A Year Of Hope

"Can Cai spend the night?"

Sam raised an eyebrow, "Did you ask Cai if he wanted to spend the night?"

Jane looked at me with pleading eyes. I felt weird about spending the night at two girls' apartment, but I could tell  Jane needed her support system in that moment. So I shrugged.

"Then yeah, I don't mind. Cai seems like the only not asshole guy you've ever introduced me to, so he can stay. I'm going to bed as soon as I get inside though. Tonight was exhausting."

"Yeah we were kind of watching you from a distance... we both got bad vibes from him. Turns out our instincts were correct."

"I appreciate you Cai... you're so naturally good."

Out of all the things people have called, never was it good.

"I'm not. Just looking out for a friend. If we hadn't left I would've beat his ass."

"Good thing you didn't," Sam said. "I'm sure his friends would've gotten involved."

She was right but the thought of a guy trying to do that to Jane, or any woman for that matter, angered me to my core.

~*~*~*~*~

"Here," Jane said, throwing me an old T-shirt and pajama pants. "They belonged to an ex, they should fit you."

I stood in Jane's bedroom. It was messy but not dirty. Clothes, books, art supplies, and other junk covered the floor. I went to the bathroom and changed and came back to see Jane changing.

"I- uh-" I stuttered, and my face burned as I blushed.

Jane laughed. "Dude you're good I don't mind."

I turned around and kept my gaze down until I felt her hands on my shoulder turning me around. She was fully dressed in pajamas of her own.

"You're too pure," she giggled, before flopping on her queen-sized bed. And patting for me to join. I sat on the corner uncomfortably. She began searching for something in between the wall and the bed. "You smoke?"

"Uh... yeah but my cigarettes are in my car. You want one?"

"Not cigarettes, dummy. Weed," Jane said as she pulled out a gram of weed and some rolling papers

"Oh. Yeah, not in a long time though."

"You want to?" She asked as she began rolling a blunt.

I shrugged, "Sure. I guess I'm a bit tense after tonight.... How are you doing?"

She briefly paused rolling her blunt and frowned, and then continued. "I'm not sad actually... Just angry. I sort of knew he was trash. He hit me before, so I don't know why I'm surprised."

"He WHAT?" I yelled.

"Shhhh, it's not that big of a deal. It was only like a handful of times."

"Jane, Sam said you met him after meet and we just met and you and I JUST met... I swear if I ever meet him again..."

"Shhhhh, no more anger. Only good vibes. 'Kay?" She began lighting her blunt, took in a large inhale and attempted to hold it before hacking her lungs out, and handing it to me.

I took the blunt and inhaled, and immediately began hacking to the point where I wheezed and Jane laughed.

"Jeez dude. It's been a long time hasn't it?"

"Years," I agreed.

Her and I smoked and hacked without conversation. My arms and feet felt like lead weights and my body began to feel like icy hot.