Red Flags (34 page)

Chelsea returned with more Cape Cods and we
all pushed our way through the growing crowd and over to the stage
area. The SD’s had played here quite a few times and most of the
people on campus raved about them, and from what I was hearing, I
could see why. The lead singer was the stereotypical heartthrob of
the band. He was tall, and while thin, there was an element of nice
guy hidden behind his entire chest of tattoos. His dark hair was
overgrown, in a shaggy cut, and his hazel green eyes pinned down
almost every female in the room. He was energetic, and moved about
the stage very gracefully, even while dragging the microphone stand
back and forth. They played a few upbeat songs before switching to
a slower song entitled,
Make Me Believe
. Chase snaked his
arm around my waist, and as I looked up to him, he gave me a warm,
albeit nervous smile. I didn’t make a fuss, and we just swayed
along with the rest of the bar patrons to the beautiful melodic
voice of the SD’s lead singer.

As the song came to an end, I felt Chase’s
hand slip away from my hip, and I turned to find Jason standing
there with Mila and Ryan. He stepped closer to Chase and calmly
told him, “Keep your hands off my girlfriend.” I stared at him in
disbelief, and he turned to meet my gaze, but said nothing. Ryan
was staring Chase down and I felt the tension in the room building
and taking every ounce of breathing room with it.

“Ex-girlfriend Jason, remember?” I pointed
out, leaving no room for argument.

“Let’s talk outside.” He said, and grabbed my
hand, trying to pull me in the direction of the back door patio. I
resisted, and he looked at me speculatively.

‘I’m fine right where I am. Thanks.” Ryan
stepped forward and leaned down to whisper in my ear.

“Why are you out with this guy?”

“He and Chelsea brought me out to celebrate
my birthday. He’s my friend Ryan, get over it.” I stepped back,
unable to look away from the disgust on his face and he shook his
head and ran his hands through his hair. “How did you guys know we
would be here anyway?”

“I told Mila we would be here, sorry. I had
no idea she would bring Jason though,” Chelsea said with a mouth
full of contempt as she uttered Jason’s name. Jason looked at me,
motioning with his head in the direction of the back patio, and I
again refused the invitation.

“Whatever you need to say Jason, just say it
right here.” I said -- trying desperately not to look in Mila’s
smug faced direction.

“I want to talk to you, alone. I’ll take you
home; just give me a few minutes to get through to you.” The
southern drawl was peeking through, and his frustrations were
starting to show.

“I brought her here, I’ll be the one making
sure she gets home,” Chase threw into the mix, but was quickly
backed up by a stern faced Ryan.

“You won’t be doing anything Chase. Now, back
up.” He added, and I was instantly infuriated by his callous
behavior.

“Anyway, I had plans for you tomorrow Cara. I
still want to take you out.” Jason said, sidestepping Ryan and
Chase so that he was standing right in front of me.

“Those plans went out the window when we
broke up Jason.”

“We didn’t fuckin’ break up Cara,” he yelled,
gesticulating wildly with his hands. His drawl was so thick through
the anger that I almost wanted him to repeat what he had said.
“That cocktail dress you bought in Vegas, it’s for tomorrow…so
please, just say yes to my invitation?”

“First of all, we did break up, and secondly,
the dress that you bought can be returned to you and you can get
your money back.” I threw out, making sure he knew how I felt about
his money and his gifts.

Ryan stepped back into our conversation, and
added in his two cents. “Cara, please. Jason has been quite
miserable, and despite what you think you know, you really know
nothing at all. Take him up on his offer.” I couldn’t decide if I
wanted to stay mad, be happy, or kick Ryan in the teeth for
appealing to my sensitive side in such a situation.

“Fine, I will go out with you tomorrow, but
please let me enjoy the rest of my evening with my friends.” He
mouthed thank you and headed for the bar with Ryan and Mila
following behind him.

“I’m so sorry Chase,” I apologized, feeling
horribly guilty for their shameless display of bullying. Chase
shrugged his shoulders, and took me back to the front of the stage
area to continue listening to the SD’s. The night had an awkward
feel to it because Jason was still in the bar, watching our every
move. Chase didn’t let it faze him, and continued having a good
time. I followed his lead, and pretty soon, he, Chelsea, and I were
locked in together, smashed like sardines, and singing along to the
one song by the SD’s that we actually knew,
Head case
.

