Dawn Evans

∞

It was late and Clover laid on my shoulder, asleep as the horror movie played in the background. I looked over at Royal and Aleeah and found her laid flat out on the sofa and Royal sitting up on the floor, leaning on the sofa with his eyes shut.

I was about to tilt my head onto Clover's, preparing myself to fall asleep before I heard a light knock on the door.

I moved Clover's head off of me gently, making sure that she didn't wake before I stood and tiredly made my way over to the front door. I put my eye through the peephole and saw nothing. I was about to walk away before I heard shuffling at the door. I checked again and when I saw nothing for the second time, I decided to open the door.

When the door was completely open I found Antonio on the ground, his arms were bruised and he had a small cut on his face. I stepped outside worriedly before I knelt to his height.

"Antonio, what happened?" I asked him over and over.

He looked up at me, his eyes filled with that pain that always seemed to reoccur, along with an aching rage. At that moment I knew that he wasn't okay. I helped him stand before he put his arm around my shoulder as I guided him into the house and upstairs to my room.

Once we got into my bedroom, I shut the door behind us and Antonio fell to my bed. His body in the frame as his legs dangled. His eyes were shut and I couldn't help but ask him again what happened. I'd seen him like this before at the diner when he'd gotten that phone call. He was completely shut off.

"Is it about your mom?" I asked him, referring to his PTSD. I was hoping that he'd tell me the truth. I was used to listening and comforting, so I was sure that I could do the same for him.

His eyes remained closed before I continued, "Antonio, you have to talk to me."

His eyes shot open, "I don't gotta do shit."

I rolled my eyes before I crossed my arms. "Then why did you come here, Antonio?"

He didn't answer my question, instead, he went on a full-blown rant. "I'm sick of people telling me I have to do shit. Do I look like a bitch to you?"

I wasn't sure if this was a rhetorical question or not. "No?"

He rolled his eyes before he covered his face with his hands. I realized that he had a habit of doing that when he was frustrated. I walked toward the bed and sat next to him before I heard a large sigh muffled by his hands.

"Antonio?" I called for him.

When he didn't respond I kept going, "I need you to talk to me." I rephrased my earlier statement. "What happened?" I moved his hands from in front of his face and his new doe eyes locked with mine before he finally decided he was ready to talk about it.

"Drea..." he paused.

"What did she do?"

"She-she didn't do anything." He slurred his words and I could tell that he was- at the least- tipsy. "My dad- he wants me to do something for him and if not.." he paused. "He'll take something away from me."

"Like a punishment?"

"Exactly." He groaned before his hands reached his face again.

I looked down at him before I asked, "And the bruises?"

He chuckled, "I fell off the bike." It was inevitable with all the drinking he must have been doing.

"I don't know what to do." His voice cracked and I could tell that he was really broken up about making a decision. "D, tell me what to do."

I wasn't in any position to give anyone advice. "Antonio.. you can't ask me to do that-"

"Dawn." His voice was stiff and husky all at once. It hurt me to see him going through so much with someone who's supposed to love him, just how my father was with me.

I laid down beside him before I turned my head to face him. "You do what you need to do." That was the only advice that I could give. That's the only advice that I've ever taken from myself. "Decide if it's worth the heartache," I told him.

He nodded his head and I got up. I went to the bathroom to find the first aid kit that usually sat in a cabinet by the window. I grabbed it before I came back out and found him in the same position that he was in before.

"Sit up," I said to him softly, just before he did. I opened the kit before I pulled out a tiny bottle of alcohol and a wipe. I poured the alcohol on the wipe to minimize the pain before I dapped his cut. I expected it to sting, but he made no movements. He was completely still as he stared off into space. I rubbed a minimal amount of Vaseline on the cut before I found a pink bandaid with unicorns all over. I had the kit for so long, maybe five year old me loved horses with cones on their heads.

I wheezed at the pink patch that sat on Antonio's face which brought him out of his gaze. "What?"

I didn't respond and he got up and went to my bathroom to look in the mirror. "Really?" He said. Before I knew it he was running toward me, tackling me onto the bed. I laughed loudly as he laid on top of me, his face smushed in the section between my neck and jaw.

"Come on, it's getting late," I told him laughing, trying to convince him to get from on top of me. His face only inches away from mine as my breathing grew rapid. His minty breath dismissing the hint of alcohol as it traveled upward to my nostrils. He could've stayed there forever if he wanted, I didn't mind. But I didn't want him to know that. Antonio had seen many different sides of me in a couple months than Clover and Royal had seen since we've met. I never make myself vulnerable. I never put myself in a position to get hurt, but Antonio- he was different. If it meant that I could just sit and talk to him about things that I've never told anyone, I'd take the hurt any day. Mostly because I felt like he would never hurt me. Not again.

