It was finally Friday. I had been ignoring Bryan all week so far, but it's not like he was really trying to contact me either. When we would see each other in the hallways, he would act like he didn't see me and i would do the same. This was a normal routine for us, when we would argue.
Throughout the week, he was still posting photos of him and Jasmine, like I didn't exist. On top of everything, Junwon was still acting very weird with me. When I would text him, he would reply with short answers. During passing periods or lunch, he would run off so quick- like he was busy with something (or someone) else.
This just wasn't a good week. I was definitely going to need my best friend this weekend.
After school, i waited for Zoey and Sapphire. I leaned against the trunk of the car and crossed my arms against my chest as the wind whipped through my hair.
I turned towards the school doors and Zoey was running towards the car, with the biggest smile on her face. “Guess who made the volleyball team?” she said throwing her hands in the air. I chuckled and clapped my hands as she approached the car. “Congratulations!” I said happily as I hugged her. All summer, she talked about how she couldn’t wait for try-outs. Seeing my sister happy like this, warmed my heart. “I’m so proud of you.” I mumbled as I squeezed her.
“You guys are having a family hug without me?” Sapphire pouted. Zoey and I laughed as we turned to face her. “Zoey just made the volleyball team.” I said poking my little sisters cheek. She smiled brightly with her chin pointing towards the sky. Sapphire squealed and nearly tackled Zoey to the floor. “I’m so happy for you.”
Suddenly, I noticed that Woojae was standing right next to Sapp. I furrowed my brows a bit as we made eye contact. “That’s wassup. Congrats!” he said shoving his hands in his pockets. “Hey Hazel.” he said tipping his head in my direction. I showed a small smile then turned my attention back to Zoey. “Anyways, we should celebrate the good news. Ice cream?” I said walking to the driver's seat. Zoey nodded and threw herself into the car, leaving the front seat for Sapphire. “You coming?” I asked as Sapphire grabbed Woojae’s hand. She rested her head on his shoulder and smiled widely at me. Woojae looked down at her, then back at me. “Go on. We can catch up later.” he said tilting her head up and kissing her lips.
I rolled my eyes at his comment and placed my hand on my hip. “Come on, please.” Sapphire pouted. “Saph, it’s okay. I’m sure Hazel would like some girl time. Go on.” Woojae pulled back and wrapped his arms around my bestfriend. Her smile suddenly faded as she closed her eyes and rested her cheek against Woojae’s shoulder. “But I'll miss you..” Sapphire mumbled.
Now, i look like an asshole. I didn’t want to be the reason that Sapphire was unhappy.
I sighed and shut my eyes for a moment. “Woojae, would you like to join us?” I said looking over at them. Sapphire’s head popped up and her lips curved back into a smile. “Really?” she said almost in tears. I nodded and almost laughed. She looked like a weirdo when she smiled like that. “I would love to.” Woojae said rubbing Sapphire’s back. I was so jealous of how cute they were.
Sapphire ended up riding with Woojae and I was okay with that for the time being.
As we pulled up to the shop, Zoey climbed out and made a run for the entrance. I laughed as I watched her, then turned my attention to Woojae’s car. This was the first time I actually seen it with my own eyes. Sapphire would always talk about how awesome his car was, and now I could see why. As they climbed out of the car, I lifted my brows.
“Nice car.” I announced without emotion. Woojae smiled up at me through his sunglasses. “Oh, this old thing?” he said humbly. I chuckled at his comment then walked inside the ice cream shop. I watched as Zoey turned into a little kid again, looking at all the different flavors. “You always get the same thing, stop acting brand new.” I joked as I grabbed a table towards the back of the shop. “So what. You just hush, okay?” Zoey licked her lips then ordered for the both of us. As the man behind the counter finished scooping, I paid and lead Zoey to the table. Woojae and Sapphire followed behind us after they ordered.
“So, you guys going to Junwon’s show” Woojae asked.
I shot my gaze up at him, hearing Junwon’s name.
“How’d you know about that?” I asked. “What show?” Sapphire said confused. “He’s performing his music for the first time!” Zoey announced happily. “Why didn’t you tell me, Haze? Of course we’re going!” she said smiling at Woojae. “How’d you know about the show?” I repeated. “He’s cool with one of my boys and I saw the flyer that he gave him.” My breathing stopped for a moment. “You’re going?” I asked. Woojae nodded. “I do music too so i wanna see if he has good flow. Maybe we could work on something together.”
I continued to eat my ice cream.
“You do music?” I asked. “There’s a lot that you don’t know about me.” Woojae said laughing.
