Chapter 67 - Some things never change
The rest of Torrie's stay in New York went by very fast. Both Torrie and Dom were subdued on Sunday realizing that the very next day Torrie was going back to California and it would be a further two weeks before they saw each other again.
When Torrie woke up late on Monday morning she got up slowly. She was feeling very blue with thoughts of leaving for home on her mind. It was bittersweet for her. She missed the rest of the team and was anxious to be home with them and her father, but she knew she would miss Dom when she went back and she had enjoyed spending time with him away from their everyday lives as well. They'd gotten to know each other again. Something they'd been starting to lose out on back home just because of the everyday trials of life and the issues they tended to have with their fighting.
She got out of bed and started to pack her suitcases. She'd had to buy two more to fit all the stuff she'd bought for herself and for gifts into to get them home. She wanted to be ready to go when Dom came to get her to take her to the airport. He was coming for her right when his class was over which was around 5 and he figured it would be 5:30 by the time he got back for her. Her plane left at 9pm and because of the time difference would land in California at 9pm local time. Vince was supposed to pick her up at the airport.
'If he remembers me.' Torrie thought to herself as she packed. She cattily thought of Chris and how much she just didn't like the girl. She hadn't felt so strongly about not liking someone since high school. And since she'd been popular anyone she hadn't liked had mostly gone away. She wasn't proud of the fact now but she had mostly been able to make people disappear from her social sphere by simply ignoring them.
She couldn't do that with Chris. One, it wasn't high school, and two, it wasn't her place to tell Vince who he could and could not see. She'd had her chance with Vince and she knew in her heart that it never would have worked because she knew she was meant to be with Dom. But Chris's continued general dislike of Torrie just made Torrie continue to dislike the other girl.
Torrie was normally pretty in tune with other people's feelings and moods and she could tell that Chris didn't like her much at all because of the relationship she had with Vince. Chris wanted Vince, and she even seemed to have him to some extent, but she wasn't sure that Vince didn't want Torrie on some level and Torrie figured that Chris might even think she wanted Vince. Either instead of Dom or as well as Dom. There was no truth to it but telling the other girl that would mean talking to her. Talking to her about why they ended up not liking each other and talking about the fact that all Torrie wanted and had from Vince was friendship. Chris had to understand that Torrie wasn't going to stop being friends with Vince just because Chris didn't like it but she also should know that Torrie had no designs on him either Torrie figured.
But telling Chris all that stuff would likely mean some sort of apology would have to be given by both girls but Torrie knew that she'd be the one that ended up going first. And she wasn't sure she was ready too. No matter how much she wanted the matter over and done with.
She couldn't remember buying all the stuff she was busy packing, she thought as she bent over and picked up yet another box. She stretched and arched her back with her hands on her hips and checked the clock. It was going on 5 and she still wasn't done. With a groan she picked up another box and got back to it. As she picked up the last box she found one of Dom's shirts stuffed into the corner of the closet.
With a muttered oath at Dom's carelessness of leaving one of his good shirts in a ball on the floor to collect wrinkles and dust instead of hanging it up or sending it out to be dry cleaned she picked it up and shook it out with then intention of hanging it up for him. As she shook it out she caught sight of a pinkish red stain on the collar. As she looked closer she got a whiff of a scent that did not belong to Dom. When she got a better look at the stain she realized it was lip gloss.
She was in shock. Dom had lip gloss on his shirt collar and the shirt smelled of some other girl's perfume? So the whole time he'd told her he was lonely and missing her he'd been lying to cover up the fact he was seeing some other girl? She couldn't get the thoughts of it out of her head. And as she looked closer she realized the color of the gloss was familiar and so was the scent of the perfume. It reminded her of the girl from Dom's class she'd met when Dom had taken her out. Torrie tried to remember the other girl's name.
She remembered that it had been Karen and the boy with the over confident attitude had accused her of having a crush on Dom that night at the club. And Karen had clearly not been happy to have been introduced to Dom's girlfriend. Could it have been because Dom had figured that Torrie would just continue to tell him she didn't want to travel? Could Karen have been mad to have to take a back seat for the weekend to Dom's real girlfriend? Torrie didn't know any of the answers but she did know she wasn't waiting around to find out. She couldn't. She was on the verge of hysterics and she knew nothing good ever came of her talking to Dom when she was in such a mood.