Once he got from on top of me he sat up and I crawled to the headboard of my bed before I snuggled under the warm blanket. Antonio sat there again, dazing before I yelled his name. He looked over at me asking me what I'd wanted. I patted the bed beside me, signaling him to lay next to me.

He got up from where he was sitting before he walked over to the empty side of the bed and got under the covers. He laid on his side and rested his head on his hand as he looked at me. I could tell that he was still out of it. He had difficulty focusing and I understood.

I laid my head down on my pillow as I faced him. He was still staring at me before he finally said vaguely, "It is."

"What?"

"It's worth the heartache." He told me, referring to the crappy advice that I'd given him.

I nodded my head before I said, "Night."

Just when I was dozing off he responded "Buonanotte, bellissima," and slowly pecked his soft lips against my forehead.

~

My eyes were completely shut when I heard booms and bangs ringing from downstairs. I sighed before I tried to sit up. Antonio's arm was wrapped around me and I didn't want to wake him. I got up quietly from the bed before I looked at the digital clock that sat on my nightstand. It read, 4:36 am.

Antonio turned over before he groaned, "What the fuck is that noise?!"

"I don't know," I told him. He got up from bed before we opened the door, getting ready to go downstairs to see what all that noise was. As the door opened so did my mom's from across the hall.

Enzo came out and he was about to greet me until his eyes became glued to Antonio. I looked at Antonio and his expression was blank, but his eyes told everything. He became instantly angry.

"Antonio." Enzo greeted him, but in a taunting way. I didn't know that they knew each other. But I guess it made sense. The Italian thing.

Antonio let out a sigh before he put his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants. I was about to intervene in this weird 'battle for masculinity' until I heard Aleeah shout, "Bitch!"

I ran down the stairs leaving Enzo and Antonio to catch up before I saw glasses and vases splattered on my kitchen and living room floor.

Aleeah turned to me before she said, "I bet you knew, too. Huh?"

My eyes widened as I looked around the room confused, "Knew what?"

She put both her hands on her head as if she was going crazy, "I'm not stupid!" She shouted.

Clover walked toward me and stood at my side as Aleeah continued her shouting and ranting. "You all knew."

I looked at Royal from across the other side of the room and mouthed, "What did we know?"

He rolled his eyes looking pissed off at Aleeah before Clover whispered in my ear, "We were talking earlier-"

Aleeah's shouting became louder and louder as she stepped toward me, "When I asked you if he liked someone else- anyone else, you told me nothing!" She said to me as if it were my fault that her baby dad didn't feel the same way about her that she felt about him.

I crossed my arms before I said, "Royal, I think it's time for both of y'all to leave."

I didn't want to kick him out, but I knew that he wouldn't let her leave on her own either way. "Leeah, let's go." He told her.

"I look like an idiot!" She shouted.

Clover giggled before she muttered, "Just a tad bit."

Once she said that I couldn't hold it in. I burst out into laughter which brought Aleeah's attention to me. "What's funny?" She asked just before she shoved me.

She stepped closer toward me and I backed up into the wall.

Beat her ass, Dawn!

I stayed standing there with my arms crossed. I wouldn't put my hands on a pregnant girl, but it was hard not to do anything, I felt the assassin in me yearning to sock the shit out of her.

I heard Antonio running down the steps before he was met by an angry Aleeah and me. He looked at Clover before he said, "What the hell is going on?"
Clover let out a heavy breath.

Royal walked toward us before he grabbed Aleeah's arm and rushed her out the door. "I'll see y'all." He said to the rest of us.

"Ight, bro," Antonio said.

"Bye." Clover's loud voice echoed throughout the house before she walked back over to the living room to clean up the mess that Aleeah made.

Antonio looked over at me before he asked, "Y'all good over here?" Once he said that I already knew what he was planning on doing.

I nodded my head and he continued, "I'm about to go." I expected that.

"Was it Enzo?"

He shook his head, "Nah, I gotta get ready."

"For what?"

"School?" He said like it was a question.

"Oh, right. I forgot about that." I said to him. He chuckled before he kissed my cheek and then my forehead and turned around to face the front door.

"Clover!" He yelled.

She came running out of the living room, "What?"

"I'm out. Imma see you later." He said to her just before she nodded her head and he left out the door. I didn't realize that the two of them were cool like that.

"Well, that was nice." Clover joked referring to the whole 'angry Aleeah' thing.

I looked at her before I rolled my eyes and ran to the sofa and laid down flat on my stomach.