wicked | rafe cameron

emotional chokehold

"Topper's gonna be here in a few", Rafe said, while he sat down on the bank in front of the police station.

"Don't talk to me"

"What? I just got you out of a DUI arrest, don't be so ungrateful."

Erins head was buzzing, felt heavy and was in no condition to form a rational thought. If she'd known that she would end up here, she definitely wouldn't have taken the pills.

The initial plan was to just leave this shitty ass birthday party and just fall into bed, wasted but peaceful, without any dark thoughts in sight.

Instead, she sat next to the literal repository of dark thoughts, even though she swore to herself that this time she was really done with him.
But that had never really worked out for her, had it?

Rafe waited for her to answer, but Erin just stared at the sidewalk in front of her, slightly shivering in the cold of the night. The slight goosebumps on her scraped knees caught his eye.

"Are you cold?"

Erin still didn't answer, and when Rafe reached out to grab her shoulder she moved back and turned her head to look at him.

"You shouldn't have gotten into my car in the first place."

"You mean Kelce's car?"

Thinking about the fact that she had to explain the whole situation to Kelce made Erin want to throw up. Not because of Rafe, obviously, she could easily get out of that one. Because of the drugs.

Kelce wouldn't be mad, even worse, he would be worried and look at her with that stupid look in his eyes. The same look he had the day he visited her at the hospital after her overdose.

Erin didn't know how to react to someone being worried about her. She couldn't get it inside her head.
Having to admit you're not doing okay was humiliating.
What do you mean, you're worried? This is so embarrassing for you. Why? I'm literally immortal, I'll be fine, trust me.

"Shut up."

Erin could almost hear the smile forming on Rafe's pink lips, she rolled her eyes.

"Are youuu, uh, are you gonna tell him about us eventually?", Rafe asked ever so casually.

The look she gave him was funny, as if he insulted her or something, as if he was the crazy one for suggesting such a freakish, bizarre idea.

"No? Of course not.", Erin muttered and crossed her legs, pulling her dress down while it kept slipping up.

"Yes I am cold", she added right after to change the subject, and because it was the truth.

Rafe shrugged, as if he was trying to say well, sucks for you but he felt Erins eyes piercing him even when he wasn't looking at her.

"Don't you want to give me your jacket? Jesus.", she complained and stood up.

"Fine", Rafe muttered and got out of the black suit, leaving him in a shirt.

Erin put the jacket over her shoulders, closing her eyes for a moment while breathing in Rafes scent.
Paired with the warmth of him wearing it before, she almost felt like she was in his arms again, like that one time in-

"Why did you bring this girl to your literal stepmother's birthday party if you're not together?", she asked, interrupting her mind from wandering a bittersweet path.

"I really don't owe you any kind of explanation. You're the one getting married and shit.", Rafe pulled his lips up, almost pouting.

"I was just asking"

"Yeah"

They sat in silence for a minute, the only sound being the seagulls screeching, the first birds starting to chirp even though the sun was barely up.

Erin nervously scratched the scabs on her knees, her fingertips slightly smeared with blood soon.

"Were you serious earlier?"

Rafe looked at her. "About what?"

"You said you'd never mean it. That you like me."

Those words didn't come easily. Hesitantly, she spoke each word as if she would change her mind every second.

Rafe cocked his head, nervously chuckling before getting up from the bench and now standing in front of Erin.

"I don't know why it would matter, if I, uh, meant it or not. It's not like it's gonna happen."

"Yeah, because you're just gonna get your ass arrested one day and leave me forever, just like my dad"

Erin felt like oversharing, like saying everything that went through her head out loud. All these things she would regret later, or right after she said them.

Rafe was surprised about her sudden mood swings, first she was angry and now all up in her feels, it made him uncomfortable, almost, not realizing that this was what he was like all the time.

"I'm not your fucking dad, alright?"

"I know", she said, her voice cracking slightly.

"I'm not going to jail."

Erin looked up at him, her eyebrows drawn together angrily.

"I don't get how you're so sure about that! Like, dude, you shot someone", she said and tried to lower her voice when she got to the murder-part of the sentence.

"Shut up!"

"No, I'm not shutting up! What, do you think your daddy's gonna protect you forever? Cause he won't. He'll-"

Rafe grabbed the back of Erins neck with one hand, pulled her closer and put his other hand over her mouth, tightly pressing it against her face.
"Shut the fuck up.", Rafe said, calmer than expected.

Erin stopped talking and looked up at him with huge eyes. He held her like that for what felt like eternity before pushing her backwards, making her tumble a few steps.

"That was kinda hot, not gonna lie.", Topper admitted. He had been watching the two for a few seconds, leaning on the engine hood of his dads truck.

Rafe turned around and looked at his friend. "Finally, dude."

"What's going on?", Topper asked, glancing at Erin.

"What? Uh, no, nothing, bro. She was talking shit, bitch is wasted out of her mind."

Topper scoffed and opened the car door for Rafe. "Thats what you get for saving her from jail?"

"Females, man. Ungrateful, just like my sister."

The boys were talking as if Erin didn't stand there, listening to every word they were saying. Unable to move, her bodily functions being slowed down from the opioids she took and from the physical and emotional chokehold Rafe had her in.

Rafe sat inside the truck and closed the door. His friend turned around to look at Erin. "Are you coming?"

The last thing Erin wanted was to sit in that car with Rafe and Topper talking shit about her. But she didn't really have a choice.

Toppers grandfather was a judge, and if she wanted to get out of her arrest with a mild fine instead of jail time, she better kiss the Thornton family's ass for a while.

"Yeah, sure. Thank you, Topper."

Erin hurried into the backseat of the truck, where she nestled into the fabric of Rafe's suit. Rafe exchanged looks with her through the rearview mirror, not sure what he should think.

Their conversations were weird most of the time. Rafe mostly got mad at some point, or sad, started having a tantrum or an emotional breakdown. But it was always Rafe, not Erin acting irrationally.

Seeing her like that, angry and desperate, confused Rafe, and feeling like that confused Erin.