Tonight it's Fate - Part One
Tonight it's Fate -- Part One
Writer: Ally (wasted_rawkstar)
Fandom: Simple Plan
Rating: R
Summary: David's not sure he's taking the right path in his life. After an ill-fated motorcycle ride with friends he's even less sure, but he's not going to let that stop him from going after what his heart wants. He just has to hope that who he offers his heart to won't throw it back in his face.
The kickstand of the motorcycle easily locked into place with a nudge from David’s foot and he slid off the machine, tucking the key into his pocket and unbuckling his helmet. He pulled it off and secured it to the bike, slicking his hair back as he reached for the beanie he’d stuffed into his jacket. He tugged the worn knit cap onto his head and unzipped his moto jacket just slightly before walking up the street to the bar. He was a few minutes early to meet Jeff, but it didn’t matter; he was sure their usual table would be open.
David pushed open the heavy door to the dark bar and stepped inside, smiling and nodding at the familiar faces. He smirked when he reached the back of the bar, seeing the back of his friend’s shaved head. “Yo!” he called. “Couldn’t let me be early for once?” he joked.
Jeff spun around in his chair and grinned. “Oh hell no… You start being early for shit and I’m going to rethink our entire friendship.”
He laughed. “Right? I didn’t know that the power of positivity could improve punctuality.”
“I think you just made it up, but it sounds good.”
They shared another laugh and a brief hug before David sat down across the table. “Did you order yet?” he asked, sitting back in the chair and crossing his legs.
Jeff shook his head. “Not yet. I’d basically just sat down. Stacey’ll be over in a minute. Doing your usual or onto something new?”
He raised an eyebrow. “What’s my usual these days?”
“The Moscow mule, isn’t it? Or have you moved on?”
“Oh, no… still on that kick. Seeing how many bartenders I can piss off before I’m banned from ordering it again, really.”
Jeff laughed. “You’re probably well on your way.”
“I know, so I can’t give it up now,” he replied, smiling. “At least at your bars they’ve started adding weird craft shit because they know I don’t care… I’ll still drink it even if they’ve added some cucumber soda or lotus extract.”
“Is that how they came up with that new hibiscus liqueur drink? You’re over playing pretend bartender at Drinkerie again?”
He shrugged, still smiling. “Maybe.”
Jeff rolled his eyes, but kept his words to himself as Stacey came over. She was one of the regular waitresses who’d worked at the bar for as long as they’d been going there and she’d quickly grown immune to their so-called celebrity status. After waiting on them a few times she’d learned that they were there to do what everyone else was, and not have any attention be drawn to them, which was why they preferred the somewhat hidden table tucked around the side of the bar.
She raised her eyebrows at them as the men continued to smirk at each other. “You both having your usuals?” she asked.
David nodded first. “I am, for sure.” He glanced in deference to his friend.
Jeff nodded as well. “Yep, same old, same old.”
“All right, one Moscow mule and one La Blanche Cheval Blanc. Be right back,” she told them.
Jeff leaned back in his chair as Stacey walked away and looked back at his friend. “So, how’d that date go?”
Immediately he rolled his eyes, smile fading quickly. “Fine,” he said, with a dismissive gesture.
“Any third date possibilities?” he pressed.
David shook his head. “I don’t think so… I don’t know. She just didn’t seem like she was into it.” He paused. “But she invited me to brunch on Sunday.”
“But you’re not going because that would be the third date,” Jeff replied.
“I just don’t do third dates,” he said. “I have my two go-tos and after that I’m a wreck. How are you supposed to know whether to take her to an aquarium or to a spa? So off my forte.”
Jeff laughed. “That’s just part of it, though. You go out together and make the best of what happens. If you connect during that then it’s good. If she storms out… then maybe not the best.”
“Oh, you think? That’s some solid advice, dude.”
The sarcasm snapped in David voice and Jeff laughed. “I’m tryin, man. Maybe you need to hit up Anicée again. Wasn’t she all hot to get you set up a few months ago?”
“Yeah, but she reamed me on the two date thing. She said if she’s going to set up one of her friends with me then I have to do a third date, and then no hard feelings either way. I just… I don’t like being the non-committal guy in the band now. Like, what’s wrong with me? Can I not figure my shit out and just settle already?”
