Vérité by Rachel Blaufeld

Ty’s voice was louder as he made his way into the open main space. He turned the corner and walked toward me in the same ratty T-shirt he’d had on earlier. Only now there was a spray of blood across the shoulder.
    My heart rate amped up to such a frenetic pace, I felt like I was at the track. “I’m okay. You?” I asked, my eyes not meeting his as I stared at the red spatter.
    “All good. I could use a shower. You down with waiting another few minutes?”
    As if I had a choice. I’d been kept prisoner there all afternoon, and now I couldn’t walk away from the bloodied guy in front of me if I tried.
    I nodded. He stepped close and slipped his hand behind my neck, sliding it along the nape under the heavy shawl of my hair.
    Bringing my face underneath his nose, he said quietly, “Don’t be scared, T. It’s all good, okay? Everything’s good, and now you’re protected and nobody’s gonna touch you.”
    How did he do that? Read my thoughts so clearly when I’d spent the greater part of my life masking them?
    Slipping from his grasp, I said, “Go get a shower, I’ll wait.”
    After he nodded and headed back to his room, I sat on the couch, my hands tucked under my thighs, my legs beating up and down to some unknown frantic rhythm. The water came on, the pipes roaring to life. I took a deep, calming breath and let the calming whoosh in the background soothe my frazzled nerves.
    My phone beeped, then buzzed in my pocket.
     
    GINNY : Hey, you okay? I just got home from last night. You’re not here.
    ME : Yeah. Stayed out last night after going out with the track team. I came back for a little. With Tiberius now.
    GINNY : You sure you’re okay? What are you doing later for dinner? You going out?
    ME : I don’t know. Tiberius is showering, so I’ll see when he gets out.
    GINNY : Ooh, showering. Sorry to disturb. Wink, wink.
    ME : I think I liked you better when your head was tucked in a book. Wink, wink.
    GINNY : Ha. Very funny. Text me later.
     
    I bowed my head in silent thanks. Ginny would have told me if she’d heard anything about last night. If rumors were going to spread, the athletic dorms would be the first place they would steamroll through. The last thing I needed was to call attention to myself. Again. Which was why I hoped whatever happened with Logan this afternoon didn’t get out either. Even if people knew the truth, they would side with him over me. After all, I was already branded with a scarlet letter.
    The water stopped, the pipes clanging for a few seconds until quieting, and then Tiberius walked out with just a towel around his waist. Beads of water slid down his chest, coming to a rest on the edge of the towel, where they were absorbed.
    First, I focused on his tattoo, now recognizing the crest as being from his high school. Then my eyes wandered, drinking their fill as they ran the full length of him from his dark nipples to his ankles, stopping to widen at his thick and muscular legs.
    “You hungry?” Tiberius asked, interrupting my perusal.
    “Um, what?”
    “Are you hungry?”
    Warmth crept up my cheeks at the suspicion he was referring to the hunger that was probably dancing in my eyes. “Um, you mean for lunch or dinner?”
    “Yeah. What did you think I meant?” he asked, smirking.
    “Sure. I’m a little hungry.”
    “Good. I’m going to throw on some clothes and then we can go eat. Want to go to the dorms or somewhere in town?”
    “How about the Union?”
    “Good idea. One sec and I’ll be ready,” he yelled as he headed back toward his room.
    I wondered where Trey was; could he be finishing up something with Logan? A chill climbed my body like a roller coaster heading toward the top of a steep drop. As soon as my stomach dipped, more thoughts clawed up my spine.
    Was this our first date? First I was sequestered inside his apartment, and then Tiberius casually asked if we should go eat as if that was a normal, everyday occurrence. He’d been asking and I’d been