𝐈 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮

Jonesy

No one said anything; we were all still processing what the actual fuck had just happened. We sat in the booth farthest from the door of Mel's Diner, our waters untouched. No one looked at each other, no one said anything.
  After several more minutes of silence, Althea excused herself from the booth. "I'm going to call my dad." She didn't wait for a response, not that she would've gotten one.
  Daria held ice wrapped in a cloth napkin against her knuckles and winced every so often.
  "I'm glad it was you...punching Blake, I mean." I finally said. "I probably wouldn't have stopped."
  She nodded. "I didn't want to. I think I broke her nose."
  "She's such a fucking bitch."
  "Such a fucking bitch. And Aiden? That boy has no backbone whatsoever."
  I shook my head. "I can't believe he played us like that. Granted, I never liked him but Althea did." There had always been something about Aiden Fairfield that just rubbed my skin the wrong way. He always had a slew of women trailing after him, more than likely after his last name and connections rather than his looks and oh, so charming personality.
  He had come from a long line of people who always got what they wanted and to see him finally put in his place was refreshing. Really wished it had happened sooner, though.
  Daria glanced out the window to where Althea was on the phone with her dad. "I wonder what she's saying." She didn't seem angry, simply nodding along. She wasn't crying either, which was a good sign.
  Something Blake had said ran through my mind. She had woken up to Althea blocking her and Althea had had a genuine look of confusion on her face.
  "Probably something to do with Blake's number being blocked."
  Daria pressed her arms on the table and removed the now soaking wet napkin from her knuckles. "You think her dad did it? You've met him, does he seem like the kind of guy to do that?"
  I shrugged, thinking back to the several times I had met Althea's dad. He was a very quiet and attentive man who truly seemed to have her best interests in mind.
  "Maybe he didn't want her mom to go through her phone and find their messages." I whistled softly, shaking my head. "That woman is an absolute nightmare."
  Daria nodded, looking back out the window. "So he was protecting her from her own mother. I can't imagine what that must be like." She paused for a moment before her expression turned serious. "You know, I never hated her."
  "Who?"
  She jerked her head outside to where Althea was standing on the phone. "Thea. She's a good person. I know it might've seemed like I did, but I was just wary of her." She sighed, looking back at me. "I just didn't want to see you get hurt again."
  I gave her non swollen hand a light squeeze. "It's okay, Dar, you were just being a good friend." She nodded, giving me another small smile, it could've also been a wince, I couldn't tell.
  I heard the sound of the door open and saw Althea walking back towards us. She slid into the open space beside me, a smile on her face.
  "God, I'm starving. Should we order some fries?"
  Daria nodded in agreement, sliding out of her side of the booth. "I'll go order some. Mayonnaise on the side for you, right?"
  Althea blushed. "Yeah, you remembered?"
  Daria shrugged, a smile breaking out across her face. "We're friends, aren't we?" She laughed as she headed towards the cashier.
  Althea turned to me, her eyes wide. "You heard that, right? This whole time, at least before tonight, I thought she hated me, or at best just tolerated me."
  I laughed and wrapped an arm across her shoulders, pressing my lips to her hair. "Daria takes friendship very seriously; she just wanted to make sure you were a permanent member of our group."
  Althea beamed. I would never understand why Daria's approval meant so much to her, but the sight of her finally getting it made me happy.
  Daria came back to the booth with two baskets of steaming fries just as Gemma, Stella, Sterling, and Bela walked through the door. They shouted greetings at each other and Bela gave Daria's shoulders a shake, exclaiming how proud she was that she had had the guts to finally punch Blake.
  We all made room for them as they squeezed into the small booth and Stella went back up to the cashier to order several milkshakes.
  Conversation flowed around us regarding our win and then the epic betrayal in the hallway. Althea's conversation with her dad must've put her mind at ease because not once did she mention Aiden or Blake. She didn't show any signs of emotional distress nor did she seem to be on the edge of a breakdown.
  Simply being here with our friends on one of the biggest nights of our young adult lives was healing enough. Not only for her but for myself. A lot of shit had happened over the course of nine months and no matter how rough they got, I knew I could always turn to these people.
  This group of friends I considered family. It was strange, going from not having anyone aside from Ellis to having the gang, and then having Althea, and then Mallory and my new step family.
  I felt full and complete. I had everything I needed and more.
  I watched as Althea and Stella laughed at something Sterling was saying; Daria and Bela were dipping their fries in their vanilla milkshakes, still laughing over what had happened in the hallway, and Gemma had her face glued to her phone, no doubt catching my brother up to speed.
  I pressed my nose into Althea's hair, just above her ear. She smiled and turned her head to face me.
  "Be my girlfriend," I said promptly. Confusion washed over her face and she laughed nervously.
  "I already am, Jonesy."
  I shook my head. "I realized I never actually asked you. You asked me back in Aspen and then we broke up and I never officially asked you to be my girlfriend."
  She cocked her head. "I'm not sure you could call that a breakup, we were broken up for one weekend."
  Laughing, I slipped my hand between us and grabbed hers. "I know, I just wanted to actually ask you. And I know this is nowhere near as romantic as the cabin in Aspen, but I will ask you everyday if that's what it takes to make up for the weekend we were apart."
  A blush crept across her face and she shook her head gently. "That's a bit excessive."
  But in my mind it wasn't. I would do whatever it took to erase those few days from her mind. And if finding new and more romantic ways to that was what it took, that's exactly what I would do.
  "Be my girlfriend, Althea."
  She covered her smile with her spare hand, nodding vigorously. "Of course, as long as you'll be mine."
  "I'm desperately and hopelessly yours, my sweet girl." I bent my head down to kiss her, ignoring the sounds of faux disgust from our friends.
  "Ew, get a room, you two," Bela laughed out. I flipped her off, my mouth still on Althea's. She cupped my face with her hands, deepening the kiss.
  "I love you," she finally said when we parted.
  "I love you too."
  She shook her head. "Don't say "too." Just I love you."
  "Just I love you," I repeated. "I love you."