<>

Shortly after closing time, we made the short
trip back the apartment. I looked to the back of Chase’s truck to
find Chelsea passed out in the backseat when I noticed Jason’s
Mustang following us. Chase noticed but didn’t pay it any mind.
When we pulled up, Ryan and Mila climbed out of the back of the
Shelby, and went up the stairs, where I was fishing for my keys to
unlock the door. I helped Chelsea into her bed, and found Ryan
sitting on the couch in the living room while Mila changed into her
pajamas.

“You’re staying?” I asked him, unable to hide
the irritation in my voice.

“Yea, we’re not driving to North County
tonight,” he said, and turned his gaze in Chase’s direction.

“Yeah well, I’m off to bed. No need to watch
over me Ryan, I’m fine.”

“Well, I just have to make sure. Someone has
to watch out for you,” he said snidely, while burning through Chase
with his blue eyes.

Chase just shook it off and turned for the
door, where I followed him. He leaned down and kissed my cheek and
thanked me for allowing him and Chelsea to take me out for a night,
and then walked down the landing to his apartment. Once Chase was
out of sight, I heard Jason’s Mustang start up, and peel out of the
parking lot.

I woke up to find Ryan and Mila sprawled out
on the couch. Did he sleep on the couch to make sure Chase didn’t
come back last night? Annoyance immediately crept into my head,
since I was near certain that this was Jason’s handy work. Then
again, it could be Ryan's since he loathed Chase with every ounce
of his being. Whatever the case was, I didn’t need a brother, and
an overbearing ex-boyfriend to guard my bedroom.

Making my way into the kitchen, I slammed
cabinet doors, in hopes of breaking up the sweet slumber that Ryan
and Mila looked to be partaking in. Chelsea came stumbling into the
kitchen, wiping her eyes, and yawning. I continued to slam the
cabinets, until Ryan and Mila were woken up -- in awful moods. Mila
got up -- pouting her mouth, and stomped back to the bathroom and
got in the shower. Ryan sat up, and shot me a look that could
kill.

“Why are you doing that?”

“What? I can’t find what I need. If you had
slept in the bedroom, you would still be sleeping right now.” And I
calmly went about making my breakfast.

Ryan stood up and joined Mila in the shower.
Chelsea reminded me that I had agreed to join Jason for dinner
tonight, and how much she strenuously disapproved. I smiled, but
reminded her that it was just dinner, and I had reminded him quite
often that he was my ex-boyfriend. Her persistence kept up, so I
just listened and smiled, then made my way back to my room.

Jason texted, saying he would be at the
apartment around six o'clock that evening to pick me up. He said he
had plans for me to try the best Italian food in all of La Jolla,
La Bellezza. I had only heard rave reviews of the restaurant, and
from what Chelsea’s parents had said, it took months to get a
reservation at the place. Jason and I had only been seeing each
other for a short amount of time, but then the realization that
Jason’s family, and the astronomical amount of money that they had
bought things that the average person could only dream of.

I worked tirelessly; trying to style my hair
after Chelsea used her amazing Chi on me. She curled my hair in
spirals, and pinned them, leaving only one cascading tendril
falling down in front. That was all the help I could get out of her
since she and Hunter had their own plans for the night. I pretended
to know what I was doing when it came to make-up, but really, I
just dabbed a bit of eye shadow on my eye lids, added some mascara
to my eyelashes, and moisturized my lips with an even coat of lip
gloss. The dress was a tight fit, but even I had to admit that I
liked the way it tugged at just the right points on my body. I
opted for a pair of lower heels than anything Chelsea had lying
around in her closet.

At six o'clock sharp, the doorbell rang and I
opened it to find a jaw dropping Jason in a pair of black slacks,
with a black button up shirt that temptingly left the top two
buttons undone. He stood, with a half- smile on his face and a
single rose in his hand. He eyed me up and down, surveying me, and
after getting a good glimpse, stepped forward, presenting me with
the rose, and kissing my hand. This was not the Jason I had been
acquainted with the past few weeks. I invited him in so I could
complete the finishing touches to my look, and he took a seat on
the couch, looking nervous. In a way, this felt like our first
date, since our first night together entailed some actions that I
wasn’t particularly proud of.