After we finished our ice cream, Woojae walked us to our car. “I guess I'll see you ladies tomorrow night then?” Sapphire quickly clung onto him. “You better not be late.” she warned. He laughed at her comment then kissed the top of her head. “I’ll be there before you even get in the car.” Zoey laughed at his corny comment then made her way over to the driver's seat. I waved goodbye to Woojae, then proceeded to approach my car. “Hazel, wait. Can we talk for a sec?” he asked. I furrowed my brows. “Um, i guess?” Sapphire smiled then kissed him goodbye. As she walked past me, I grabbed her arm. “What does he want?” I whispered. She shrugged and rubbed my shoulder. “Just give him a chance please. He’s been telling me that you’re giving him a hard time- but, we’ll talk about that later.” Sapphire chuckled then made her way to the car.
“Yes?” I said standing in front of Woojae. He leaned against his car and folded his arms. “Listen, I know you’re not very fond of me. I get it.”
“I don't know what you’re talking about.” Woojae’s lips curved into a smile. “You know i'm not trying to take your place, right? I would never do that.” His face suddenly became serious. “Sapphire and I really have something special and I'm trying to make things official. But, I would like your blessing, before I do that.”
I stared at him for a moment. “You’re a grown man, you don’t need my blessing.” I mumbled. Woojae breathed a laugh. “I respect you, Hazel. I know that Sapphire means a lot to the both of us and I at least want you to like who she’s dating.” I nodded my head. “I hear ya.” He grew quiet. “I’m really not a bad guy. I may come off that way, but I promise I'm not.”
The least I could do was hear him out.
Woojae reached in his pocket, taking out a small envelope. “Here. For tomorrow.” he mentioned. “What’s this?” I eyed the envelope before flipping it over to open it. On the tab, it read-
“Sometimes a girl just needs to spoil herself.”
I furrowed my brows. “Woojae, what is this?”
As I looked up, he was climbing into his car. He rolled down his window and chuckled a bit. “See ya tomorrow night.” he yelled over the music, as it blasted through his speakers. Woojae peeled out of the parking lot and I watched him, almost in awe.
Climbing in the backseat, Sapphire turned her body around to face me. “What’s that?” she asked snatching the white square out of my hands. She read the back of the envelope and gasped. “Is this from Woojae?” she said tearing it open. I strapped on my seat belt and sighed as Zoey gawked from the driver's seat.
“Oh my god..” my sister said as her mouth dropped. “Did he really just-..” Sapphire started. I was curious as to what was inside so i leaned forward a little. Sapphire was hold crisp, green $100 bills. There had to be at least twenty of them there, maybe even more. “Your boyfriend is ballin!” Zoey said laughing as she snatched a few bills out of Sapphire’s hands. She laughed along with my sister and stuffed the rest of the money back in the envelope.
Sapphire and Zoey had fallen asleep on the couch as the horror movie played on the screen. I chuckled and turned off the movie, taking a blanket and covering them up.
Sapphire always stayed at my house for the weekends. It was like she basically lived here. Although, I'm not really sure why she wanted to stay. Her parents were filthy rich and their house was just unbelievable. Maybe she just didn’t want to be alone. They did travel a lot for work, so they weren't home most of the time.
Walking over to the kitchen, I started to clean up the mess from the tacos that we made for dinner.
I turned off the water from the sink and quickly searched for my phone, trying not to wake the girls. As I looked down at the screen, I bit my bottom lip. It was Junwon. I almost didn’t want to answer since he had been acting weird all week. My thumb hovered over the green accept button. Taking a deep breath, I answered.
“Hello?” I answered quietly.
Hearing his voice felt so good. It almost made me forget that I was mad at him. I shut my eyes for a moment and thought about the way he smelt when I would hug him.
“Come outside.” He chuckled a bit.
“You’re outside my house?!”
My eyes shot open as I peeked out the window. Junwon was leaning against his car, waving over to me. I laughed and hung up the phone before sneaking out the front door to meet him.
“What are you doing here?” I asked as I approached his car. “Well, this one wouldn’t stop begging me to take her to see you.” he said pointing to the passenger seat. I squinted my eyes a bit, looking past Junwon. Holly suddenly popped her tiny head out of the window.
“My Holly.” I sang in a high pitched voice. Her ears immediately shot up and she tried to jump out of the window. I giggled and reached in, picking her up. “You’re telling me, you drove 15 minutes because your dog wanted to see me?” I said looking up at him. Holly wiggled her way into my neck and I cuddled her closely. “Yes and no.” Junwon watched as I held his little baby. “I don’t get a hug?”
I was quiet for a moment then shook my head.