She called the front desk and had them call her a shuttle to the airport. Then she had her bags brought down and she waited for her ride. She was running away from the problem but she couldn't find it in herself to care. She was just so upset all she had on her mind was escape. She wanted to go somewhere to be alone and all she could think of was changing her flight and going home right away.
Her cab pulled up and after she loaded all her stuff into the trunk the driver headed for the airport. As soon as they arrived she loaded all her baggage onto a cart and headed for the desk of the airline she was flying with. When she inquired about an earlier flight she was informed a seat was available on a plane that left at 6. The woman at the counter told Torrie that she should be able to make it. Torrie changed her ticket and got her bags checked. Within 45 minutes of arriving she was in the air, headed home. She was just glad that she'd gotten away before Dom found her.
The plane ride was uneventful. She didn't even get anyone to sit beside. Takeoff and landing were hard on her because the first time she'd done it on the way out she'd had John to take her mind off the flight with his banter. On the way back to California she didn't know if she'd ever felt as alone as she did sitting in the plane by herself.
When they landed she collected all her bags and looked around for Vince. She knew she'd landed two hours early but she couldn't help but hope he was already there for her. But he wasn't. The stress of trying not to break down before she was home and in private was starting to get to Torrie. She sat down on one of the plasic airport chairs and hung her head.
*~*
Dom came home from a particularly stressful day and called out to Torrie as soon as he got the door open to his room. When she didn't answer and he didn't see any of her stuff piled by the door ready to go he started to get frustrated. He figured she was still in bed and hadn't even woken up, let alone packed yet. He sighed in anger and headed through the rooms to the bedroom in the back. When he opened the door he wasn't really even looking.
"Torrie, we gotta go. You gotta get up and get pack..." He trailed off as he realized the bed was both made and empty. "What the..." He walked around the bed and as he rounded the corner he realized the closet was empty and all Torrie's shopping and stuff was gone. He saw a flash of blue sticking out from under the bed and stooped down to pick it up. He hauled one of his shirts out from under the bed. Not one of his shirts...
The shirt.
"Aw, great!" He exclaimed in disgust, both with himself for leaving the shirt in the closet for Torrie to find and with Torrie for just taking off. He could have explained, if she'd just given him half a chance.
He had to find Torrie before she got out of New York. He figured that she must have run to the airport. He had to explain before she ran away. Before she went back to New York and told the team. Told her father. He didn't want Letty to have a chance to start to fill Torrie's head with tales of Dom's cheating ways. Didn't want her father to tell her Dom was just a cheater and try to take Torrie away from him.
He quickly grabbed up his coat and pulled it on and as he did he realized that Torrie had left his high school jacket over the back of one of the chairs. He remembered it had been the only coat she'd had to wear and he groaned at his own stupidity for letting Torrie find that stupid shirt once again. He hoped she wasn't cold, where ever she was.
He drove to the airport in the RX-7 he'd borrowed so that he could drive Torrie to the airport in style so fast he was surprised he didn't get pulled over a hundred times on the way. Once he'd parked the car he went running into the airport and up to the company that held her ticket. When he asked after Torrie he was told she was gone, he'd just missed her. She'd changed her flight and the plane she'd ended up on had just left. He walked up to the window with a quiet oath and watched the plane that was likely carrying Torrie out of his life fly away.
He walked to a quiet corner and called home.
"Yo." Leon answered the family phone.
"Hey Leon, it's Dom."
"Hey Dawg! How's it goin?"
"Not overly well. Have any of you guys heard from Torrie?" Dom asked, worry apparent in his voice.
"Not lately. Why?" Leon asked, picking up on Dom's concern.
"Something not overly good happened and she took off on her own. I was just wondering if she called anyone there first." Dom sighed.
"Well, if she did it was likely Mia, Vince, or Letty. Do you want me to go ask them about her?"
"Why don't you just put Vince on if he's around." Dom stated.
"Sure Dawg." Leon went on the hunt for Vince and found him in the driveway adjusting something on his Nissan. "Dom wants to talk to you." Leon surrendered the phone to Vince.
