Sunnie heard knocking on the front door and quickly dried her eyes. She wasn't expecting anyone this early. She doubted Roman was expecting anyone either with how late he came home last night. She got out of bed as soon as he was asleep. She couldn't stand lying next to him. Not with the way he smelled and looked.
She took a deep breath to hold back a sob and then walked towards the front door. She could see Seth's face through the glass. She had no idea why he was there this early. He should be sleeping too, seeing how he had gone out with Roman the night before. She didn't want Seth to see her cry. She kept her head down as she opened the door, speaking while turning around so her back was against him.
"He's still asleep but you can come inside and wait for him," she said.
She walked back to the kitchen without waiting for an answer. She heard him enter the house, shut the door and follow her out in the kitchen. She had her hands on the counter top, looking out the kitchen window, hoping he would either go away on his own or wait in the living room.
"There's coffee if you want some," she said.
Always remember hospitality. She was raised that way. Never show her true feelings to anyone. The world didn't want to hear about her problems or see a sad face.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"I'm fine," she lied.
She felt his hand on her shoulder. He wasn't like any other man she had ever known. Not that she had known a lot of men. He was different. He always seemed to care about the people in his life. Not that other men in her life didn't care. They just cared in another way. In a non-show way. They cared when she was happy and doing the right thing. When she was being a good girl like she was brought up to be. She placed her hand on top of his. She might not have been brought up to show weakness but she craved some kindness in that moment.
"How long were you out partying?" She asked.
He let out a deep sigh behind her. This was the same everytime he went out with Roman. Seth would actually leave pretty early but Roman didn't. He didn't care that he had a woman waiting for him at home. An amazing women that he should cherish in Seth's opinion. Sunnie with her long, slightly wavy, black hair and the moss green eyes.
"I know what I should be saying in order to cover his ass but I don't wanna lie to you," he said.
"He came home two hours ago," she said.
"I went home at midnight," he said.
There was a six hours gap between Seth leaving and Roman coming home. Both Seth and Sunnie knew what Roman had been doing in those six hours. He gently spun her around and she immediately looked down. He tipped her head back up, forcing her to let him see her tears and her weak side.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm a mess. You don't need this."
"Ssh," he shushed her. "Don't apologize for this. He's in the wrong. And I can't stand seeing him do this to you anymore."
"It's not your problem," she said.
"I'm making it my problem. Go pack a bag," he said.
"Seth," she sighed.
"Give me one week to prove to you this relationship sucks and that you'll be so much better on your own," he said. "One week, Sunnie. Please. You deserve better than this. He's treating you like a doormat and you're letting him."
She knew he was right but there was so much going on inside her head. She also knew it was now or never. She would never dare taking this step on her own but with Seth's help it seemed easier. Her words abandoned her. Instead she nodded and walked into the bedroom. He followed right after and took a look at the sleeping Roman in the bed.
"Jesus Christ!" He muttered.
He walked closer to the bed and stared at the man that was supposed to be his friend. He stank from a mix of beer and women's perfume. If the perfume wasn't a dead give away, the red lipstick smeared all over his white shirt sure was. He didn't even bother cleaning up before going home to Sunnie.
"Why do you put up with this?" He asked.
"I love him," she answered.
"I doubt it," he said.
He looked at her, waiting for a reaction. It didn't come. She just kept packing her bag. He knew he was right. She didn't love Roman anymore. Not like she used to. She just hadn't come to terms with that fact yet inside her head. Seth was gonna show her that she could trust her own thoughts and emotions. She just needed a push in the right direction but he knew she would never do it on her own. He had been around her and Roman long enough to know that she never voiced her own opinion on anything. She always did what Roman wanted. And that had made Roman treat her like this because Roman knew she would never leave. Roman was in for a harsh wake up call later.
"I'm gonna leave him a note," she said.
That made sense. Although Seth could see the fun in her just disappearing, he knew that wasn't something she would ever do. Roman might be a pig but he didn't deserve to not know. In the end Seth wanted Roman to know. He wanted Roman to learn a lesson from this. He wanted Roman to know that Sunnie had finally grown a pair and started thinking on her own. She finished the note and placed it on her pillow. She looked at Roman, still not sure about this.
"Sunnie?" Seth asked.
"Do you think I should wear lipstick like that? He must think it's a pretty color," she said.
"No, you are not doing that to yourself!" He growled lowly. "It doesn't matter what you wear or how much makeup you use. He'll still fuck around with any random woman crossing his path. This isn't about you not being good enough. This is about him being an asshole."
He took her bag and gently grabbed her arm. He escorted her out of the house before she changed her mind. She got into his car without a word and he started driving. They drove in silence for a couple of minutes until it felt like the air got a bit more light the further away they got from Roman's house.
"Why are you letting him walk all over you like that?" He asked.
"I don't know," she mumbled.
"I'm gonna take a wild guess here. You were brought up by an asshole father, weren't you?" He asked.
She fiddled with the hem of her t-shirt. He drove a few more minutes in silence and then parked in his driveway. He looked at her for a long time until she finally looked back at him.
"I was raised to be a good girl," she said.
"A good girl?" He snorted. "You were raised to roll over like a dog and do what your owner says."
"A woman always cater to her man's needs. She never questions his ways," she said.
"It sounds like you're reading a script," he shook his head. "I don't know your father but it sounds like he's a narcissist or a male chauvinist. Probably both."
"You don't know anything about my family," she said.
"Tell me I'm wrong," he said.
She stared at him. She actually looked a bit angry. He kept looking at her with challenging eyes. She didn't say anything.
"Just like I thought," he opened the car door. "You can sit out here and pout or you can come inside. As long as you do what you wanna do, I'm fine with whatever you choose. I'm making coffee if you want some."
He left her in the car and walked inside without ever looking back at her. He needed to challenge her like this. She needed to see that it was alright to have an opinion and follow through with it. He walked to the kitchen to put on some coffee. The second he turned on the coffee maker, he heard her footsteps as she entered the kitchen. He turned around with a smile on his face. She stood there looking like a lost kid with her bag in her hand.
"Coffee's done in a couple of minutes. I don't know how you take it but there's milk in the fridge and sugar in here," he knocked on a kitchen cabinet. "Let's get your stuff in the bedroom while we wait for the coffee. If you're not comfortable with sharing my bed, I'll sleep on the couch. Your choice."