“Why not?” he said stepping closer to me and reaching his hand out to pet Holly. I looked off to the side and sighed a bit. I wanted to hug him so bad. I was fighting it though. “You’ve been acting weird for the past couple of days. Like you don’t wanna be around me or something.” I blurted out. Junwon tilted his head and slightly smiled. “Did you miss me?” His eyes were searching for mine but i looked down at Holly instead. “Shut up.” I mumbled. He laughed then grabbed me by the elbow and threw his arms around me, holding Holly and I. “I’m sorry. I’ve just been trying to get everything together for my show. You’re still coming right?” he said swaying me from side to side. Junwon planted a tiny peck on the top of my head before he pulled away a bit.
“I guess.” I said whispering. “You guess?” Junwon was confused. I wanted him to feel a little humiliation, just like me. He pulled away and slid his hands in his pockets. “Please come, Hazel. I really want you to be there.” His voice was sincere. “You don’t have any other females to invite?” I mumbled. Bryan immediately popped into my head. “What?” he said. I shook my head, handing him Holly. “Nothing. I’ll be there.” I flashed a fake smile then began to walk back to my front door. “Hazel..” Junwon called after me. I waved him off, walking inside.
I couldn’t sleep well last night. I barely slept at all. I laid on my side as I watched Sapphire sleep. For some strange reason, I wanted to cry. Slowly getting up from the bed, I slid to the bathroom and sat on the edge of the bathtub. I took one deep breath and just started to cry. My emotions were just so out of whack and I couldn't understand what was going on with me. Sitting there for a few minutes, I took my time to really dig deep into my emotions and let all the bad energy out. It felt good to cry. Like i was finally letting go of all the anger inside me.
“Haze?” I heard Sapphire’s voice come through the door. She slowly turned the knob and peaked inside. “Why are you crying?” she said almost whining. Sapphire took a seat next to me and pulled me into a hug. “What’s going on with you?” I covered my face as she spoke. I really couldn’t bring myself to tell my bestfriend that i was really broken over this entire Bryan situation. I knew she would be mad at me for letting him have this type of power over me.
“I don't know..” I lied. Sapphire didn’t say anything. She didn't have to. For the next five minutes, she let me cry on her shoulder before she spoke. “I think I know what will make you feel better. Come on.” she said helping me to my feet. She started the shower for me then kissed the top of my head. “Get yourself ready and let's go shopping.” I laughed at her comment and hugged her tightly. “Thank you..” I mumbled. “What are you thanking me for?”
I shook my head. “For being a good friend.”
After my shower, we all got ready to go to the mall.
As I looked through the racks of clothing, I tried to find the shopping spirit. “What about this?” Zoey said holding up a revealing dress. Sapphire and I looked at each other and laughed. “I don't think so, Z.” Sapphire said snatching the garment from her. “I’m just trying to be sexy.” She said rolling her eyes. “You don’t need to try and do nothing.” Bless my sister’s heart. She had the body for that dress, but would probably kill everyone in the room. I laughed at the thought.
“Well, I think I'm just gunna try these on.” I said holding a few dresses in my arms. “Here.” Sapphire said throwing another dress my way. “This will look amazing on you.” I eyeballed the dress and shook my head frantically. “No! Absolutely not.” As i tried to set the dress down, Zoey stopped me. “It’s cute! Go try it!”
Exhaling heavily, I pushed my hair back as I became frustrated with these clothes. All of them were a miss. I stared at the last dress and rolled my eyes. “Oh, what the hell.” Slipping on the dress, I gawked at myself in the mirror. “Woah..” I whispered. “This actually looks amazing, you guys.” I said yelling over the music in the dressing room. Zoey squealed. “Let’s see.”
As I stepped out of the room, Zoey and Sapphire covered their mouths. “That’s the one.” Sapp said. “You’re getting it. and you can thank Woojae.” She said flashing the envelope.
“I’m nervous.” I said looking at myself in the mirror. Sapphire had fixed my hair and did my makeup and it looked amazing. “For what?” She laughed as she pushed her earrings in her ears. I shrugged my shoulders. “What if he thinks im over dressed?” I questioned. “You’re never over dressed. Everyone is simply undressed.” She said flipping her hair off her shoulders. “You look stunning.” Sapphire smiled at me through the mirror and I did the same. “Woojae is going to lose his mind once he sees you.” I laughed. “I hope he does.” She replied.
Sapphire and I both glanced over at my phone as it started ringing. She snatched it off the bed a declined the call. “Tonight is not about him.” She said angrily. Bryan had been calling my phone all day and I still haven't got back to him. “You can speak to him tomorrow. Now, let’s go.” Sapphire took my hand and grabbed Zoey, rushing us out the door. “Wait!” I said reaching into my purse. “Here.” pulling out the VIP wristbands, i strapped them on the girls. “Can I drive?” Zoey said excitedly. I stared at her for a second then looked over at Sapphire. “Come on, please! I promise to be careful. I know it’s far but we’ve been practicing! I think I can do it.” She said begging. I laughed and tossed her the keys. “No blasting music though. You need to concentrate.”