I sprayed a couple of sprays of perfume and
then grabbed the clutch that Chelsea reluctantly loaned to me. I
entered the living room to find Jason sitting back on the couch,
one leg over his knee, waiting patiently for me. I nervously walked
towards him and he stood, pulling a box from his pocket. As I got
closer, I noticed the box had Cartier written on the top. I gasped.
That store had always been a dream and nothing more than a dream
for me. I took the box and found a beautiful platinum necklace,
with pink sapphires strategically placed throughout the ringlets. I
closed my eyes, trying to fight back tears, and shook my head.
Jason remained silent but took the necklace and clasped it around
my neck. I fingered it for a minute, and then threw my arms around
him with a low “thank you.” He smiled and took my hand, leading me
down the parking lot.

I stopped at the curb, looking for one of his
vehicles that was nowhere to be seen. “What’s wrong?” He asked,
noticing the confusion written all over my face.

“Are we being picked up?” I asked, not sure
how Jason got here.

“No, we’re taking my dad’s Mercedes.” He
clicked the clicker in his hands, and I saw the lights of a sleek,
black Mercedes flash, and he took my hand and led me to the
passenger side. He was in true gentleman fashion, opening my door,
and making sure I was in before closing it. He walked around to the
driver’s side and, anticipating my questions, answered them before
I even had a chance to ask. “This belongs to my dad’s work fleet,
and I figured La Bellezza deserved something much classier than the
Raptor or the Shelby.”

I couldn’t contain my joy and excitement but
settled on a bright smile. He started the car, but didn’t pull out
of the parking lot. “I just want you to know that you are
absolutely beautiful tonight; happy birthday gorgeous.” Then he
backed the car out of the stall and we were off to La Jolla.

The ride was a mixture of small talk, and
silence. It was amazing that after everything we had been through,
our real date had the quintessential first date awkwardness to it.
We took the exit for Jason’s house, and before I could ask, he
chimed in, “We have to make a stop by the house; I have something
else for you before going to the restaurant.” A few minutes later
we were pulling into the driveway and I instantly felt at home. We
took the side trail of the house to the back yard and when Jason
opened the door, a spotlight hit me, and a boisterous crowd of my
nearest and dearest, all screamed in unison, “SURPRISE!” I would be
lying if I said I wasn’t shocked, and floored all at the same
time.

I looked around to see my parents standing
with Chelsea and Hunter. Mila and Ryan were not far behind, and
even Chase had made it. I’d have to get the scoop on that one
later. All of the softball girls, and various dates of theirs were
mingling, and Becca, Devon, and the rest of the Invictus crew are
all dressed to the nines. My heart suddenly stopped when I searched
for Stacey, but Becca walked up and put my mind at ease when she
whispered that Stacey was not in attendance. I relaxed, and felt
like I could have a good time. Some of my friends from home had
been invited, and I had never been so delighted to see them.

My parents came and kissed me, while also
wishing me an early happy birthday. My dad never looked so handsome
in a suit, and my mom looked impeccable -- as always. I turned to
Jason and asked how he pulled all of this off and he shrugged his
shoulders and simply said, “Mila.” I immediately felt a stab of
guilt. All of the back door conversations, the texting; it was all
to plan the perfect surprise party for me. I swallowed the lump
that had formed in my throat, and Jason leaned down and whispered
in my ear, “She’s fine. She knew she had to take your torment so we
could pull this off,” and kissed my temple before letting Ryan and
Mila come to wish me a happy birthday. I threw my arms around both
of them, and apologized repeatedly. Mila laughed, and hugged me
even tighter.

“Pinks, it took everything in my power to not
kick your ass this week, but I knew this would be worth it.”

I nodded my head, and wiped a tear away from
my eye. The overwhelming display of love was hard to take. “But,
you guys included Chase in this? I don’t get it.”

“No. Chelsea insisted he come, because he’s
your friend. I didn’t want him here,” Ryan answered, tugging at his
tie. “She barely found out a couple of days ago because we knew her
big mouth would say something if given the time.”