One Night

[TRIGGER WARNING: Mental health, mentions of smoking and alcohol abuse, mentions of physical and verbal abuse]

I never thought one night with a stranger would change me. Just two people out on a bridge, one of them smoking, staring at the river beneath them. Yet… Lyor made me realize that even though the world is dark, one person shedding light can make a big difference.

A body slams into mine, crushing me as soon as I step into my shared apartment. “Gwen! You took so long, where’ve you been?!”

“Yeah, Gwen. We were worried sick.”

I’d recognize that annoying second voice anywhere. I turn my head to scowl at a man exiting a room with wet hair and a towel around his shoulders. The girl with her arms wrapped around me rolls her eyes, turning to face him. I flinch as one of her space buns hits me in the eyes.

“We all know you don’t mean that, Ash.”

Ash grins. But not a friendly type of grin. Not like… not like the one Lyor gave me. There’s a sneer hidden underneath Ash’s.

I scold myself internally for thinking of Lyor. It’s not like I’ll see him ever again. His words “See you again?” before I left echo in my mind. I hope I don’t once I invade his house.

“Get off me, Hester,” I mumble, and Hester giggles and jumps off me.

“Seriously, though, Gwen,” the last voice, Thorne, who’s eating a slice of pizza, comes from our couch. Ash walks and Hester runs towards the couch to eat their remaining slices. “You should’ve come earlier. You would’ve had more than two slices of pizza to eat.”

I tsk at them. They’re all so annoying.

“Never mind that,” I grumble and walk towards the table, slamming the wallet from my pocket down. “I found our next target.”

Thorne raises his eyebrows as Hester immediately lights up and snatches the wallet to examine its contents.

Ash chuckles, drinking his soda. “So that’s why you were out so late, huh? Finding the perfect victim.”

“Ooh. Lyor James Alan. He looks handsome!” Hester giggles as she gushes over his ID picture. Somehow, that makes my insides twist.

“You can’t crush on everyone you see, Hester.” Thorne rolls his eyes at her.

Hester frowns, turning to him. “I don’t crush on everyone I see. For example.” She motions to Ash with her hand, and he pouts.

“Hey! I’m attractive!” He pulls on the towel around his shoulders.

“Sure you are, buddy.” She scrunches her nose to mock him, and Ash takes the bait and throws the towel at her.

“165 Sky St,” Thorne reads the ID card, snatching it from Hester. “That isn’t too far from here. Let’s go tonight.”

“Yeah, let’s have some fun!”

“Seriously? I wanted to exercise a bit before bed.”

Hester rolls her eyes again. Thorne sighs, turning to Ash. “Come on, dude, you’ll get your exercise from moving around.”

“Yeah, but I can’t film myself breaking into someone’s house!”

“Shut up! We’re going. What do you say, Gwen?” Hester smiles at me, waiting for my response.

I grit my teeth. I don’t think I want to risk seeing Lyor right now. “I mean… we can always go tomorrow.”

“Yes!” Ash points to me. “Thank you.”

“Or we can go today and have a break tomorrow,” Thorne says. “Your fans aren’t going anywhere, Ash, but our chance might slip. We can’t risk that.”

My heart sinks. This isn’t going the way I want it to. But if I keep trying to force it my way, they’ll know something’s up. And then… they might figure I was smoking.

Ash groans. “Fine. Let’s go.”

They all look at me, waiting for a reaction. I bite my tongue and force a nod.

I’ve got two things on the line right now.

* * *

“Alright, you all ready?”

The three others are crowded around me, all of us wearing black suits and masks with bags in our hands, as I get ready to open the door. They all nod. I turn around and slowly open the door.

“Get everything valuable,” I whisper to them. “Including artwork.” I turn, glaring at Hester, who meekly smiles. Last time, she left an incredibly rare piece of artwork because apparently it “looked like a piece of trash”.

“Thorne, come with me. We’ll search upstairs.”

Hester immediately starts whining and pointing at Ash. “You’re leaving me with him?”

“There’s nothing wrong with me!” Ash complains.

I sneak upstairs with Thorne, ignoring the other duo’s fussing.

He snickers. “They should just admit they like each other already.”

“Don’t even start.” I roll my eyes. “They’ll be acting all lovey-dovey, and it’s gonna get annoying fast.”

Smirking, he replies, “I’ll search this room.”

I nod as he enters a room, and I go into one dimly lit by moonlight. Everything is drowned in dark blue. The bed is made, and there’s stuff around that looks like a girl would own them. Who stays here?

It doesn’t matter, that’s not what I’m here for. I start looking around, shoving things that look like they would be worth something into my bag. After a little while, I get to a framed picture that’s lying face-down on the nightstand. Slowly, I pick it up and take my mask off; I can barely see out of it.

There’s two people in the picture. One of them is Lyor, and the other is a girl who’s kissing his face. That same feeling of my insides twisting starts up again. Why the hell do I care?

And Lyor. He’s showing the same grin, except it’s… different. I can’t place my finger on what’s wrong, but I can tell his grin isn’t genuine. It sort of looks like he’s worried. Maybe troubled? No, that’s not it. He’s… he’s scared.

