-twenty-seven

Eric's POV

I ducked my head into the basin filled with water and exhaled all of the air from my lungs. Raising my head up several seconds later, I gave into the bout of cough that was bound to happen. Sneezing some more water from my nostrils, I shook my head and ran my fingers through my wet hair. The slightly red water in front of me was responsible for the stinging sensation in my eyes.

I looked up when I felt Gus' hand on my shoulder. "You good?"

Shrugging it off, my eyes went back to my reflection on the mirror. "Do I look like I'm not?"

His eyes went from my bloody shirt and hands to the bloody basin. "Looks like it."

"You're gonna get your money back, Gus. You should be thankful."

"You should've let go when I said to," he threw me a clean tank top. "You almost killed him, Quintanilla. We don't do that. There's rules."

"Yeah well fuck your rules then." I cleaned the blood off my hands and was soon on my way out.

One strong black arm crossed the door. "What's the attitude about?" He nodded to all the blood. "You on your period or what?"

"Roxy's gone." I responded when we were seated at the bar. Gus respected my privacy enough to not question a second time but what was I to do?

I was going insane. Every second with her gone, with me knowing she wasn't waiting for me at the apartment, was the purest form of torture.

"Suitcase and all?" he exhaled smoke from his lit cigarette.

"It's all her fault." My eyes remained particularly focused on my whiskey.

"Roxy?"

"Toni."

Just like clockwork, the pink-haired dick trap appeared in my line of vision.

"Hey beautiful," she smirked while positioning herself on my lap.

"What's up, mamacita?" Gus smirked.

Even her eyes flipped him the bird. With her two middle fingers still out to him, she turned to me with a kiss.

Any man would have been royally pissed about his ex girlfriend fucking his friend. Any man but Gus. One of the reasons why we were friends. He just essentially didn't give a fuck.

Their breakup was the messiest I'd ever seen Toni. She'd cry all day and fuck all night. Still, she couldn't get over the fact that Gus just wasn't tamable.

Now, she was currently in the 'I'll fuck your friend and there's nothing you could do about it' phase. Getting back together with him was inevitable though. Just like gravity, some form of mystic energy always pulled them back together.

Taking a gulp of my whiskey, I relished on the burning sensation and leaned back on my seat.

"I got a few new tricks I could teach you," her kisses had progressed to my neck. Gus watched as he took a drag from his cigarette.

"Not today." I leaned into her so she would understand me. Ever since Roxy left, I just couldn't.

"When then? Why have you been rejecting me, Eric?" It was adorable how her lips shifted to a pout. She motioned to kiss me again but I stopped her by running my fingers through her pink hair.

"Not today." I reached for my joint when I saw the scowl on her face. She glared and got off me.

"What about me?" Gus asked her, arms stretched out. "I'm fuckable too you know!"

"Fuck you, both of you." And with that, the pink, ever ready to fuck, Toni was gone. I laughed and took a sip of my whiskey.

"She's really something, isn't she? Face, personality and all."

"Yeah." I nodded to where she wandered off to.

"Body too," he said, staring at some random dude rocking a motorboat on her.

I hummed in agreement before continuing with my weed.

"So what's up with you not fucking her then?"

I looked up a second later. "What?"

"Toni."

"I'm just not in the mood to fuck her, Jesus Christ, Gus. What's this about?"

"It's about her, isn't it."

Exhaling smoke and possibly all the air from my lungs, my head tipped back in what I'd call pure euphoria. Gus always had the best weed.

"I can't think straight." My eyes focused on the grey clouds. "It's like all my senses left with her. The guilt is piercing."

"Why'd she leave?"

Tipping my bud over, I sat up to look him in the eye, gauge his reaction. "I fucked her."

He raised a brow.

"Without her consent."

The sound of whiskey entering his glass ceased immediately and the next second, "Jesus fucking Christ, Eric!"

Running fingers through my hair, I downed another glass of whiskey. With each passing day, it dawned on me even more. I was a fucking monster.

"There's fucking rules, men. Shit like that shouldn't have to go down. Come on."

"Toni or some bored bitch fucked with me. My drink, weed, I don't know." My eyes went to the shed Gus never let anyone into. Not even me. "And we both know what I mean."

"Fuck." The fear behind his eyes was visible and also inevitable. He understood the gravity of my words. "You hurt her, didn't you?"