Jeff shrugged. “You’ve had reasons to wait… it’s not like you’ve had the easiest relationships in the past, and,” he hesitated, “you know, whatever happened in 2007.”
David scoffed at the statement, taking a drink of the water Stacey had brought over. “Yeah, let’s not go there,” he said.
“But why not? I mean, I know you’ve never told anyone about it, but that’s like five years ago now… you still can’t tell me?”
David resettled in the chair, shifting to cross his legs. At the time he’d had good reasons to not bring up what he’d gone through, because it seemed like everyone else was going through too many tragedies in their lives, and he had no want to add to it. Now those reasons didn’t hold up and it was his best friend needing a clue into the past. He half shrugged. “You really want to know?” he clarified.
Jeff nodded adamantly. “I do. I feel like there was a lot of shit happening with everyone that year and you got left out of the group and it wasn’t fair.” He took a breath, his gaze intense when their eyes met. “Dude, I know,” he stressed the word, “something happened with you and you were too polite to bring it up… but sometimes it’s better for us to know what’s going on that to have to just speculate.”
David smirked slightly. “And what were you speculating? Any awesome theories?”
He shook his head. “Mostly we figured it was family stuff. I mean, we know you’re private… we all get that way with stuff, but you take it to another level.”
He nodded, shifting again in the chair as Stacey came over with their drinks.
“Anything else I can get for you guys?” she asked.
They exchanged glances and David shook his head.
“Nope, we’re good,” Jeff told her.
“All right, enjoy,” she said with a smile before walking away.
They each raised their glasses then, taking drinks and letting the hum of the bar wrap around them before continuing the conversation.
“It wasn’t family related,” he finally said. “It was more of… what the fuck am I doing with my life? And am I really happy with it right now? And… I feel like shit for no reason so I’m just going to spend three months in bed and not deal with any of it.” He punctuated the statement with a long drink and Jeff stared at him with raised eyebrows.
“Dude.”
He nodded. “I know.” He looked down at his drink for a moment before continuing, “But Julie came out and helped me get back on track,” he said, thankful for his sister’s support. “Turned out it was mostly a thyroid issue and once medication for that was figured out it was smooth sailing again.” He shrugged to make light of the situation. “There was some other stuff too, but that was the main thing.”
Jeff shook his head. “I never would have guessed that.”
“Yeah, me either, but it took like one blood test to diagnose. The doctor said it’s actually super common and now I just have to take some supplements when it feels like things aren’t quite right.”
He nodded after a second, taking a drink of his beer. “Okay, so maybe none of that has anything to do with you not having relationships these days.”
He laughed. “Seriously… I think the trauma with Audree was really what did it,” he replied, shaking his head as he took a sip of the cocktail. “She was definitely not who I thought she was.”
Jeff swallowed a mouthful of beer and wiped the condensation from the glass onto his jeans. “To be fair, I don’t think you were the person she thought you were either.”
He smirked. “No, I wasn’t Pierre’s clone like she wanted.”
He laughed. “Exactly. You need someone who can party, but then has that weird introspective, in-tune with the universe vibe… not just the vapid, shallow bombshell.”
He nodded, setting his drink back on the coaster with a sigh. “Yeah… if someone like that even exists.” He let his eyes drift over the expanse of the bar and inwardly bemoaned the situation. Of all the people in the world he’d met and connected with there just hadn’t been one specific person who sparked something in him. He was at the point of doubt that he’d ever find someone to share that with and it was a terrifying and devastating thing to face.
Jeff scoffed. “Seriously? For all your power of positivity and putting your dreams into the universe bullshit and you have that attitude about finding someone? No wonder she hasn’t come walking through that door yet.” He paused, smirking. “Need to put that on your vision board or whatever the fuck you’re doing these days.”
He laughed. “See? You give me shit about it, but you know it works! Summer Paradise, case closed.”
“Dude, you say that, but-” Jeff started to refute him.
“But it charted in Europe the next week, so ‘but’ nothing.”
They stared at each other then, daring the other to continue the statements as they both took long drinks. From across the bar there was a sudden burst of laughter and clamoring at one of the tables, and they both sat up to look. One of the blondes at the table stood up, a grin on her face as she raised her glass and chugged what was left of her drink. David smiled to himself, vaguely recognizing her from some party he’d been at months before; some things in Montreal never changed. When she finished, she held the glass over her head and laughed as all her friends cheered and hollered. Her eyes connected with David’s for just a moment and he shook his head with a smile as she looked away in embarrassment.