Something crashes.

My heart jumps to my throat, and the picture flies out of my hands. The glass shatters all over the place. Quick footsteps can be heard, and one of the doors that were closed opens in a hurry. The person rushing out turns to me in a frantic manner.

Lyor.

“...Gwen?” He looks down with a confused expression at the shattered glass and the picture with the frame on the ground.

“Gwen!” Thorne starts rushing to me with wide eyes and the bag in his hand, but he freezes as soon as he sees Lyor. His eyes dart between me and him.

Shoot. I run past Lyor, grabbing Thorne’s hand with the bag, making him accidentally drop it, and start flying down the stairs. “Drop everything and run!”

Hester and Ash scramble to their feet and run after us.

“Go, go, go!” I open the door and they all run out. As soon as I’m about to go after them–

“Gwen.”

I pause. Turning around slowly, I see Lyor standing there. Why does staring at him make me feel so guilty? Why does it matter?

I swallow and turn around, running out of his apartment, determined to get as far away from him as possible.

* * *

Panting, we all flop onto the couch in our apartment. The other three fling their masks off their faces.

“Ash. Hester.” I turn to them, my voice stern. “What the hell was that crash?”

Hester’s face contorts into a nervous one. “It’s not my fault! I found an antique watch, and I was about to put it in my bag, when Ash over here decided to grab it. I tried to grab it back, but I tripped and fell into a cabinet, and all the vases fell down and crashed.”

Ash glares at her. “Shut up! I found that watch first! You shouldn’t have tried to take it from my hands!”

“Both of you shut up!” Thorne yells at them, standing up. Thorne almost never yells, so this makes everyone quiet. “Do you realize what just happened? Because of you two, the guy woke up and came out of his room! He saw Gwen’s face! He can call the police!”

Hester and Ash’s faces whip towards me.

“Gwen, how’d he see your face?” Hester’s voice is hectic.

“Her mask was off. And she left it there.” Thorne crosses his arms and looks down at me in anger. “Care to explain why, Gwen?”

Ash scrunches his hair tight and lowers his face to the ground. “No, no, no, no, no…”

“I just… thought I saw something–”

“Something that you had to take your mask off for?” Thorne glares at me. “What was so important?”

“Gwen…” Hester looks at the ground; her face seems like she’s thinking. “Where were you when you came home so late?”

I bite my tongue. I was hoping this moment wouldn’t come. Yet, they’re all staring at me. Waiting for an answer. Before I can help it, the words spit out of my mouth.

“I was smoking at the Memorial Bridge.”

Seeing their faces change from angry and confused to worry makes me feel sick. I don’t want their pity. Can’t they just be mad at me?

“Gwen… we’ve talked about this.” Hester touches my arm, and I pull it away. “We may not all fully trust each other, but that doesn’t mean we don’t care about everyone here. You need to stop.”

“It’s not that easy!” I yell at her. Suddenly, I can’t hold back anymore. After months of them trying to get me to quit and me not doing anything to stop them, out of the blue, I can’t handle their concern anymore. I don’t want it. I never did. “You telling me to quit isn’t gonna change anything! You can’t fix me. So stop trying to.”

I walk away. I can’t show my face after that.

* * *

The next day, I get up before anyone else does. I step out of my shared room and turn my head to see Hester sleeping on the couch. I feel bad seeing her there. She could’ve come into our room later in the night. Anger starts growing inside me. More pity. Just what I hate.

I get in the car we all share and start driving to Lyor’s house. I don’t want to admit it, but the only thing I could think about last night was Lyor’s shocked face when he last saw me at the door.

Once I get to his door again, the doubt and shame catches up to me. What if he called the cops and they’re inside, waiting? What if the girl is at home now and she sees me? What if… what if Lyor doesn’t want to see me?

I sigh, shaking the thoughts out of my head and knock on the door.

A few seconds of waiting, and a sleepy Lyor with tousled hair and a yawn opens the door. I had expected him to be angry, but he smiles when he realizes it’s me.

“Hey.”

“...Hey.” I can’t think of anything to say, so I take his wallet out of my pocket and hand it to him.

He gently takes it. “Thanks.”

I nod, staring at the floor. I turn around to leave, but Lyor suddenly grabs my hand. He stays silent for a few seconds, finally whispering, “Stay for a bit?”

Slowly, I turn back, still looking down. A million thoughts run through my mind.

He lets me walk inside and closes the door. “Coffee?”

“Uh, sure.” I quietly walk over to the table next to the kitchen, taking a seat. Lyor isn’t saying anything, and I don’t know where to start talking.

“You left your mask here,” he says. I look over to see him brewing the coffee. “Your bags, too. Everything’s over there.” He points to a corner. “You can take everything from that room. I was supposed to throw it out anyways, but I never really got to doing it.”

I swallow, looking back at my hands. My words should be thoroughly thought out before I say them. “Why not?”

He doesn’t answer. Did I say something wrong?

