Between the Days and Nights ✔

Chapter 22: Clarity & Obscurity

Damon

She doesn't ask me where I'm taking her, and I can only silently hope that I've made the right decision. I can barely hold onto my own rage as my grip of the steering wheel tightens by the second.

How could he do that to her?

I glance over to see her sobbing quietly as she stares out the window. I clench my jaw and hot air shoots out of my nostrils.

How could he break her heart like this?

At a stoplight, I turn to study her. She sits slumped in her seat and turns to look at the red light towering above us. I look at her hands, one balled into a fist, covering her mouth, and the other resting on her lap. As the light turns green, I reach over to grab her hand, holding it in mine.

She looks at me with wide red eyes, and I give her a reassuring smile. Her fingers feel cold in my warm palm. Is she cold?

She looks like an angel in her skirt and I realize that I rarely ever see her in anything but jeans or shorts. I want to ask her, but I don't, knowing that silence is best for her right now.

When we finally arrive, she had her eyes closed and her head resting on her headrest. I park the car and turn over. She has her eyes opened again, probably from sensing the lack of motion.

I lead her out to the shores. At this time at night, no one would be here, especially near the residential areas. The roaring of the waves send chills down my back and as I turn to her, she was already staring out at the barely visible horizon.

"Okay, this is gonna sound a bit creepy," I suggest, "But you can scream all you want and no one's going to come out and complain. I know you must be really upset so I figure it's a good way to get it all out."

She doesn't respond, and instead, just stares at me with a blank expression. I purse my lips, concerned about the lack of anger. "Or you could throw rocks at th-"

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH," she screams into the ocean, holding both her hands up to her mouth to aim her shouts, "SILAS, YOU ASSHOLE!"

Every word required a heavy inhale to supply, and when she finished her screams, she falls to her knees and starts sobbing. I get on mine and hold her against my chest. Her arms fall limp on her lap and as she continues her screams, she muffles them with my chest, which grow warm from her desperate cries.

Silas was kissing Pam. He was returning her actions and he was almost just as naked as she was. I wish I could punch his mouth off of his face.

We stay on the sand for a while, but soon, I start to feel her shiver under my hold. The ocean breeze is too cold for her, so I pull her up and into my arms. She looks at me with sad eyes and I start to hope that she runs out of tears to cry. He's not worth it.

I walk with her into the beach house, knowing that the owners are gone. It seems they're always gone. I practically always have the place to myself, and they even stock it with food for me if they need me to have longer stays.

As we enter the garden, Tammy notices a bench on one of the inside edges of the gazebo, between two columns and she turns to me with a puzzled look.

"The owners changed some things, but they kept the roses, lights, and stereo. There's a bench now and even a small heater." I point at the small accent table next to the bench. She nods and I lead her to the bench, where we sit quietly, surrounded by twinkle lights.

I plug my phone into the stereo and turn it on shuffle, landing on Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol as the first song. As I turn on the heater, I start to wonder where it had gone wrong since the last time we were here. Maybe it was wrong for me to have let her go to him, but at the time, it seemed like he was right for her, no matter how much it hurt for me to admit that.