Jeff’s laugh was quiet. “Gonna get in on that before we go?” he asked with a smirk.
He chuckled and took another slow drink. “Maybe… she’s probably worth two dates.”
Jeff laughed. “For sure at least one.”
They glanced at one another knowingly, then tipped their glasses together in amusement before finishing their drinks in silence.
Stacey came to their table soon after. “Another round?” she asked.
They looked at each other, Jeff shrugging in deference to his friend.
David nodded casually after a thoughtful moment. “Why not?” he said, unzipping his jacket and sliding it off his shoulders onto the back of his chair. “I don’t have any other plans tonight.”
Jeff smiled and slid their glasses to Stacey with a nod. “Round two it is.”
# # #
The sudden text chime from his phone roused David from the doze he’d returned to after waking up a half hour before. It was Sunday morning and he’d stayed up too late the night before, lost in a hazy high and listening to a couple new albums he’d purchased. He sighed into his pillow and stretched his arm over to the night stand, easily grabbing the phone. He clicked the button to see the screen and read the new message.
Brunch at Ani’s. Riding after. You in? I’m leaving in 20.
It was from his friend Frank. He swiped the phone open to reply, smiling at the prospect of going on a motorcycle ride with his friends. He needed to get out and ride after staying in most of the day before.
In. Is vodka an acceptable hostess gift for brunch? Lol
Frank replied quickly. Ha! For Ani, ouais!
He smiled at the reply and discarded the phone back to the nightstand. He knew he could get to Ani’s in about ten minutes, so he had at least another fifteen before he really needed to get up, but coffee sounded too good. He shoved the duvet aside and pulled on sweatpants and a t-shirt before heading to the kitchen.
Sunlight streamed brightly into the living room of the apartment, glinting off the windows of the nearby high-rise office buildings and other apartments and condos. He passed to the kitchen and made a cup of coffee automatically, enjoying the silence of the morning and looking forward to going on a ride in the sunshine. It had been a couple weeks since he and Jeff had gotten together and he was still stuck in the same headspace. He’d gone on a few more dates with other women, but it hadn’t felt right, and no matter how many casual brunch invitations he received he was not going to take that next step. He wanted to wait and truly see what the universe would offer, because he knew something was out there. He shook his head, turning away from staring out the window and sauntering to the bathroom with his coffee, figuring the least he could do was take a quick shower before he saw his friends.
Twenty minutes later he was on the way out the door, slipping his phone and wallet into his jacket and grabbing his helmet and sunglasses before he left. The building seemed relatively quiet for the mid-morning and he got an empty elevator down to the lobby and parking garage. The motorcycle started effortlessly and he pulled out quietly, the engine humming beneath him. It was an easy, quick ride to Ani’s neighborhood and he stopped at the small corner market to pick up flowers and the bottle of vodka, smiling to himself as the cashier game him a look while ringing it up. There was no reason to justify the purchase when it was more of a joke than anything.
A few minutes later he pulled up in front of the duplex and parked next to Frank’s moto in the driveway, seeing a few other cars and bikes he recognized. After securing his helmet and gathering the bags, he went to the front door, knocking twice before letting himself inside. A chorus of friendly greetings and waves rose as he walked in and Anicee instantly came over, giving him a large hug as they kissed cheeks.
“I’m so glad you could come!” she said. “I thought you were in town, but didn’t want to bug you… Frank said he didn’t care if he annoyed you so I let him do it.”
David smiled, shaking his head. “You never bug me… If I’m home I want to see friends and I can only do that if I get invited places,” he reassured her. “Always invite me, okay? Worst I’ll do is say no.”
She laughed and nodded. “Fair enough.”
He held up the flowers then. “Thanks for hosting… there’s another little something in the other bag too,” he said with a wink. She laughed again and took the bags, thanking him as she went to the kitchen. He shrugged out of his jacket then, laying it on the pile of others on the chair in the corner.
Frank motioned him toward the sofa in the living room. “Glad you came! This ride’s gonna be sick.”