"What's up Brotha?" Vince asked as he took the phone.
"I don't know where to start to answer that V." Dom stated. "Have you heard from Torrie?"
"No, isn't she with you?" Vince asked, puzzled.
"She was. She found something I didn't want her to find and she took off from here. She changed her flight and she's on her way home."
"What did she find?" Vince asked, not sounding too impressed with his friend.
"A shirt of mine with lipstick on the collar."
"Well, what the fuck Dom? You messin around on Torrie?" Dom could hear the fact that Vince was ready to beat on him over the fact that he thought Dom had cheated on Torrie.
"No. I was at a dance club with a bunch of the people in my course and this girl in the course started to hit on me. I tried to make her stop but she was pretty drunk. I could have embarrassed her I guess but I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I just left as soon as I could and never let that girl and I be alone again. But I meant to get the shirt cleaned or throw it out before Torrie got here and forgot."
"That was just plain stupid Dom. When does her new flight land?" Vince asked, still angry even though Dom hadn't done anything worse then make a careless mistake.
"7." Dom answered.
"Shit, I gotta go then. She's already here." Vince didn't wait for Dom to answer and didn't go tell anyone where he was going. He just hopped in his car and tore off toward the airport to collect Torrie.
*~*
John swore loudly and colourfully in his car as he watched Torrie's plane take off. He'd failed in his mission. There was nothing else to do, he'd have to call his boss.
"Be brief." His boss answered.
"She got out of New York." John stated.
"How!" The Boss yelled.
"The bitch has more lives then a cat. And she left early. I wasn't prepared for it. It was like she left in a rush. What should I do?"
"Get on a plane to LA. There's no hope for it, you'll have to finish the job there."
"She's starting to suspect something. And so is her boyfriend."
"Well, he's staying in New York is he not?"
"Yes, but the girl is onto something too. I don't think she has any idea why someone would be after her but she's starting to know that someone is."
"Eliminate her any way you can."
"Yes sir." John hung up his cell and purchased a ticket to LA. He took his boss's last instruction to mean that it didn't have to look like an accident any more if John could off the girl some other way.
The rest of Torrie's stay in New York went by very fast. Both Torrie and Dom were subdued on Sunday realizing that the very next day Torrie was going back to California and it would be a further two weeks before they saw each other again.
When Torrie woke up late on Monday morning she got up slowly. She was feeling very blue with thoughts of leaving for home on her mind. It was bittersweet for her. She missed the rest of the team and was anxious to be home with them and her father, but she knew she would miss Dom when she went back and she had enjoyed spending time with him away from their everyday lives as well. They'd gotten to know each other again. Something they'd been starting to lose out on back home just because of the everyday trials of life and the issues they tended to have with their fighting.
She got out of bed and started to pack her suitcases. She'd had to buy two more to fit all the stuff she'd bought for herself and for gifts into to get them home. She wanted to be ready to go when Dom came to get her to take her to the airport. He was coming for her right when his class was over which was around 5 and he figured it would be 5:30 by the time he got back for her. Her plane left at 9pm and because of the time difference would land in California at 9pm local time. Vince was supposed to pick her up at the airport.
'If he remembers me.' Torrie thought to herself as she packed. She cattily thought of Chris and how much she just didn't like the girl. She hadn't felt so strongly about not liking someone since high school. And since she'd been popular anyone she hadn't liked had mostly gone away. She wasn't proud of the fact now but she had mostly been able to make people disappear from her social sphere by simply ignoring them.
She couldn't do that with Chris. One, it wasn't high school, and two, it wasn't her place to tell Vince who he could and could not see. She'd had her chance with Vince and she knew in her heart that it never would have worked because she knew she was meant to be with Dom. But Chris's continued general dislike of Torrie just made Torrie continue to dislike the other girl.
Torrie was normally pretty in tune with other people's feelings and moods and she could tell that Chris didn't like her much at all because of the relationship she had with Vince. Chris wanted Vince, and she even seemed to have him to some extent, but she wasn't sure that Vince didn't want Torrie on some level and Torrie figured that Chris might even think she wanted Vince. Either instead of Dom or as well as Dom. There was no truth to it but telling the other girl that would mean talking to her. Talking to her about why they ended up not liking each other and talking about the fact that all Torrie wanted and had from Vince was friendship. Chris had to understand that Torrie wasn't going to stop being friends with Vince just because Chris didn't like it but she also should know that Torrie had no designs on him either Torrie figured.