Sapphire took the backseat as I climbed into the passenger side. “We need to stop to get gas.” I said strapping myself in.
As we pulled into the gas station, Zoey ran inside to pay and I watched her through the window. “Gosh! Turn off your brights, you jerk!” Sapphire shouted as a car pulled in front of us. He slammed on his breaks suddenly as we were nose to nose. “What the hell!” I shouted. The man climbed out of the front seat sluggishly and started to walk towards my car. “Is he walking this way?” Sapphire asked leaning towards the front seat. My heart started to beat out of my chest. As he came closer, I noticed it was Bryan. “What the hell is he doing?” I groaned. As I took off my seatbelt, I opened the car door and stood tall. “What the hell are you doing here?” he slurred. “You’re drunk?” I asked staying close to the car. “Why haven’t you been answering my calls?!” He shouted. Sapphire hopped out of the backseat and held my arm. “Get in the car.” she whispered.
“You probably been hangin out with your little friend huh?” He said pushing my shoulder. “Dont touch her! Are you crazy!” Sapphire pushed him back. “Sapp, please- just get in the car.” I pleaded. She looked at me with complete fear in her eyes. “And leave you out here with this drunk asshole. No way.” Bryan laughed. “You just shut your mouth and do what this little bitch says, okay?” Bryan snatched my arm and started to pull me towards his car. “Bryan, please stop. You’re not in your right mind right now. You shouldn’t even be driving.” I said trying to keep calm. My voice was shaky and i'm pretty sure that he could feel my body shaking too.
Sapphire grabbed me by my waist and pulled me back into her. “What’s going on?” Zoey asked in a scared tone as she began to pump the gas. “Nothing, its okay, Zoe.” She could tell I was scared, so she stood outside with us while the gas continued to pump through the nozzle. Zoey already knew Bryan’s habits. This was routine for him. “Sapphire, let me handle this. I don’t want you in the middle. He wont do anything in front of all these people.”
She was thrown back. Sapphire couldn’t believe that this was happening right now. “Just trust me.” I whispered. She groaned and rolled her eyes before getting back in the car.
Bryan had both his hands on the hood of his car as he looked over at me. “Please, let me call you an Uber so you can get home safe. You don’t need to be driving, Bryan.” I said softly. He laughed. “You don't give a shit if I make it home safe, Hazel. Don’t piss me off even more by lying to me!” Bryan slammed his hands down on top of his car, making me jump slightly. Zoey quickly set that pump back, snatching the receipt and joining Sapphire. She started the car for a fast getaway.
Slowly approaching him, I saw all the empty alcohol bottles in his passenger seat. “How much did you drink?” I asked quietly. I was actually worried now. Running his fingers through his hair, he stumbled back a little. “Have a look.” He smiled. Bryan sluggishly reached in, and grabbed two of the bottle. “Here!” he said throwing one towards my feet. I screamed and moved out of the way as it shattered on the ground. “Stop!” I covered my ears and tried to fight back my tears but I started crying anyways. As he threw the other bottle, he aimed for my face. I ducked, moving towards my car and ripped open the door before jumping in. “Zoey, go!” I yelled desperately. This was a first for him. Bryan never did anything to hurt me in the past.
My sister sped out of the gas station parking lot, holding the wheel with both hands. As the tires screeched against the asphalt, Sapphire pulled out her phone. “I’m calling Woojae.” her breathing was heavy as she dialed his number. “Hazel, he’s following us!” Zoey cried out. “What?!” I said turning around and looking out the back window. There he was. Swerving and honking his horn. “Don’t stop. Keep going.” I said pulling on my seatbelt to lock it. “Should we call 911?” she asked almost in tears. I reached down for my purse and heard a huge slam. My body went forward, making my head hit the dashboard. Zoey screamed and sped up. “He just hit us!” Sapphire yelled into the phone. I lifted my head, feeling a little blood trickle from my forehead. “Hazel, your bleeding.” My sister glanced over at me with tears in her eyes. “I’m scared..” she cried. “Everythings okay, just keep going.” I finally reached my phone. I shook my head as my vision started to become blurry. Gripping my phone with both hands, I could feel my body shaking out of control. “Hazel!!” Sapphire yelled. Just as I was about to hit the call button,
Bryan’s car slammed into ours, pushing us out of our lane and into the one next to us. All we could do was scream as the cars coming at us tried to stop in time. It was too late. One car hit the side of our vehicle, flipping us over from the impact and making us slide against the asphalt.