“Definitely,” he replied with a nod. “And I need it after being holed up the last few days… fuckin’ rain.”
Frank laughed. “No shit. Bake and binge listen?”
David smirked. “Of course.”
They’d coined the phrase together after their bands had toured with each other and they’d found out they shared a mutual love of getting high and then listening to certain music. The music took on an entirely unique experience because some songs seemed to last an eternity and they often found themselves in a near catatonic state if they weren’t careful. Neither man could remember who had actually used the phrase first, but the ‘bake ‘n binge’ had become their go-to, and they loved to talk about their BnBs in front of other people, who would just assume it meant bed-and-breakfast like always.
He nodded. “Me too. Nothin’ like a good BnB with some old school rock… pulled out some Doors the other night and I swear there were songs I’d never heard before.”
David laughed. “If that isn’t the truth… and people wonder why music changed in the 80s when everyone started doing coke.”
Frank grinned, opening his mouth to reply, but Anicee’s announcement from the kitchen cut him off.
“Food is ready!” she called. “And the deck is open… make your own drinks at the bar.” She gestured to the sideboard cabinet beside the kitchen table that was loaded with pitchers and bottles.
Frank chuckled. “Did you bring her vodka?” he asked.
David smirked. “You know the answer to that,” he replied.
He laughed. “Just making sure you’re keepin up that rockstar status… god knows one of us has to.”
He nodded. “Yeah, what’ve you been up to lately anyway? Found a new project? Fans still broken hearted?”
He shrugged. “Can’t please everybody,” he said.
David shook his head. “I still don’t understand why Dave wanted to go on hiatus. You guys were killing it.”
“Dude, preach… choir… I know.” He shrugged again. “I’m just tryin’ to stay busy… have a few friends who I’m doing studio work for. Mostly been hanging and working odd jobs.” He smirked then. “Least I’m not back to slinging fries.”
David laughed, nodding. “No shit.”
Frank got up then and went to the sideboard, grabbing one of the glasses to fix himself a drink. David followed suit and a few minutes later they’d both filled plates and were seated out on the deck in the sunshine. They ate in silence for a little while until Anicee came to join them, sitting beside David on the wood bench.
“Everything good?” she asked, eyeing their half devoured plates.
Frank grinned with a nod.
“Excellent,” David replied, swallowing a mouthful of an egg and potato casserole bake.
She smiled in relief. “Good. I swear I don’t know how people do brunch like this all the time… think I was up at seven-thirty texting Lou about what she and Em always do.”
David nodded absently, trying to recall if he knew the friends Ani had mentioned, but no faces came to mind.
“How are the twinsies?” Frank asked then, his last word coming out a bit sarcastically.
Ani laughed. “Fine… Louna said she’d try to come for the ride… had plans this morning.”
“Plans or a hangover?” he asked with a deviously arched eyebrow.
“Frank!” she scolded him.
He chuckled. “Honest question.”
Anicee rolled her eyes and dismissed the comment as she looked back to David. “Anyway… found your soulmate yet?”
He nearly snorted, stabbing at a piece of pineapple on his plate. “Ah… not this week.”
“Yeah? And how’s that two date policy working with that?” she pressed.
He shrugged. “No complaints here.”
She shook her head. “When are you going to drop that? Or actually… who are you going to drop that for? It takes more than two lame dates to find your soulmate.”
“Ani, lay off,” Frank cut in. “You haven’t seen David in how long and you’re gonna rip him on this? So he’s hanging in the shallow date pool… so what? Eighty-five percent of the girls in this city just want to say they’ve fucked him and we all know that 85% of the time that doesn’t happen on the first two dates, so actually he’s just protecting himself from crazy bitches… what’s wrong with that?”
“Crazy bitches? Really Frank?” Ani’s voice rose as she looked at him, her eyes wide.
David stood up from the bench, forcing his friends a little ways apart. “Okay, that conversation’s over,” he announced, stepping away from them. He grabbed his drink from the deck railing and carried his almost empty plate back inside. He went to the kitchen and discarded his glass, taking a few last bites of the egg bake before scraping the rest into the trash and putting the plate in the sink. He had no idea why his friends were both suddenly so involved with his relationship endeavors. Granted he’d been talking about it more - putting it into the universe, as he liked to say - but that didn’t give either Anicee or Frank permission to rip him on how he went about it. He knew Ani was just grilling him before setting him up, but that still wouldn’t happen until he was ready for it.
