ummm here 4 (IV)

parte quatre.

The guy turns around. My mind is screaming MAYDAY MAYDAY. I feel my cheeks burn; I know they're almost to their brilliant shade of EMBARRASSED. I look at him....he looks oddly familiar...

"NIK??!" I half-scream, half whisper in surprise. It's Dom's brother. But more importantly, my ex. "What-What are you doing here?? I haven't seen you since...well...you know..."

He chuckles. Then he frowns. "Where's Dom?" he asks, like I would know.

"I'm not sure...I figured he'd be down here. He wasn't up in our hotel room..." I'm starting to get worried. Or if he's okay, irate.

Nik and I wait around, making small talk. One of the many things I haven't mastered in my twenty years.

"...So then I was like, why did he do that? The bear was right there!" Nik says, laughing so hard the cheap wine in a styrofoam cup spills on his shoes. I laugh, even though I missed the story line. I was thinking about Dom. And how he would think about all of this.

Then it happens. He leans in for a kiss. I, still thinking of Dom, freak out and back away. He looks hurt, but he knows that I'm in love with his brother. Upset, I run down the hall, up the stairs, and into our hotel room.

Ignoring my trouble to catch my breath, I run into the bathroom and on impulse start to fill the sink with cold water. When it's full, I take a deep breath and stick my head in. I let it all consume me, leaving me numb. Eventually I run out of breath and am forced to take my head out. Once I do I immediately feel better.

I blindedly grab a towel for my soaking-wet hair and dry it off--just enough that it'll stop dripping. I flip my head up--I feel so fresh, so new.

I walk out to lay on the bed and when I get there--there's Dom.

xx.