The Hurt Game

❧ thirty-one

Er... what the fuck?

My eyes darted between the two men. Anthony, or Tony, was still faced away from me, his back turned to me. Royden was staring wide-eyed at him as his face had paled a lot, almost looking frightened. His eyes flickered to mine and he swallowed thickly.

"Waverly, can you come here?" he questioned. Despite his shocked face, looking like a deer in spotlights, his voice was steady and gentle.

I walked up to him. My eyebrows furrowed into a frown as my eyes never left the stranger who wasn't exactly a stranger. He didn't have to be a stranger if Royden had talked more about his life and friendships.

As soon as I was in Royden's reach, he reached out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me towards him hastily. His eyes travelled down my body and only now I was reminded by how I looked. Anthony must have assumed I was his hooker. My face reddened at the thought.

"I will go change," I murmured to him before he could speak a word. He nodded his head, sent me a small smile and pushed me into the direction of his bedroom.

The frown never left my face and I glanced over my shoulder once more. Both of them were staring at each other, watching each other as if anticipating who was going to jump the other first. I turned back around and headed in the bedroom. As quickly as I could, I grabbed a pair of jeans, a sweater and some fresh underwear.

"What are you doing here?" Royden's voice came through the door as I changed into my underpants.

"We were supposed to meet, going over some details, remember? We called yesterday about this," Anthony replied. His voice was less stern, less demanding. "Have you forgotten about it?"

"No, of course not," Royden snapped. I winced a little before shaking my head. He was getting himself worked up over nothing. There was no big deal in meeting his friend, or best friend as Anthony had claimed him to be.

I dressed in my pants and threw on my sweater. I headed into the bathroom, keeping the door open so I could continue listening to their distant voices. I brushed my hair before tying it up in a bun.

Yet their conversation continued on in a quiet one and I couldn't make anything out, except for the harsher tones Royden used. I brushed my teeth, applied some make-up and loosened my hair, letting it fall around my shoulders.

As I walked out of the bedroom, taking the dirty underwear with me and to the backroom, their hushed conversation reached my ears again. My heart skipped a beat when I realized they were talking about me.

"... deal with her then?" Anthony questioned.

"I told you already. No need for repetition," Royden answered.

"She was wearing your shirt, Connery. You cannot fool me. You never let anyone wear your shirts. First night she spent here, or what?"

A pause. I threw the underwear in the laundry basket and headed out of it, closing the door behind me. As I walked down the hallway, I could hear the coffee machine brewing. Anthony was leaning on the little wall.

"She kind of lives with me now," Royden confessed. He must have seriously been his best friend, because Royden never confessed something easily. He must trust him.

"Kind of... lives with you? Care to explain to me what happened between "she's cute" to "she lives with me now"?"

"It isn't that simple, okay? Stuff happened."

"Big ass stuff. Royden, what does..." Anthony trailed off as I walked into the living room. He had caught sight of me and never continued to ask his question, to say what he wanted to say. It must have been a secret, something I shouldn't know―as Royden liked to say it was.