FlAvor

Chapter 5

I froze in my seat, wondering how I could go find a cab without even talking to him. The fact that Darren scares the hell out of me speaks volumes. He surely was not the guy I met anymore.

His breath hot on my ears with the mixed scent of mint and something else I couldn't quite pinpoint that almost made me gag. I immediately move away from how close he was to me, noticing how intense his eyes glared on the side of my face. He took a seat on the other side of the table, giving me a chilling grin that was etched on his face.

"You got more beautiful than before, baby." He attempted to grab my hand but I forcefully pull it away from his grasp.

"Do not call me that, Darren. What the fuck are you doing here? I didn't think you'd be around this area."

"Well, I'll be damn! You slumming with that white boy and now you're too good for me?"

"If you actually knew what the definition of 'slumming' was, you would see why I'm over-the-top too good for you," I hissed. Who does he think he is? Blaine was more of a man than he'll ever be. "I think I've overstayed my welcome."

Before I even attempt to get out of my seat, he grips my wrist, hard. I try not to wince, but the pain was almost unbearable. So he has physical assault added on his résumé these days? Wonderful.

"You're hurting me, Darren. Let go."

"Sit your fucking self-righteous ass down, then! You think you get to talk to me like that?" He snarled in my face, loud enough for me to hear, but not enough for the attention to be turned onto us.

Fuck. Warning bells rang in my head, pushing me to run as fast as I could away from him. Unfortunately, I had more than a feeling that he would catch me. Darren was not afraid of acting out in public. I knew that that first hand. His behavior was one thing I had to deal with after he had met Byron.

After I reluctantly sat back on my seat, his demeanor flipped a 180, smiling once again as if he didn't just physically assault me.

"What do you want? I don't have time for your foolish games," I pointed out to him. "If this is important, speed it up so I can go home."

"Home?" He's mocking me. "Oh! You mean the apartment that was trashed? That's a shame. Who would do such a thing?"

I scoff. "Like you care! You're probably happy someone went through the trouble to ruin what I worked hard on getting. But you don't know anything about earning something the right way. You take shit for granted, then try to waltz back and take it again."

I'm no longer taking his shit. All of this pent up anger towards him was bound to come out sooner or later. "I wasted almost two years on your ass, and you cheat on me and waste all of the good shit you had? Who fucking does that? Did you even care? Or were you too wrapped up in that girl's loose vagina to give a damn?"

After a beat, he rolls his eyes at me. "Are you done yet?"

"You're fucking kidding me, right?" The more he spoke, the more livid I became. How could he be so heartless? I don't even understand why I'm still here. "You know what? I'm not done! You lost everything good in your life because of your foolish ways. You not only lost me, but you threw away your future and practically ruined the relationship you had with your mother, who is such a sweet lady. And for what? Drugs, sex, money."

"And what's wrong with that? That's the hustle these days, baby."

I stare at him in exasperation. "Are you high right now? It's like I'm having a conversation with a brick wall. Was there something you needed? I need to go."

"I want you back, Adrienne. I make a mistake and I truly do regret it. You know I still love you, girl." Ah, acting was on the list also. We have a true performer ladies and gentlemen.