𝙇𝙊𝙊𝙆𝙎 𝙏𝙃𝘼𝙏 𝙆𝙄𝙇𝙇! • 𝙧𝙖𝙛𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙣

eleven

CHAPTER ELEVEN
[11]
song: eat your young by hozier

Anxiety clawed at Rafe like an insatiable hunger. It wouldn't go away no matter how many pills he took, no matter how many shots he washed them down with.

He'd gotten what he wanted, sure. But was it all worth it? Was it worth this constant fear of being caught? Was it worth the alarm he felt when Summer wasn't near, the terror he felt thinking Barry had gotten to her— all part of some weird, twisted revenge plot? Was she worth it?

"...by Miss Scarlet in the kitchen with a knife."

Rafe walks inside, setting his keys down on the kitchen table, leaning into the sunroom where Summer, Camila and his sister all sat around a board game on the floor.

Summer glances up at him as she hears the door shut, and sends him a soft smile.

Yes.

He blinks a couple times, and rubs his eyes, hoping she wouldn't be able to tell what he was on. He didn't think anyone would still be awake, or else he would've been more careful.

"There's leftovers in the fridge." Sarah says, barley sparing her brother a glance before moving her game piece four squares to the left.

Rafe tried to see how much longer was left in their game. How much longer it would be before Summer snuck her way into his bedroom. He had grown used to her company, to her warmth. To the smell of her hair as she slept on his chest. He didn't like that she was delaying it.

"I'm going to bed." Rafe spoke, then glanced at Summer, his eyebrows raised slightly.

"Night." Summer spoke pleasantly.

Rafe felt a bit of rage rush through his veins. He wasn't sure what it was, really. Drugs, or real emotion, the line was blurred there. He clenched his jaw, then turned to leave.

"And do you mind taking Wheezie to dance in the morning?" Sarah asks. "Dad's teaching me to dock the boat and—"

"That's not my problem." He says, leaving, without giving her the grace of turning back around to face her when he spoke.

"Great, Summer. You pissed him off." Sarah spoke sarcastically.

Summer was still focused on Rafe until he slipped from her view and up the stairs, then whipped her head towards Sarah after she processed her words. "I what?" She says, genuinely confused.

"I think someone has attachment issues." Camila snorted, then gestured towards Summer. "Your turn."

Summer absentmindedly picked up the dice, and rolled for her next turn, still not following. "What did I do?"

"He wants to hang out." Camila says. "Or something. I don't know. He scares me."

Sarah snorts.

"He'll manage." Summer rolls her eyes. But as the girls continue the game, she focuses her gaze on the hallway he just through, longing to be upstairs with him.

Sarah shook the dice in her hands before she rolled it. "So party planning, I talked to Celine and she's getting her brother to buy us kegs and stuff. I'll tell my parents to just go out on the yacht that night so we can have the house for the night, and—" she looks to Summer, waiting for her attention.