(Sara's POV)
I will definitely have to talk to Zari later. That sneaky bitch that is my best friend didn't tell me my sister in law was renting my old room. But despite her silence, this was a good surprise. I actually love the fact that Ava is here.
She hugged me tightly when I couldn't keep my tears inside anymore and offered to listen. Now I'm sitting on the couch blowing my nose, waiting for her to come back with a glass of water.
"Here" She says handing me the glass with a concerned expression. "And I thought maybe you would want to eat something" She added placing a bowl of popcorn on the little table in front of us.
"Thank you" I smile.
Silence reigned again for a few minutes, it was a comfortable silence. Ava was waiting for me to talk but giving me space. I sigh before talking, looking at my own hands on my lap.
"Two nights ago Zari and I went to a bar to meet some of her friends from work... and I drank a bit too much..." My suspicions were confirmed when I saw Ava smirking. She got my messages. I decide to keep going with the story. "So I texted a bunch of people I think and I soon got to the emotional drunken period. The thing is Z took my phone to prevent me from sending more texts and then she left and forgot to give it back. I reached for my phone in my pocket and it was gone, I couldn't call Ray to pick me up." Pause. I was talking too fast and wasn't sure Ava was following, or what she was thinking. I look up and see her comforting eyes.
"What happened next?" She asked truly interested.
"A good person lent me her phone so I could call Ray from there. At first he didn't answer but then he did" Crap my eyes are filling with tears again. "He asked what was up and when I explained I couldn't drive home in my state he said he was drunk too, with a bunch of friends. He told me to get a taxi..." I gasped when Ava held my hand and squeezed it softly.
"My brother is an asshole when he drinks too much" She simply said.
"We've never been in this situation before... in all this time. And when he came home this morning I wanted to talk and he just wanted to sleep. As I insisted on clearing this out he said rude things about Zari for keeping my phone and about me for texting random people... He said I am a whiny little girl who bothers him too much..." Tears started falling down my cheeks when I remembered the scene in the apartment. That wasn't all Ray had said to me, and certainly not the worst he said, that was the saddest part. Ava didn't ask more, she didn't even talk more. Her disappointed expression said it all, she just hugged me tight again and rubbed my back. That was all I needed.
(Ava's POV)
I really was angry. I've seen how my brother can get when he drinks with friends but this is too much even for him. I know there are things that Sara isn't telling me and on one hand that makes me feel bad, she doesn't trust me enough. I suddenly find myself wanting to comfort her with my life, wanting to protect her from all the harm. I hold my breath when this feeling hits me. I close my eyes and only concentrate on her. What can I do to help her?
"Do you want me to talk to him?" I whisper, and she answers no.
"Let's find your phone?" I ask instead. She breaks the embrace and smiles shyly. I cup her cheek and rub my thumb to catch a last tear. For an instant, I felt powerful. For an instant, I felt strong enough to protect her forever.
But that was only an instant and then the spell was broken when she asked me to call her phone to see where in the house it was. We heard it ringing upstairs and Sara left looking for it. I took the chance to text her:
Hey miss Lance, wanna watch a movie with me? Already got the popcorn...
A moment later Sara walks down the stairs looking at the screen of her phone with the brightest smile I've seen so far.
(Sara's POV)
Watching a movie with Ava was definitely much more fun than watching with her brother. Ava comments the movies, laughs out loud and even insults the characters. Ray got pissed when I did something like that because he enjoyed watching movies almost in complete silence.
"This movie is so funny!" I say catching my breath after laughing at one of the best parts.
"It's my favorite comedy ever! I can watch it a million times and I'll still laugh" Ava says.
We find each other's eyes and smile, "Thank you" I say softly. I notice my heart skips a beat.
"It's nothing. I'm glad you're feeling better" She answers, and I have an idea. I smirk and she seems confused.
"Do you know the story about these cushions on the couch?" I ask grabbing one of the colorful cushions behind my back. Ava shakes her head so I continue, "Well, once upon a time, there was a woman who called herself Spicy Blond..." Ava's smile gets bigger and I melt. "This woman was sitting with another woman watching a movie, and then the second woman decided to start a pillow fight" I smile nonchalantly and give her 3 seconds to react. By the time she did and reached for a cushion it was too late. I had already started the fight and there is no one who can beat me in a pillow fight. Surprisingly though, she recovers quickly and fights back. I suddenly remember she is known as a badass, fighter and conqueror. Hard competition.
In between laughter and pillows we don't realize the movie ends, and when my cushion flies who-knows-where I have to start a tickle fight. Ava is very ticklish and I LOVE her laugh. That's playing against me, she's winning.