Page 12 of Dissolving Prejudice
Levi’s eyes widened before he shook his head. “N-no.”
“What about you?” I hissed at Andrei, who sighed.
“I don’t think that’s the problem, Diesel… “
I frowned at him. “The fuck do you mean?” I looked back at the mirror, only to stare deep into my dark eyes. “He just walked past me,” I hissed, mostly to myself. “Like I was nothing.” A thought then occurred to me, and I moved quickly until I was in Andrei’s face. “Did he suffer from amnesia?” Maybe something had happened, and Shay-Lee had completely forgotten all about me. Yes. That was probably the case—
Levi’s low snort burst my line of thought, and I snapped. “What’s funny?”
He quickly got a hold of himself and straightened up with his hands shoved in his pockets. “N-nothing,” he muttered.
My anger grew, and I was ready to burst when Andrei spoke.
“It’s not a TV show, D. Shay-Lee didn’t miraculously lose his memory.” He held the vase we bought earlier tighter in his hands while pressing his lips together. “I told you you should be ready.”
“Bullshit,” I spat while trying to ignore the growing pain in my chest. I felt like I was running out of air. Placing my palm where my heart was beating fast, I grasped the T-shirt I had on underneath my jacket, trying to ease the ache. What the fuck was this?
“D, I think you’re stressed over being rejected.”
Rejection.
That was this demon nibbling through my bones like a hungry monster. Pure and utter rejection by the man I loved and who was supposed to still love me back. I was ready for anger. Anger, I could take. Anger, I could understand. I grew up as someone’s punching bag. I knew what it was to be on the receiving end of a stick. What I didn’t know was this repulsive feeling of being dismissed like a nameless stranger. I wasn’t ready for that, and I wasn’t about to accept it either.
I started walking in the direction of Soren’s room when I was forced to stop. Looking down, I saw Andrei holding on to my arm. He gripped me painfully, and I didn’t realize I was trying to fight him back until he held me harder.
“You need to calm the fuck down,” he warned, his voice bringing a bit of awareness back into my screwed-up head.
Looking around, I saw I’d managed to get people’s attention. Nurses were peeking at us from behind their counters, while a few patients stared at us, too.
The muscle in my jaw twitched, and I wasn’t sure what to do. I was so angry I wanted to cry, but maybe it wasn’t anger that filled my throat with tears but fear. Fear that I’d come back too late.
“Let’s sit down and wait for them,” Andrei offered.
Pressing my lips together, I nodded. “Fine.”
“Since when are they close?” I asked.
Taking Andrei’s advice, we now sat in the small sitting area outside Soren’s room. I guess there were some perks in private hospitals. After Levi went to find Jessie, it was just Andrei and me in here.
“Soren and Shay-Lee?” Andrei asked after taking his eyes off his phone.
“Yeah.”
“Pretty much since they met, I guess?” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m not sure why they became close, but they did. Shay-Lee even attended their wedding.”
That’s interesting.
Leaning forward, I eyed him. “So you’re all cool with him, with Shay-Lee?” It was such a weird question to ask. It might have happened years ago, but in the beginning, Shay-Lee did awful things to Andrei and the rest of our group. And while I was able to forgive it all, Andrei hadn’t. I knew my arrest and Shay-Lee’s attack had changed things, but still.
“We’re no longer stupid kids, and given everything Shay-Lee has been through… let’s just say it was easier to move on.” Andrei’s voice came out a bit choked, and he coughed to clear his throat. “Having said that, we’re not exactly friends. He and Miles do meet from time to time, though.”
I raised my brow at him.
“What’s with that face?” He frowned.
“Nothing.” Closing my eyes, I tucked my arms behind my head and stretched my legs forward. “Just surprised you two are still a thing. I always thought you’d break up.”
“Oh, screw you, D.” Andrei smacked my chest, and I snorted a laugh.
