I didn't hear much of what Ali and Matthew spoke about but my worry slowly faded after hearing her getting angry because she was being questioned about me. I knew if I didn't do something to comfort her, she would have stormed off or hit Matthew, not that I care for him or if she hit him but I didn't want her to hurt herself. I frowned as a memory intruded behind my eyelids.
"Don't' 'but baby' me Jarred!" she yelled, turning back around to face me, her small hands balled into tiny fists by her side. I knew she would be angry when she found out but it wasn't my fault.
"Ali she kissed me! I didn't do anything, I was drunk and I still pushed her away because even blind ass fucking drunk I could only think of you!" I yelled, my anger flaring.
"Bullshit! And what about the drugs Jarred?! The fucking weed I found in your pockets! What about that!" she screamed back.
"What drugs?" I questioned, my confusion overpowering my anger. She walked towards me until there was minimum space between us, if I didn't know her any better I would have thought that she wasn't angry anymore, but I knew her better than that and I could tell she was pissed to the max. The look in her eyes was almost fucking murderous and for some reason it was turning me on.
"What drugs?" she repeated, mimicking my words but in a dangerous tone. I was scared, but also extremely turned on.
"Yes Alice, what fucking drugs?" I said blankly. She wasn't just angry anymore, she was infuriated. The next thing I knew, she slapped me and my hand instinctively reached up to touch my stinging face. As I lifted my hand to touch my face where she slapped me, she flinched, holding one of her wrists in her other hand, tears falling from her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. Any anger I felt towards her for slapping me instantly diminished.
"You thought I was going to hit you?" I questioned quietly, taking her face gently into my hands.
"Jarred," she started
"Jarred!" Ali called, shaking my shoulder, concern clear on her face.
"Yeah?" I questioned, sitting behind the steering wheel of the car. The keys were sitting on my lap and my hands were tightly gripping the steering wheel, my knuckles white.
"Are we going or not?" she cheekily asked, poking my face. Matthew scoffed in disgust from the backseat of the car at her affectionate gesture. I picked up the keys and put them in the ignition, twisting it until the engine of the car roared to life. As the engine came to life, my anger at Matthew's action bubbled up to the surface. I revved the engine more than was necessary and pulled out of the driveway onto the road. I sped up the highway a lot faster than the limit. Ali must have sensed the anger radiating off me because she reached over the centre console and grabbed my hand, giving it a tight squeeze and giving me a small but lively smile. Fuck she was so beautiful.
"I love you," I whispered to Ali, offering a small smile as I squeezed her hand back before removing my hand from hers to change gears.
"Seriously!?" Matthew scoffed from the back.
"Matthew!" Ali scowled at him, letting him know that his comments were unnecessary. I pulled the car over and turned it off before unbuckling my belt and turning around in my seat to face Matthew.
"Listen here you little fucking shit! What is your fucking problem?!" I bellowed, Ali's hands went to her ears in an attempt to block out this argument. I felt guilty about it, she had seen and heard enough fights for three lifetimes. But Matthew needed to know that she was mine, and his attempts to steal her from me were not appreciated.
"She's not a fucking doll that you can just throw away once you're finished with her! We all know what you're going to do! You'll get bored with her, then you will leave her! You don't even love her! Do you?!" He yelled back. I stopped the car.
"Get the fuck out." I spat as I watched as the smug look fell off his face.
"What?" he stammered.
"I said get out." he slowly started to climb out of the car. Ali stayed quiet the whole time and I knew she was pissed. I felt bad for ruining her day but not bad enough to tell Matthew to stay in the car. He closed the door, knowing better than to slam it, and walked away from the car, back the way we had come. I turned the car around and drove back to Ali's, and as we passed Matthew, I took one hand off the wheel and flipped him off through the window, glaring at him for 2 seconds before turning my attention back to the road and driving Ali home.
