“No. I'm good,” I tell her and my eyes remain watching Dixon. “He just needed to stop talking.”
Jade laughs. “Well, that's one way of making him stop.”
“That was epic!” Vance praises, “You almost got me too, but man, he flew like a sack of potatoes! The Army did you good.” I laugh. “Man, I'd pay to see that again.” Vance carries on. Jade just shakes her head.
“Are you guys going to behave? Or do I have to kick you out?” she eyes us, wearily. I glance up and over to the spot we were once sitting. Dixon and his group are no longer there.
“We should be fine.”
“Okay,” She sighs, “I'll be watching you two.” Jade moves back behind the bar, and we take the nearest open stools.
“Oh, but sweetheart, I'll be watching you. My damn, the ass on that one,” Vance says watching Jade with interest. “Anyway, man, I'm glad you got my back. Maybe you can strike up a conversation with V and ask her about the tutoring thing.”
“Sure, but I don't think she's gonna tell me much.”
“It's worth a shot. What do you guys usually talk about anyways?”
I laugh, mentally thinking about what we really do. This is so fucked, “Nothing crazy. It's a short drive. School stuff, teachers, college, the Army.”
“Sounds boring. I guess it's a good thing you won't have to worry about it after this weekend, but thanks for helping her out!”
I'm taken back by what he just said. What? “What's happening this weekend?” I ask, pretending to be casual.
“Didn't she tell you?”
“ I wouldn't have asked if she did, dude.”
“Oh. Well, the parts for her car came in. They're going to be working on it, so hopefully by Monday she'll be driving herself again.”
“That's good,” I try to sound happy, and I am, just bummed at the same time, “I know she really wanted her car back.” He backhands my shoulder. “Ah! Now you can sleep in that extra five minutes.”
“Yeah, but now I have to make my own damn coffee.”
Vance laughs. We continue bullshitting and putting back beers. I have no idea how long we’re there. I have to admit I miss Vance, but I know putting space between us until Veronica is ready to confide in him is for the best.
“Last call,” Jade yells loudly, her voice carrying throughout the bar.
“Oh shit, dude.” I look at my phone, “I can't believe it's already that late.” I throw my finger up to get the attention of a bartender. Jake, who occasionally works the weekends at Sliders, approaches us, “What can I get you, man?”
“Can I get water?”
“Sure thing.”
“Water?” Vance bellows. “Pussy.”
“Hey Jake, make that two,” I yell.
“Fuck you, man.” Vance laughs.
“You need it.”
“Whatever,” he grumbles.
“You want me to drive you home?” I offer.
“Nah, I'll be fine.” He waves me off. Jake places the waters in front of us. “Thanks, man.” He nods and walks away. I grab both cups, handing one to Vance. “Drink up.” We spend another half an hour at the bar until Jade literally has to push us out the door. “Damn woman!” Vance jokes.
“Shut up. Drive safe,” she says before disappearing back inside.
“She's so hot,” Vance mumbles.
I pat his back. “I know, man.”
“She turns me down every time,” He says, suddenly sullen. I chuckle.
“Can't have them all.”
“Gotta catch them all,” Vance sings, and I burst out in laughter.
“You sure you're good, man?”
“Yeah. I think I'm gonna see what Talia's up to.”
“It's almost...” I pull out my phone, “Dude, it's almost two am.”
“Even better.”As we both approach our vehicles a shadowed figure appears out of nowhere, followed by a few more. “What the fuck?”
Dixon takes a hit of a cigarette, inhaling and slowly releasing the smoke from his nostrils. “Did you think I'd let you get a hit on me, and I'd just let it slide?”
Well, shit. It looks like we've just walked into a jump. “So, what? You just decided to wait outside with your little buddies so you can jump me?” I ask.
He shrugs. “Well, yeah,” he replies nonchalantly, throwing down his butt, not bothering to step it out. The tip is still burning and causes a small trail of smoke to rise upwards.
“You have nothing better to do?”
“Nah, kicking your ass is on the top of my list.” He smiles mischievously, “Second on my list: getting your girlfriend on her back.”
“The fuck you will,” I bark.
“Ah, touchy,” he baits.
I'm about to lose my shit, but I know that if I move first, his goons will be on me. The best thing for us right now is to get out of this. Dixon is full of shit. There's no way he knows anything, and he's baiting us. He knows that talking crap on Veronica is a good way to aggravate Vance.
“How the hell does he know Nic?” Vance asks from my left.
“Vance knows you’re fucking his sister?” Dixon's dark eyebrows move up in surprise. “Nice. Wanna send her my way when you're finished with her?”
“What you fuckin' say?” Vance rushes forward, but I quickly reach out my hand and manage to grab the back of his shirt.
“I mean, I usually hate sloppy seconds but Veronica's a special girl.”
The rage I feel in myself is bubbling out of the surface, but I won't allow him to get the best of me--of us. Vance fights against me, “Stop, Vance. He's just saying shit to rattle you. It's not worth it.” I look at Dixon. He’s loving this, his face is lit up with excitement. “Dixon, you're drunk. Go home, asshole.” I pull on Vance’s collar again. “Let's go.” I tug once more, and he allows me to pull him away. I push Vance in front of me to make sure that he keeps walking.
“Where are ya going, ya pussies?!” Dixon yells. I notice Vance's hands ball into fists. “Keep walking,” I tell him.
“Fuck you, Daniels!”
We manage to take a few more steps before I'm unexpectedly shoved forward. It nearly knocks me to the ground. Nearly. I manage to stop myself from eating asphalt, but Vance is off before I can stop him. He dives for Dixon and slams him to the ground. I catapult towards them, but a hand grasps my shirt, causing me to jolt backward. Instinctively, I turn my body. My arm swings outward before connecting with the side of some guy’s head. He flops onto the street like a dead fish. With that guy out of the way, my eyes move towards my friend. Dixon is now on top of Vance and he’s getting a couple of good punches in. The wail of sirens causes us all to freeze.
“Fuck! Cops!” One dude yells and takes off towards the back of the lot. He’s followed by the rest of Dixon's goons. Some friends. I rush towards the grappling men. Vance gets a blow to Dixon's head which causes him to fall over. Vance scrambles off the ground and sits on Dixon's torso. He's throwing down punches left and right--the sickening sound of skin on skin is loud.