After a little while, he responds, “I couldn’t get myself to.”

“I couldn’t get myself to.”

I take a deep breath. “Who was that girl in the picture?”

This time, he stops what he’s doing. Shoot. I crossed the line. There’s no going back now, though. “Why did you look so… scared?”

After a few moments of heavy silence, I turn to look at him. There’s no expression on his face, which worries me more. Why does it? I don’t even know him.

“My ex-girlfriend.” He swallows, looking like he’s trying not to cry. “I never knew why she was with me. In the beginning, she was so sweet. She took care of me. She cared. But later on”–he sniffles, voice quivering, wrapping his arms around himself–“she started getting mad everytime I accidentally did something wrong. And that ‘mad’... turned into violent.”

My teeth clenches, and a lump starts growing in my throat. My blood starts boiling. Why do people think they can do whatever they want?

Lyor quietly, scared, speaks up again. “Do you know what that feels like, Gwen?”

I take a deep breath to calm myself. “Yeah.” I don’t know if I should say it, but Lyor just told me something deep. And that makes me want to say something, myself. “Reminds me of my mother. She was so kind to me when I was young, always understanding.” A pause. “But when dad died… something changed. She was never the same. She started drinking and smoking day and night, and it made her angry and abusive.”

His eyes widen, and he quickly wipes his tears away. “I’m so sorry. I-I didn’t- I didn’t mean to–”

“It’s ok.”

Nothing happens for a few seconds, Lyor starts pouring the coffee into two cups. He sits down next to me and hands me one.

“Anyways, uh… sorry.” He laughs, but I can hear the pain underneath. “I should’ve asked you before revealing something like that. It’s dumb let’s just–”

“It’s not dumb.”

His fake smile grows smaller as he looks up at me, and I lift my head up to see him, as well. “It’s… it’s not.” He realizes. “It’s not.”

I’m not very good in these types of situations, but it feels so easy with Lyor right now. “Something that big and painful isn’t dumb.”

He stays quiet. Then, he gives me a real smile. “Don’t think what you’ve been through is nothing, either.”

My lips curl upwards just a bit.

He laughs. “This is the first time I’ve seen you smile. It looks good.”

“I didn’t even smile all the way…”

“That’s ok. You’ll show me your real smile soon, right?”

I watch him, nodding after a bit. I realize I haven’t asked him an important question yet. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

He nods.

“Why didn’t you call the police after last night?”

He smirks. Again, not provoking me. I guess that’s what I like about him. He listens closely and doesn’t make fun of people.

“Because I knew you’d come to give my wallet back. I don’t know how I knew, but… I was right.”

For a long minute, I drink my coffee and think. Finally, I look back at him. “I’ll help you clean out her room. Trust me, you’ll feel better with all that stuff gone.”

He doesn’t say anything. He just nods.

* * *

“Gwen!” This time, Hester, Thorne and Ash all crash into me, crushing me in a tight hug.

“Guys… I can’t breathe.”

They all let go so I can fill my lungs with oxygen again, all of them having worried expressions again. This time, though, I don’t feel annoyed at them. I guess… Lyor helped me realize you shouldn’t push away the people that look out for you.

Hester holds my face. “It’s 4 pm. Are you hurt? Did that guy call the cops on you? I know you went to his house.”

I blink. “I’m ok. I just helped him clean up our mess.”

Thorne’s eyes nearly pop out of his skull. “What?! Why? Wasn’t he mad?”

I shake my head. “I didn’t tell you guys this, but… while I was smoking out at the bridge yesterday, he walked up to me. That’s how I got his wallet.”

“Otherwise you never would have…” Ash looks down, the realization showing on his face.

“But that still doesn’t explain why he wasn’t mad at you,” Hester whines. “He didn’t call the police either?”

“He didn’t. He… gets me. While I helped him clean up, we just talked about everything we’ve been through, and… there’s a lot of similarities.”

The other three are just staring at me now.

“Gwen… do we matter to you?” Thorne whispers.

I look up at him. At them all. “Of course I do. And I’m sorry I never proved it to you guys. I will from now on, though. I promise. And…” I give a small smile again. “I’m going to quit smoking.”

Ash and Thorne’s eyes widen, and Hester almost starts crying.

“Was it Lyor that convinced you?” Ash smirks.

I roll my eyes. “Yes, it was Lyor.”

“Girl, you better never let him go! He’s so helpful!” Hester starts bawling into my arms, and I cringe but slowly relax into the awkward hug.

“Well, all our troubles are solved now, aren’t they?” Thorne pats Ash on the shoulder.

“Uh… not all of them.” Ash eyes him.

Thorne presses his lips together. “Right… sorry for yelling at you, Gwen. I got angry.”

I nod. “Thanks. Also, guys… we need to quit stealing. And… everything. And try to get actual jobs.”

“Damn, you just realized that?” Hester laughs, making us smirk.

I guess… everything’s going to be alright in the end. Thanks to a random guy I met in the middle of the night. That I’m having coffee with tomorrow. Oh no. Hester’s going to get hyper.