The Fighter and His Tiger (Unexpected Love #1)

39. Saturday Week Fifteen (the confession.)

39. Saturday Week Fifteen (the confession.)

Of course, when I woke up yesterday, Eli was gone and I was left wondering whether the whole dinner was real or not. The entire experience was surreal, from Mikael being the special guest to him pulling a gun out at the dinner table.

Knocking on the door of Eli's apartment, I was filled with dread and curiosity. Dread because I had no clue how Eli would act around me after last night and curiosity because it was strange that Raven had asked me to come to their apartment.

"Rei, thanks for coming," she held the door open wider for me and I stepped past her into the apartment. Immediately, I was engulfed in a hug by Cayden.

He pulled away and held my shoulders as his eyes scanned me up and down, "are you okay?"

A small laugh escaped me but I frowned slightly as stepped out of Cayd's hold, "I'm fine, why? What's going on?"

Raven looked over at me solemnly, "Mikael wasn't pleased about you being there Thursday night, Rei."

Her words barely processed as my eyes moved past her and Cayd to the rest of the apartment. It was destroyed. The glass coffee table was smashed to pieces. The couch was tipped with the cushions strewn randomly across the room as if someone had thrown them in a blind rage. The cupboards were open and the contents inside either lay across the floor or were gathered in pieces from where they had been so carelessly broken.

Shock registered and I gasped, my hands flying up to my mouth before I whispered, "Mikael did this?"

Cayd shook his head slowly, "not exactly."

"Eli?" I breathed out

Raven nodded.

"Where is he?"

Raven pointed to his bedroom and I made my way over. Not bothering to knock, I barged inside to find him sitting on his bed with his head in his hands. I couldn't see his face but I could see his knuckles and they were red, cut and swollen.

"I told them not to call you," he grunted out.

"Why?" I closed his door and leant back against it, arms crossed as I peered at him.

"Not your fight, Reillyn."

I nodded, pushing off the door and strolling around his room. His nightstand had a glass on it so I picked it up and threw it at the wall.

The shock was blatant on his face as his head whipped around to look at me, "what are you doing?"

I shrugged, "you said something that made me mad so I broke something," my eyes narrowed as I thought of the wreck he had made of their apartment, their safe haven, "I thought that was how we were dealing with shit."

Eli growled, "it's more than just being mad, Rei."

"I hope so!" I yelled, raising my hands in the air and letting them flop to my sides, "you've destroyed your apartment, Raven's apartment and for what? A temper tantrum?"

His eyes flashed in anger, "you have no clue what's going on, Rei."

"Obviously not, Eli!" I spoke aggressively, "all you've done is push me away."

He stood and turned to face me fully, his eyes were burning in anger. But they were dark and dull, the bags under his eyes so prominent they looked like permanent shadows. The crease between his brow was glaringly obvious and it seemed as though it had been fixed that way for days. And yet, he still looked beautiful.

"All I've done, Reillyn, is protect you," he said lowly.

"Bullshit!" I screamed, "you've hidden away and taken the easy route out. You think I don't know what you've been doing? Why you haven't been at school? I know it's not just fighting anymore, is it Ryker?" I stepped forward, fists clenching at my sides, "it's drugs too now right? You're a drug dealer," I pointed at him, "that's your choice, not mine, so don't you dare make this about me."