Was he ready for it? It seemed like the two date cycle was staler than usual, but he figured that it just meant he definitely wasn’t into the women he was with for the night. He rolled his eyes to himself and finished his drink. It didn’t matter. It was out in the universe and the whole situation would resolve when the timing was right. He could only do so much for himself.
He set his glass aside next to the fridge, knowing he’d come back for a glass of water once he’d used the bathroom and given his friends more of a chance to cool their attitudes.
He stepped into the hallway from the kitchen and immediately collided with a person coming the other way from the front door. “Oh fuck, sorry!” he apologized instantly, reaching out to steady the person. Soft laughter met his ears as he stepped back, long blonde hair sticking to the stubble along his jaw. He carefully brushed it away and finally looked up and met bright hazel eyes. He was startled at how closely they resembled his own.
“Careful, David,” she told him, her voice low, “can’t make it a habit of always running into each other like this… won’t want to ride with you later.” She said the last part with a wink then slipped around him, walking through the kitchen and out to the deck.
His thoughts spun, trying to recall if he knew the blonde he’d just assaulted. Clearly she knew who he was, and had implied this wasn’t their first encounter. God help him if he’d been drunk and hit on her only to not remember it; it wouldn’t be the first time that had happened.
He shook his head and went to the bathroom, wracking his brain for insight while he pissed. He gave up while he washed his hands and went back to the kitchen, filling a glass of water before finally returning to sit with Frank. His friend eyed him doubtfully.
“You’re not really pissed about-”
“Hell no,” he said, shaking his head and cutting off the question. “Don’t worry about it.” He took a drink, eyes landing on the blonde standing with Anicee on the opposite side of the deck. “Who’s the blonde with Ani? I crashed into her inside… seemed like she knew me.”
Frank smirked darkly. “More like her drunk ass crashed into you,” he retorted. “That’s Louna.” He looked at David intently. “Her initials might not stand for Loud Party Bitch, but that’s what she is.”
“Dude…” David kept his voice low, feeling a bit uncomfortable that his friend was smearing this girl’s reputation so badly. He knew firsthand how it was to have a bad first impression on people, and he still had to try sometimes to present the opposite of what people knew about him.
“Fuckin’ takes one to know one, Lindbergh!” Louna’s voice carried across the deck from where she stood, defiantly giving him the middle finger in front of the entire group.
Frank just laughed and puckered his lips, pretending to kiss her across the way. “Love you too, Lou!” he called.
She rolled her eyes, tossed her hair over her shoulder, and turned her back to him.
He gave David a look as if to say ‘case and point,’ but David dismissed it, not wanting to add any fuel to the smoldering fire.
In the back of his brain he was still trying to recollect meeting her, but absolutely nothing was coming to mind. Was there a reason for that? Maybe they’d been horrible to each other and he’d blocked it out. Or had he written her off completely, assuming she was simply another party girl not to waste any time on? Whatever it had been, he knew he’d remember today’s weird encounter for sure. He would also have to get hypno-therapy to forget Frank’s quip of ‘Loud Party Bitch.’ He smirked to himself, thinking of the many monikers fans and friends had given him over the years; Emo McDreamo stuck out as a favorite, but he’d long since dropped that particular façade.
It was strange, he noticed, how fans seemed to have fixed perspectives of himself and his bandmates. The fans seemed to dismiss any personal growth or band development. They wanted the same old same old, and no one in the band wanted to give them that, least of all himself. He knew he’d forever be labeled as the OCD, weird, effeminate one in the group, so he could relate to wanting to shun a label foisted on him. However, Louna’s rebuttal to Frank’s remark about her had been brazen. She wasn’t afraid to put him in his place and that confidence struck a deep chord with David.
He continued to stare in her general direction, sipping his water silently as Frank rambled on about where he wanted to ride that day. David only half listened to his friend’s conversation, nodding appropriately and offering a dismissive ‘yeah’ or ‘mm hm’ when he needed. The minutes passed away and when Louna turned around again their eyes met. He held her gaze with silent questions. She arched her eyebrow slowly before looking away and dismissing his glance. David frowned slightly; apparently Louna was taking absolutely no shit today and, even though he was an innocent bystander with Frank, he happened to be included in that.
