Save Me. (Matthew Espinosa)

Chapter 18 - Regret

Matthew's POV

I shift in bed, rolling over. Eyes still closed, I reach out for Lacey, but am surprised when I grasp nothing more than a handful of cold sheets. My brows scrunch as I peel my eyelids open. Confusion and slight disappointment fill me when the prepossessing girl I've become accustomed to waking up next to is nowhere to be found. I slip out from under the blankets and search for a pair of basketball shorts.

I find my red shorts and pull them up my legs, stumbling towards the bathroom. When I knock on the door, it creaks open, revealing an empty room. Where could she be?

I swipe the room key from the counter and stride down the hallway to Carter and the Jacks' room. I knock until the door finally opens, revealing an annoyed Gilinsky.

"Come on, man. It's 8:30 in the morning." He rubs the sleep out of his eyes.

"Is Lacey in there?" I attempt at peering over his shoulder. He knits his eyebrows together.

"No man. She's always with you."

I'm puzzled for a moment before I come to realization, jaw clenching. "I know where she is." An unmissable darkness seeps into my words and fury boils inside of me when it hits me. Of course, she must be with Taylor. After all, he wants nothing but payback for my cruel actions. It's not like I blame him; I would be the exact same way, but when it comes to Lacey.. she's mine.

I make my way down to his room before Gilinsky can question my sudden change in demeanor and bang on the door until someone ultimately flings it open. Hayes stands there looking at me, evidently just being woken from sleep by my loud disruption. Confusion shows in his blue eyes but I pay him no mind. I don't even have to look around the corner, already knowing Lacey is in the room.

"Caniff! You're dead!" I yell as I push past Hayes. Just as I suspected, my beautifully naive Lacey lays peacefully in the bundle of sheets and fluffy comforter. However, the last thing on my mind is recognizing how flawless she is when my eyes land on the person next to her. Taylor.

Startled by the noise, he awakens and brings himself out of the bed. He looks at me like I'm a madman, moving closer to where I stand. As soon as he's in range, I push him roughly. "What the hell man?!" I yell. Obviously, Taylor is much calmer than me but a glare twists his features. He scoffs. Automatically, he knows I'm referring to Lacey.

"It's not like she's yours or something- and besides, we didn't even do anything. " He rolls his eyes, angering me further.

"Then why is she in here?!" I command, jutting my hand towards Lacey without taking my eyes off of him. He narrows his eyes at me, my furious state beggining to agitate him.

"Because we were up talking late last night and being the thoughtful person she is, she didn't want to wake you up. You know, it makes my skin crawl knowing that someone so sweet and innocent could possibly like you." My fists clench at my sides and I inch closer to Taylor angrily.

"Oh, so you were 'talking'? You mean, you were trying to get with her? She may be innocent but she's smart enough to never do those things with you so you shouldn't have even tried. In fact, don't ever try to force her into anything she isn't ready for! You hear me?" Despite the anger in my tone, Taylor doesn't cower.

"Yeah, well I'm sure it doesn't even matter now anyway. Let's see if she's still head over heels for you now that she knows what kind of a person you really are," he spits spitefully. My mouth goes dry. Does she really know? I find no words to say, stunned for a second. That's until I grasp reality. The little prick told her about my past. Without thinking, I unleash the fury within. My fist smashes into his face and he stumbles back with the force. I'm quick to push him to the floor, climbing atop him to lay more damage to his unexpecting being. I lose all sense of rationality as darkness takes hold of me.