Strangers in the Storm ✔

Chapter 31: Lessons

ROXANNE

Now that she saw Damien in front of the bar, Roxanne wasn't all that surprised. She knew he would show up at some point. He called and called, but Roxanne didn't answer. She commanded Brenda not to tell him that she moved to her old apartment, so he couldn't ambush her in front of her apartment. This was the next obvious step.

Ignoring him for this past week might have been one of the hardest things she's ever done, but she needed it. She needed it more than he needed her to answer.

"Good morning, Damien." Roxanne walked past him and unlocked the door to the bar.

The drunk idiot pouted, "Hi."

"I need to open up." She ignored her quickening heartbeat and walked inside, hiding herself in the darkness of the bar long enough to take in one shaky breath. "Do you want some coffee?"

"Please." Damien pushed himself off the ground and stumbled inside.

Roxanne averted her gaze and walked to the counter, glad that the bottles on the shelves were almost entirely empty.

"Rox?" Damien mumbled. "Roxy? Roxanne?"

She faced him, "Yes?"

"I went to see my dad." Damien said, his shoulders slumping.

Roxanne took in a deep breath, "Again? Isn't it kind of moot at this point?"

Damien's face distorted; a desperate, hopeless expression curling his facial lines. Roxanne stopped making coffee and kept her gaze on him.

"I can't explain it." Damien began. "I can't explain it to anyone, because he gave me so much. He gave me so much money and I've had everything I've ever- It makes me so angry to think that other people don't realise he's an asshole. I- Sometimes I want to fucking kill him, I swear."

Roxanne bit the inside of her cheek, "Then you probably have to, but not in the way you think."

Damien closed his mouth, his drunken eyes almost entirely focusing on her.

"He obviously doesn't care about you." She continued, simply shrugging at the pain this much honestly might cause him. "The best thing you can do to someone who doesn't care is... not care back."

Damien's eyes drifted to the floor again and a whisper fell off his lips, "There are people I can't just stop caring about. Even if they don't care about me."

Roxanne realised what he was insinuating and sighed, "I care about you. You know I do."

"But you don't want to be with me." Damien said, his eyes still on the floor. "You haven't answered my phone calls."

Roxanne continued making the coffee. Each time his name lit up her screen, her heart squeezed painfully, but she couldn't tell him that. He would never stop calling. She felt his eyes on her back as she waited for the machine to spill the coffee out.

There were so many things she wanted to tell him. She wanted to tell him that, in a way, he changed her life, he made her question whether she kept making the same mistakes, and the answer was yes.

And she was so close to repeating them one more time. Just one more time.

"Papillon," Damien whispered, "Please, forgive me."

Roxanne closed her eyes briefly and breathed in, reminding herself of the decisions she's made. When she composed herself, she put two cups of coffee on a platter and put them on the table.

"I've already forgiven you." Roxanne sat down and gestured to the seat on the opposite side.

Damien listened.