.
Everything can’t be sunshine and roses all day long.
The neighboring small town I have to drive through to get to the city is a little bit bigger than Silver Valley, and it’s a bit rougher around the edges, with some old, run-down buildings that are on the verge of being condemned, and a bunch of modern apartment blocks in the section of town that’s closest to the exit for Cressidan City.
Silver Lake is older than the Valley, I guess.
It has more historic stuff going on.
It seems like a decent place to live.
If I hadn’t found that house to rent in the Valley, I might have ended up in one of the apartments out here. It would have meant a commute, but it’s not like I don’t have a car.
It’s my one real luxury these days, and I cherish every second I can spend on the road.
So, it’s not too big of a deal to slow myself down with a less direct route, just so I can stop to pick up some supplies to bring with me to Saph’s apartment.
It’s a little early to be grabbing ice-cream, I guess, but I’d rather make a quick stop now than walk down the busy street from my sister’s city central apartment to the tiny store there.
There’s more choice in Silver Lake’s mom and pop store, and I won’t need to wait in a crazy long line to buy whatever I can get for the cash I have left in my wallet.
The stop adds maybe ten minutes to my journey, and I come out of the store with everything we’ll need for a girl’s night in. The ice-cream will melt a bit on the ride over, but that’ll just make it go down smoother when I mix it with the vodka.
The rest of the drive is relaxing, especially the slow crawl through the afternoon traffic as I get closer to the only parking lot that’s worth using.
Cressidan City College parking lot is technically only meant for their students, but their graduates are still permitted to use the spots for visiting purposes, so I’m just using Sapphire’s free space.
I’m sure she would visit the admin office to smooth things over if an attendant was mean enough to give me a ticket, but I seriously doubt anyone ever checks.
The lot is never full and today is no different.
I steal the spot closest to the path that leads into the city.
No one’s around as I step out of the car and pull on my red leather jacket.
There are students hanging around outside of the college, sure, but none of them are headed toward the lot. If I had to guess, I’d assume most of them live on campus, so a commute isn’t part of their day.
That probably explains the half-empty lot.
Considering how much use I get out of it I’m not going to complain.
Leaning back into the car, I pick up my purse and the bag of supplies.
Closing the door, I look out across path, reminding myself what the sidewalk is like out here.
Walking in heels can be a treacherous activity. I always check out the ground before I make a move. A confident stride is easier to strike when you know what lies ahead.
Plus, a broken ankle is the last thing a girl needs.
Well, maybe it’s the second to last thing.
Having an idiot for a boyfriend is much worse.
I make it to Sapphire’s apartment without injury, and I’m ready to kick my boots off and get settled into a comfy seat by the time I reach the landing to her floor.
Unfortunately, there’s a couple having a fight off to the right, just past Sapphire’s door.
The woman is yelling at the guy in Spanish, and the guy is trying to calmly explain something in the same language, only his accent is a little off, and his words are stilted. Clearly, he’s the learner here, and it’s her native tongue.
That’s why I’m not surprised when I hear him making a couple of really bad mistakes with his word choices while his woman gets madder, and he gets more anxious and worried.
I can feel how much they love each other, under all that stress, so I can’t pretend I don’t see what’s happening.
“Sabes ingles?” I ask the woman, raising my voice as I approach, keeping a bit of distance.
She stops yelling and turns her frown on me, narrowing her eyes. “Who are you? His wife?”
I put my hands up, showing I’m not a threat, and wiggling the fingers of my left hand to draw attention to the fact that I’m not wearing a wedding band.
“He’s not married,” I tell her nodding at him. “He’s extremely tired from not sleeping and embarrassed over something he did to upset you that he doesn’t seem to understand. I think he’s been trying to apologize for that and getting a little … mixed up with his words.”
I shrug as she looks from me to him.
“You told my brother you were married,” she complains.
“No! No, I did not,” he protests. “I told him I was tired. I’ve been working late every night …”
“Ah ha!” she says, gesturing at him. “That is an excuse to spend time with your wife, because you are married.”
He sighs, before getting down on one knee and taking a box out of his pocket.
The sight of the box renders her silent.
I step back, feeling like I’ve intervened enough.
“I was working more hours so I could buy you this. I’ve been trying so hard to learn Spanish, and I’ve probably done that too quickly because I had no idea I was getting words wrong. The point is, I did those things because I love you.”
“I want you to be my wife. Please, say yes.”
He opens the box, and they both swell with happiness.
Geez. Someone up there really wants to see me cry today.
I smile as I move away quietly, going to Sapphire’s door and knocking on it.
Love is crazy. A single misspoken word and those two were about to dissolve their whole relationship. I’m glad I don’t have time for that insanity.
I knock again when my sister doesn’t answer, stealing another glance at the lovebirds as the guy puts the ring on his girl’s finger. He stands up after and she kisses him. It’s so damn cute.
Sapphire opens her door and I turn to find her standing there in comfy pajamas.
She’s giving me an expectant stare, so I guess I must have a goofy smile on my face.
“Your neighbors just made up after one hell of a fight,” I explain quickly.
“I’ve literally never met anyone in this building, so I don’t even know who you’re talking about.”
She looks and sounds like she’s been crying, and she feels so damn sad.
I hate seeing her like this, and it’s even worse that it’s because of a guy.
This visit might need to turn into a vacation while I spend some time cheering her up.
“I think this is going to have to be a make-over montage instead of an ice-cream movie-thon.”
She steps back to let me inside, and she rolls her eyes as I come into the apartment.
“No thanks. I’m just exercising my right to be comfortable.”
I hear the door close as I look around the kitchen.
“So, this is the fancy writer’s apartment in the city. Nice.”
“Like you didn’t come out here and help me paint it when I moved in.”
“Oh, yeah. I did, didn’t I? Best sister ever.”
She raises an eyebrow when I look at her. “I thought I won that award back when Mom found out about your tattoo.”
How could I forget? Mom practically started having kittens when she saw it.
I nod. “Right. That was an inspired call, telling her it was for a music video.”
“The coverup foundation did the real work.”
“That stuff is incredible,” I admit, so glad it was easy to get my hands on.
Our uptight mother probably would have gotten over it, eventually.
We just made it so that she didn’t have to.
I love that snarling red dragon on my right side.
It’s fierce and it’s fun and, okay, it’s me.
As much as I love being a twin, I wanted something unique, and a tattoo felt like the natural choice to give me something that separated me, just a little, from my sweet sister.
It’s not like we ever don’t look exactly alike.
We’re the same as we always have been.
Blue-eyed blondes with slender figures.
Practically the exact same nothing of a hairstyle.
I take my jacket off and put it on top of hers on the table, ditching the bag from the store and my oversized purse down beside them.
“Happy hump day, best sister ever,” I tell her, opening the bag and taking out the contents.
Sapphire blinks at the vodka, apparently surprised that I went for alcoholic provisions alongside ice-cream and snacks. She doesn’t say anything. She just doesn’t take her eyes off the bottle.
I lean back against the counter in front of her microwave.
“So, who is this asshole, Ben, and where can I find him to cut his dick off?”