Dinner Disasters: Drake and Quinn

Chapter 8 (Drake): A Week

I ran four or five miles just about every day, so the sprint across the parking lot didn't take long. It only seemed to take an eternity.

But in the time it took me to get from one side of the lot to the other, I saw Jessa getting in Quinn's face and Keres and Celine flanking my girl. Quinn said something to Jessa, Jessa raised her hands as if she was going to push Quinn and I bellowed at her.

"You lay one finger on Quinn, and I'll make your life a fucking misery," I called to Jessa.

The women all turned to look at me barreling over to them, and I stepped between Jessa and Quinn, not wanting Jessa to be able to get to her.

"Why the hell are you here?" I asked Jessa.

She was vibrating with rage, so I wondered what had happened before I'd arrived.

"To keep you from making a huge mistake," Jessa said.

"Back to this. I can't believe you asked her out, Drake," Quinn said, her voice disgusted but with just enough of an edge to let me know she didn't think I had actually asked Jessa out -- Quinn was simply taking a swipe at the woman. And that quickly, I began to get an idea of what had been happening.

"That's it," Jessa snapped, trying to get around me but I stepped with her.

"Back the fuck off," I told her. "I suggest you leave now since you've got nothing to say that I want to hear."

"I came to talk you out of leaving the station, Drake. That's just ridiculous."

"You have no say in or influence on my decisions, so again, why the hell are you here?"

"You can't leave the station," she said. "We're all a team."

"I am leaving the station, and I'll have a new team soon enough."

"Drake, it's a mistake to leave."

"God, you're tedious," I sighed, tired of her making a scene.

"It's a mistake," she repeated.

"It's a mistake in the sense that I didn't do it months ago. But now, I'm fixing that because better late than never."

"I can't believe you're giving up being with all of us for her."

"You fucking bitch," Keres said.

"I'd give up anything, anyone and everything for Quinn," I said to Jessa. "I'm just pissed at myself for not changing stations sooner. "

"And what about your friends at our station? You're just going to toss us aside like we haven't had your back all these years?"

Put like that...

"Yeah."

Jessa acted as if I'd struck her. "She's not worth it, Drake. We've all been together for years."

"Just shut the fuck up and quit running your mouth. Quinn is worth everything to me. You need to leave now because I'm so beyond done with you and the shit you say that if you were on fire, I'd hand you an empty water bucket."

Jessa sucked in a loud breath at that. "I can't believe you'd say something like that. That's horrible."

"I'm just speaking the language you understand -- nasty bitch."

"You'll miss us," she predicted. "We're all way too close for you to walk away."

"I'll be walking away without a backward glance," I said, then looked over at Keres, who was practically foaming at the mouth. Celine had a tight grip on her friend's arm.