Following Me(30)

She stuffed her work clothes in a to-go bag and walked through the kitchen door into the main dining area. The other waitress had already disappeared, grumbling the whole time about how she didn’t need any help. Devon suspected it had something to do with sharing tips. Though, Devon wasn’t sure how the woman had managed working the busy restaurant with just Brennan’s help in the first place.

“You ready to get out of here?” Brennan asked, sliding his hands into the front pockets of his jeans.

Devon hadn’t realized that he was waiting on her. She owed him big time. She wished she didn’t feel the wave of awkwardness that ran through her at his nearness. Then, she might be able to show her gratitude more.

“Uh…yeah,” she said, glancing away from those eyes.

“I’ll just lock up.” He ducked into the kitchen and then returned a minute later. “Let’s go.”

Brennan flipped off the bright red open sign in the window, and then they exited through the front doors. He took the time to lock those doors as well, and then they walked to the L station together.

Devon took in the surprising silence of the city. As they passed through streets lined with tall skyscrapers, fear seemed to seep into her conscience. She wasn’t afraid to be alone with Brennan. In fact, it wasn’t Brennan at all. It was just that no one else was on the streets. She knew it was late. It was well past the hour most people would be awake and walking around the city, but she had thought that the city would still be bustling, like New York. Apparently, that wasn’t the case in the area where Jenn’s was located.

She swallowed back her fear and tried to remind herself of the good job that she had done today. She had a new job, a way to stay in Chicago, and a way to escape. But in this moment, she felt the loss of her escape. She felt it all closing in on her. Why were the streets so empty? Why was it just her and Brennan?

Her breathing hitched, and then she realized that she had suddenly stopped breathing altogether. Fear poisoned her blood system, starting in her chest and crawling through her veins like a disease. She felt her chest rising and falling rapidly, and her teeth were chattering as if she were freezing, but she knew these were the sure signs of hyperventilation.

But she couldn’t hyperventilate. She had to run. She had to get away. That was the answer. Run.

Brennan touched her arm, rocketing her back to the ground, to the city, to his hand resting lightly on her, to the pads of his fingers grazing her soft skin.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asked.

When she could finally see him through her blurred vision, she saw concern etched into every line of his face.

Devon held up her hand as if to silence him, and that only seemed to make him more concerned. She took a deep breath and bent her knees, crouching there in the middle of the sidewalk. She held her knees to her chest and tried to let the déjà vu of her dreams sluice off of her. She knew where she had come from, where she was, and where she was going. That was all that mattered. This wasn’t like her nightmares. No one was chasing her. No one was grabbing her. No one was throwing her down. She took another breath and reminded herself of these things again and again.

When she finally stood, Brennan seemed to have a million questions on his tongue. Devon didn’t want to answer any of them, so she immediately started walking. Brennan strode to her side and walked next to her, allowing her the silence she desired. She should thank him for that as well.

A job and silence. What more could I ask for? she wondered.

The ride on the L was short. Her stop came before Brennan’s, but he didn’t seem ready to let her go. He hopped off the train with her, and they walked in together to Marina City. At least this area was well-lit, and people were still milling around outside of the House of Blues.

“Thanks for walking me back,” Devon said, finally breaking the silence.

“Are you going to tell me what happened back there?” he asked.

Devon looked away from him, not wanting to answer. “I think it was just exhaustion,” she murmured.

It was a lie, and he knew it. She was exhausted, but exhausted people didn’t hyperventilate in the middle of the street.

“Exhaustion…right,” he said in disbelief.

“Thanks for your help today. I really needed the job,” Devon said, changing the subject.

“If I’d known you were looking for one, I could have helped sooner,” he said pointedly.

The question about why she had avoided him for three weeks was written all over his face. If he didn’t matter and she had a boyfriend, then why did she skip past Jenn’s every day? She refused to let her mind think about it.

“Well, glad I ran into you when I did then,” she said with the only smile she could muster.

“Devon, about that night—” Brennan began.

She held up her hand again, not wanting to talk to him about that. He had been drunk, and she had been an easy target in his apartment. She couldn’t blame him for trying or for walking out without waking her up the next morning. He didn’t know about her nightmares or that she might scream herself awake the next morning. After what had just happened and the amount of time she was likely to spend with him at work over the next two months, it was probably better that he didn’t know.

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow,” she whispered, desperate to get away.

He sighed and nodded. “Good night.”