Anicee’s voice interrupted his thoughts then as she announced the first part of their ride route, explaining everyone was welcome to leave when they pleased, and they’d end at one of the bars along the west end of the river. Ten minutes later, after a whirlwind clean up of the kitchen, everyone grabbed their jackets and headed outside. David cocked an eyebrow when he saw a motorcycle blocking both his and Frank’s bikes. There was only one person who’d shown up after he had. He glanced over his shoulder as Frank uttered a few words of disgust, and he saw Louna stepping outside with a definite smirk on her face. He looked away to hide his smile and pulled his jacket on, zipping it up all the way to his neck before reaching to unclip his helmet. He was finally getting the impression that her behavior toward Frank was not so innocent in context. There was a lot of subtext he seemed to be missing, especially after the utterly sarcastic way she’d said ‘sorry’ to him as she moved her bike out of the way.
Frank shook his head, shooting David a look as he yanked on the helmet. As he looked away from his friend, he caught another tail end of an eyeroll from Louna as she mouthed an obscenity in French. Somehow he sensed it was an insult for both he and Frank, again caught in the crossfire. Wordlessly he slid onto his moto and fired it up, revving it slightly as he waited for the other riders to get settled. They fell into an easy group when they finally headed out, with two older guys taking point on the ride. Frank flanked to David’s right and Ani rode ahead of him, letting Louna ride in front of David. He was glad her side mirror was tilted askew so she wouldn’t catch his eyes, even if he was just watching the road and not checking out her ass. He knew even one unassuming look was all it would take with her.
The neighborhood flew by, the scenery blending into hues of green as it passed on the edges of his vision. Suddenly they were at the river, all banking right and heading west, the sun blinding them overhead. It glinted bright off the water and the air was clean and wet. He definitely needed this ride today.
In the corner of his eye he saw Frank flash him a thumbs up and he returned it immediately. It felt so nice to get out and ride, that regardless of what had happened at Ani’s the day was good. He took a deep breath of the air and tightened his grip on the handlebars, leaning down further into the motorcycle’s smooth stance. He pushed the throttle a little, moving in to crowd Louna slightly as her pace lagged. She threw a glance over her shoulder at him, eyebrows drawn tight, before she sped ahead and caught the back of the lead. David tailed her tightly and she gave him another look. He dropped back two paces, suddenly realizing she wanted a little extra space. She gave him a slight wave a second later, almost a thank you and he mimicked the gesture to let her know he understood.
The river sailed by as they rode on, the clouds wispy over the blue sky and light cherry blossom petals floating down into their faces. David’s only regret was he’d forgotten a bandanna and he was sure they’d hit a few gnat clouds. He smirked to himself, inwardly making a joke about protein. Nearly half an hour later the group had both shrunk and grown in size, a few riders falling off to go elsewhere, and a few others joining them along the thoroughfare.
He glanced at the shops along the street and knew they were only a few minutes away from the bar Anicee had mentioned. When he looked back to the group and the road, he could see Louna was signaling to Ani that she was leaving. Ani held out her hand, clearly questioning her friend. Louna cast a glance back at Frank then shook her head.
Without warning then, Frank pulled around Ani and made a hard right down a side street. David shook his head; Frank had always been a bit of a drama queen. He caught Louna’s eyeroll then and she abruptly waved to Ani, making it plain she was leaving. At the next cross break, Louna pulled a hard u-turn and David had a split second for his decision. He didn’t care how irrational it seemed, but he needed to follow her. Something was compelling him to make sure things were okay with her after the morning, because he knew that no matter how thick of an exterior was presented, there were certain things that could cut it with no effort at all.
Like Frank, David gave no warning and flipped a hard left at the next break, spinning his back wheel out as he took the u-turn and sped back east. He wove recklessly through the stream of Sunday drivers and easily caught up with her. Her eyes flashed at him as he settled in to pace her. For a minute they simply rode side-by-side in the lane, but David had known it wouldn’t last long. Louna pulled ahead seconds later, closely cutting across him and splitting the lane until she ducked into the next break.
