In The Safety Of A Lie - COMPLETED!

Chapter 6

Nakita had been begging Ev to tell her all about her date the night before, but Ev kept insisting that they wait until after work was over. Well, work was over and their leftover supper was on the table. Ev had prayed already for her food and quickly stuffed her mouth full. Eager to eat and remain silent about the amazing night she had had. She didn't want to jinx the next date by overindulging her excitement already.

"Soooo, tell me about it." Nakita squealed, her voice demanding and very clearly not requesting anymore.

"I... can't." Evelina said between bites.

"Why not?" Nakita whined and demanded at the same time.

"Because... I'm trying... to chew!" Evelina forced herself not to laugh all of the food out of her mouth.

"Well, chew faster!" Nakita patiently waited.

Ev pointed down to Nakita's plate. "Eat!" She barely was able to say.

Nakita took a small bite and chewed it quickly. "Satisfied? Now hurry up!"

Ev finished chewing and took a big gulp as she swallowed all of the remaining food in her mouth. She took a sip of water to wash everything completely down. Her eyes met Nakita's. "What do you wanna know?"

"Well, how did it go? You are beaming! What happened? What did you wear? Do you like him?" Nakita couldn't stop the words from coming out of her mouth.

"It went very well. And, we're going out next week." Ev smiled, not divulging everything about her date. "Did you call and bug him as well?" She laughed.

"Not yet, but believe me, I will." Nakita said seriously, but her face was filled with humor.

"Oh, I'm sure you will." Ev smiled. "By the way, I didn't know you had been in the military."

Nakita sobered up quickly. Her smile had vanished. "That was in the past, and I would like it to stay in the past."

"Ain't happening." Evelina said stubbornly, her eyes teasingly narrowing. "You forced me on a date with a guy from your past that I didn't know. It's payback, honey!"

Nakita looked just as stubborn. She rubbed her forehead and threw her napkin on her barely touched plate. "It is staying in the past, Evelina."

"But why? What happened that makes you not want to talk about it?" Ev knew she was pushing her friend, but Joey had seemed equally as hesitant to talk about it. There had to be a story here. There had to be something significant enough that it could quite possibly affect her as well. Perhaps it wasn't her place to push, but she wasn't one to roll over and submit either.

"I do not want to talk about it." She forced calmness in her voice, it was already tight and unyielding.

"But Joey said that you were the best marksman out of all of your unit! Aren't you proud of that?" Ev asked her, not fully realizing what she had said.

The woman put her hands on the table and leaned forward. "Evelina, being the best marksman meant that I had to kill many people! It is not something that I am proud of, nor is it something that I want to remember. It is something that I want to forget! Please, do not ask me to tell you about it." Nakita begged for the first time in her life, taking on a desperate tone.

Ev watched her for a moment, realization flooding her as she saw the pain in her friend's dark eyes. She mentally scolded herself for not noticing it sooner. "Okay. I'm sorry."

Nakita nodded slowly. "I am going to go home now." She pushed away from the table. "Do you need help locking up?"

"No, I can do it." Ev watched Nakita begin to leave. She was worried about her. She hadn't wanted to push her to be offended, just to talk about her past a little bit. Maybe that would have told her a little bit more about Joey. On the inside, she was torn with the idea that she may have just hurt her friend more than she had intended. Now she had to think of how she could fix the dilemma that she had just gotten herself into.