My eyes went back to Toni and the guy who was currently shoving his tongue down her throat. "I don't think I'll be fucking anyone soon."

My eyes focused on the amber liquid in the whiskey bottle for a good minute. She wouldn't answer my calls. She wouldn't ever want to see me again and the worst, she wouldn't ever forgive me.

"You're so predictable." I felt small, soft hands on my shoulders.

The sound of her voice. The sound of that voice discharged currents of pure fury to my veins and blood streams.

"I knew I'd find you here."

"What do you want?" I yanked her hands off.

"You." Jenna leaned in for a kiss.

"Wrong answer." I stopped her cold.

"We need to talk, Eric."

I should've been concerned at the seriousness in her eyes and voice. Too bad I just didn't give a fuck.

"If you wanna talk," I poured myself some more whiskey, "talk."

"In private," she hissed.

Maintaining eye contact, I brought my joint to my lips.

***

"I need the keys to your apartment."

"My apartment." I turned to her. "And why would I give them to you?"

"I need to get Roxy's stuff."

I huffed. "You really have some nerve coming here and asking me that."

"I wasn't the one who screwed up."

"I see." We were only inches apart.

"I'm not here to play games, Eric," she stepped away and looked at me with intensity that I should've been concerned about.

"Isn't that all we're good at?" I took another step to her. One glance at her up and down and I wondered how long she was going to keep it up. She wasn't even wearing a bra.

"I love when you're on tank tops." Her eyes glistened under the low lights of the club. I looked at her lips.

"Why can't Roxy pick her stuff up herself?"

"Because she doesn't want to see you, silly." Jenna chuckled and her hands slipped under my top.

I stopped her.

"We both know whose fault that is."

Jenna was smart. She knew how to choose her battles and fight them. If she hadn't planted the idea in my head, no matter how fucked up I was, I wouldn't have ever done it. I wouldn't have ever touched Roxy. And she knew this.

"Come on, Eric," she whispered against my neck with her hand on the zipper of my jeans, "you know what I really want."

The next second, Jenna was pinned to the wall with me hovering over her. After a few seconds of silent eye contact, I claimed her lips with all the pain, agony and most importantly anger I had been suppressing. Her hands habitually went to my hair and mine had already slipped under her miniskirt.

"Just like the old times, huh?" She wrapped her hands around my neck, anticipating pleasure from my fingers. "I know you want me."

I chuckled and smiled against her lips. "I've fucked you well enough to know the answer to that." My fingers slipped out, leaving her panties soaked. "But that doesn't change a fucking thing." I yanked her hands off my neck and zipped up. "You're still a fucking slut."

At this point, I could see the steam coming from her ears and nose. "Fuck you." Her eyes were hard. Harder than the diamonds her pretty boyfriend got her on each and everyone of his visits. "Are you going to tell her?"

My lips lifted to a smirk. "She's gonna find out, even on her own. Roxy's smarter than you think." I made to leave.

"You're a bastard."

"The fuckable kind," I smirked even more.

"What about the keys?" Her eyes burned holes into my head.

"You know where to find me when you're done." I dropped the keys on her outstretched palm. She held my hand when I motioned to leave.

"You're really going to leave me here all hot and bothered like this?"

The need in her eyes puckered up, like her nipples.

Moving closer, I ghosted my lips against her's. She smelt of roses and jasmine. She tasted even better. Forbidden was the most delicious of flavours. I guess that's what got me so high at first. Now, gravity had pulled me back down.

"As much as I'd like to take you on this wall, fuck you senseless," My eyes went down to her arms as she shivered under me, "have you screaming my name," I took a step back, "you disgust me."

The shock and annoyance in her eyes boosted my ego. "And to think I made sure she wouldn't go to the police."

"Police?" I laughed. "You're really something, Jennifer."

"I was angry, okay! I didn't tell you to fuck her. I only told you to give her a scare."

Ah, there. The demon within had finally reared its head.

"The fact that I'm quiet doesn't mean I'm stupid, Jenna. I'm just," I paused and took a lock of her brown hair in my palms, "saving for the rainy day."

"Don't fuck with me, Eric," her voice was quiet. I should've been scared but I already knew her too well, all her manipulating strategies.

"I think you should leave." My eyes dropped to the ring on her finger. "You don't want to keep your fiance waiting."

Jenna glared holes into my head before she left, a string of curses in her wake.

******************

-C.