But telling Chris all that stuff would likely mean some sort of apology would have to be given by both girls but Torrie knew that she'd be the one that ended up going first. And she wasn't sure she was ready too. No matter how much she wanted the matter over and done with.
She couldn't remember buying all the stuff she was busy packing, she thought as she bent over and picked up yet another box. She stretched and arched her back with her hands on her hips and checked the clock. It was going on 5 and she still wasn't done. With a groan she picked up another box and got back to it. As she picked up the last box she found one of Dom's shirts stuffed into the corner of the closet.
With a muttered oath at Dom's carelessness of leaving one of his good shirts in a ball on the floor to collect wrinkles and dust instead of hanging it up or sending it out to be dry cleaned she picked it up and shook it out with then intention of hanging it up for him. As she shook it out she caught sight of a pinkish red stain on the collar. As she looked closer she got a whiff of a scent that did not belong to Dom. When she got a better look at the stain she realized it was lip gloss.
She was in shock. Dom had lip gloss on his shirt collar and the shirt smelled of some other girl's perfume? So the whole time he'd told her he was lonely and missing her he'd been lying to cover up the fact he was seeing some other girl? She couldn't get the thoughts of it out of her head. And as she looked closer she realized the color of the gloss was familiar and so was the scent of the perfume. It reminded her of the girl from Dom's class she'd met when Dom had taken her out. Torrie tried to remember the other girl's name.
She remembered that it had been Karen and the boy with the over confident attitude had accused her of having a crush on Dom that night at the club. And Karen had clearly not been happy to have been introduced to Dom's girlfriend. Could it have been because Dom had figured that Torrie would just continue to tell him she didn't want to travel? Could Karen have been mad to have to take a back seat for the weekend to Dom's real girlfriend? Torrie didn't know any of the answers but she did know she wasn't waiting around to find out. She couldn't. She was on the verge of hysterics and she knew nothing good ever came of her talking to Dom when she was in such a mood.
She called the front desk and had them call her a shuttle to the airport. Then she had her bags brought down and she waited for her ride. She was running away from the problem but she couldn't find it in herself to care. She was just so upset all she had on her mind was escape. She wanted to go somewhere to be alone and all she could think of was changing her flight and going home right away.
Her cab pulled up and after she loaded all her stuff into the trunk the driver headed for the airport. As soon as they arrived she loaded all her baggage onto a cart and headed for the desk of the airline she was flying with. When she inquired about an earlier flight she was informed a seat was available on a plane that left at 6. The woman at the counter told Torrie that she should be able to make it. Torrie changed her ticket and got her bags checked. Within 45 minutes of arriving she was in the air, headed home. She was just glad that she'd gotten away before Dom found her.
The plane ride was uneventful. She didn't even get anyone to sit beside. Takeoff and landing were hard on her because the first time she'd done it on the way out she'd had John to take her mind off the flight with his banter. On the way back to California she didn't know if she'd ever felt as alone as she did sitting in the plane by herself.
When they landed she collected all her bags and looked around for Vince. She knew she'd landed two hours early but she couldn't help but hope he was already there for her. But he wasn't. The stress of trying not to break down before she was home and in private was starting to get to Torrie. She sat down on one of the plasic airport chairs and hung her head.
*~*
Dom came home from a particularly stressful day and called out to Torrie as soon as he got the door open to his room. When she didn't answer and he didn't see any of her stuff piled by the door ready to go he started to get frustrated. He figured she was still in bed and hadn't even woken up, let alone packed yet. He sighed in anger and headed through the rooms to the bedroom in the back. When he opened the door he wasn't really even looking.
"Torrie, we gotta go. You gotta get up and get pack..." He trailed off as he realized the bed was both made and empty. "What the..." He walked around the bed and as he rounded the corner he realized the closet was empty and all Torrie's shopping and stuff was gone. He saw a flash of blue sticking out from under the bed and stooped down to pick it up. He hauled one of his shirts out from under the bed. Not one of his shirts...