David chased her, not afraid to play the game she offered. More than anything, he was truly impressed with how she handled the motorcycle. Her confidence soaked into the machine and somehow he knew she was smart enough not to do anything truly stupid with it. He cut down the lane, hearing a few honks behind him, but paid no attention to them. He’d ridden this road too many times to be paranoid on it.
When he caught up with her then, he noticed a half smile on her lips and suddenly he wondered what sort of impression she had of him. Was he being stupid and reckless by following her like this? And what was he going to gain from this chase anyway? He knew as soon as they stopped she’d probably fling insults at him and maybe even do a burnout in his face before she left, but somehow he’d take that over simply letting her leave.
Abruptly, Louna pulled to the left and gunned the motorcycle into a hard turn, speeding across the oncoming lane and down a side street. David cursed at her under his breath and made the same move at the next street, hoping to catch her at a light down the next road. His intuition proved right and a second later she sped past him, only to turn north on the next street. He followed at an easy distance, letting a car between them give him a little cover, but that was blown minutes later as she pulled off to circle a nearby park.
The road was uneven and mostly gravel and Louna shot him a glare, realizing that he’d trailed her to the park. She pulled her throttle hard, no doubt to speed off and try to ditch him once more, but the back wheel fishtailed on the loose gravel and the bike spun out, nearly taking her with it.
David slammed his brakes and locked the kickstand, barely remembering to put the bike in neutral before he jumped off of it, moving quickly to where she’d rolled. “Louna!” he called, hoping it wasn’t as bad as it seemed.
Before he could even reach her, she had rolled over, climbing to her feet with absolute fire in her eyes. “Fuck you! You think you can just fucking follow me all today?!” she cried, reaching out to push him away roughly. “I just wanted to ride with friends today and then you and Frank show up and it’s like, ‘let’s fuck with Louna again!’ Wasn’t the last time enough? Had to see if we could live through the torture one more time?” Her words bit through the quiet park over the hum of their still-running motorcycles.
David inhaled sharply, finally remembering the first time they’d met.
It had been some party over the holidays and Frank had instantly been taken with the bold blonde in the tight red dress. David had encouraged him all night, being too drunk himself to know if it was a good idea or not. He had no idea if they’d even left together, but suddenly they were gone from the party and he was by himself, stumbling out to get a taxi home. Somehow he could now imagine that the night had not gone very well and he was finally seeing the repercussions of it. The looks he’d thought had been just for Frank had certainly been for him as well.
He shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry about that night,” he told her. “It shouldn’t have happened.”
She scoffed instantly, dismissing him with a headshake. “So fucking says the devil on my shoulder.” She shoved away the hand he held out, simply reaching to dust off her jacket.
He stepped back to give her space then. “Fair enough,” he replied quietly, then walked to her bike, reaching to shut it off before heaving it upright. He slid the kickstand into place and ran his hand over the seat, wiping the dirt from the leather. He kept his voice soft and his movements slow as he turned back to face her. She stood defiantly before him, almost daring him to do something, but he had no idea what. He took a slow breath and kept her gaze. “Sure you’re okay after that spill?” he asked.
“I’ll live,” she replied, a hint of sarcasm in her words.
He took a step closer. “I’m not leaving if you’re not okay,” he said. “If you’re hurt I’ll take you to get checked out, or wait until someone can come get you.” He took another step closer as she shook her head to dismiss him. He could now see a large scrape on the underside of her jaw, small blood droplets beading along it as they dried.
“Pretty sure I can survive that fall… think your sympathy is better suited to seeing if Frank’s butt-hurt over my dirty looks.”
She said it with a roll of her eyes and David couldn’t help wondering why her attitude was so hard. Instead of letting the comments grate him, he stepped closer to her and leveled their gazes, hating that she was taller than him, even with his favorite boots on.
“There’s blood on the scrape on your chin,” he told her. “Careful taking off your scarf.” He stepped away, but looked back. “And text Ani when you get home… she’ll be worried.”
A haughty look crossed her face as he walked back to his bike. “She shouldn’t worry about me,” she said.
He shook his head and met her gaze, releasing the kickstand as he pulled the bike upright beneath him. “Someone should,” he replied, “since you obviously don’t.” He didn’t wait for her to say anything more, instead revved the engine and shifted into gear, pulling out of the park and leaving her looking after him, her eyes blazing with unspoken words.