The shirt.
"Aw, great!" He exclaimed in disgust, both with himself for leaving the shirt in the closet for Torrie to find and with Torrie for just taking off. He could have explained, if she'd just given him half a chance.
He had to find Torrie before she got out of New York. He figured that she must have run to the airport. He had to explain before she ran away. Before she went back to New York and told the team. Told her father. He didn't want Letty to have a chance to start to fill Torrie's head with tales of Dom's cheating ways. Didn't want her father to tell her Dom was just a cheater and try to take Torrie away from him.
He quickly grabbed up his coat and pulled it on and as he did he realized that Torrie had left his high school jacket over the back of one of the chairs. He remembered it had been the only coat she'd had to wear and he groaned at his own stupidity for letting Torrie find that stupid shirt once again. He hoped she wasn't cold, where ever she was.
He drove to the airport in the RX-7 he'd borrowed so that he could drive Torrie to the airport in style so fast he was surprised he didn't get pulled over a hundred times on the way. Once he'd parked the car he went running into the airport and up to the company that held her ticket. When he asked after Torrie he was told she was gone, he'd just missed her. She'd changed her flight and the plane she'd ended up on had just left. He walked up to the window with a quiet oath and watched the plane that was likely carrying Torrie out of his life fly away.
He walked to a quiet corner and called home.
"Yo." Leon answered the family phone.
"Hey Leon, it's Dom."
"Hey Dawg! How's it goin?"
"Not overly well. Have any of you guys heard from Torrie?" Dom asked, worry apparent in his voice.
"Not lately. Why?" Leon asked, picking up on Dom's concern.
"Something not overly good happened and she took off on her own. I was just wondering if she called anyone there first." Dom sighed.
"Well, if she did it was likely Mia, Vince, or Letty. Do you want me to go ask them about her?"
"Why don't you just put Vince on if he's around." Dom stated.
"Sure Dawg." Leon went on the hunt for Vince and found him in the driveway adjusting something on his Nissan. "Dom wants to talk to you." Leon surrendered the phone to Vince.
"What's up Brotha?" Vince asked as he took the phone.
"I don't know where to start to answer that V." Dom stated. "Have you heard from Torrie?"
"No, isn't she with you?" Vince asked, puzzled.
"She was. She found something I didn't want her to find and she took off from here. She changed her flight and she's on her way home."
"What did she find?" Vince asked, not sounding too impressed with his friend.
"A shirt of mine with lipstick on the collar."
"Well, what the fuck Dom? You messin around on Torrie?" Dom could hear the fact that Vince was ready to beat on him over the fact that he thought Dom had cheated on Torrie.
"No. I was at a dance club with a bunch of the people in my course and this girl in the course started to hit on me. I tried to make her stop but she was pretty drunk. I could have embarrassed her I guess but I didn't want to make a big deal out of it. I just left as soon as I could and never let that girl and I be alone again. But I meant to get the shirt cleaned or throw it out before Torrie got here and forgot."
"That was just plain stupid Dom. When does her new flight land?" Vince asked, still angry even though Dom hadn't done anything worse then make a careless mistake.
"7." Dom answered.
"Shit, I gotta go then. She's already here." Vince didn't wait for Dom to answer and didn't go tell anyone where he was going. He just hopped in his car and tore off toward the airport to collect Torrie.
*~*
John swore loudly and colourfully in his car as he watched Torrie's plane take off. He'd failed in his mission. There was nothing else to do, he'd have to call his boss.
"Be brief." His boss answered.
"She got out of New York." John stated.
"How!" The Boss yelled.
"The bitch has more lives then a cat. And she left early. I wasn't prepared for it. It was like she left in a rush. What should I do?"
"Get on a plane to LA. There's no hope for it, you'll have to finish the job there."
"She's starting to suspect something. And so is her boyfriend."
"Well, he's staying in New York is he not?"
"Yes, but the girl is onto something too. I don't think she has any idea why someone would be after her but she's starting to know that someone is."
"Eliminate her any way you can."
"Yes sir." John hung up his cell and purchased a ticket to LA. He took his boss's last instruction to mean that it didn't have to look like an accident any more if John could off the girl some other way.