It's late at night, well after midnight, and much closer to the last call. Kate and Ana stumble through the door to their apartment unable to contain their giggles. "Who knew double dates could be so fun!" Kate loudly announces as she is digging in the fridge for a bottle of water.
"That improv show was hysterical, especially when they had Zach get up on stage and sing that ridiculous song with them," Ana replies smiling.
"I know! I will never be able to hear the phrase back that up without laughing ever again. But more seriously, are you going to see Blake again?"
"Yeah, I think so. He seems pretty nice, but I want to take everything slow. I hope he's OK with that."
"I think he would be. He doesn't seem like one of those guys who only wants into your pants." Kate tells Ana as she twists the cap back on her water bottle and puts it in the fridge.
"That's the vibe I'm getting from him, too. I just wish he didn't have to travel so much for work." Ana is now in the bathroom washing her face, getting ready for bed.
Kate is leaning against the doorjamb of the bathroom waiting for Ana to finish up. "It should die down once baseball season is over."
"Isn't that the whole summer?" Ana asks Kate with a look of consternation on her face. She dries her hands on the towel and moves out of the way to let Kate in the bathroom.
"I'm sure it's not that bad. He can't work 24/7, right?" Kate consoles Ana. Before she starts brushing her teeth.
Ana sighs, "I guess you're right. Well, I had a lot of fun tonight. See you in the morning."
Kate attempts to wish Ana a good night while she's brushing her teeth, "Gnurfmph."
Christian can't stop thinking about Elena blocking Ana on his phone. Why? What were Elena's motives? Was she trying to protect him from some perceived danger? He has to get to the bottom of this, or the thought of it will consume him.
"Christian, how nice to hear from you. To what do I owe this pleasure? Have you made a decision regarding Angela?" Elena greets Christian with a voice that is half seductive and half doting.
"Elena, that night we went to dinner, did you do anything to my phone?" Christian is blunt, and to the point., he doesn't have time to be affable.
Elena pauses, not saying a word. After a few seconds she begins to speak, but immediately Christian can tell she is taking great care in the words she is using. "Christian, surely I don't know what you're talking about."
"Elena, don't play me for a fool - just answer my question." He is quick to get cross. He doesn't like to be lied to, especially to someone he considers a close friend.
"Christian, I have your best interests at heart." Before Elena can finish her sentence, she is cut off by Christian.
"Why the fuck would you do that? What makes you think you know my best interests?" Christian's clenches his fist in anger, and he tries to calm down. Silently, he counts backward from ten. His therapist from when he was 13 suggested it would help with his anger management. Back then, he was so volatile that he could have counted backward from a million and it wouldn't have helped. He would be that enraged teenager until Elena found an outlet for him. She found a way he could deal with everything. But now, those feelings of anger are rushing back.
"Christian, the way you were talking about that girl. You didn't even know her, and you sounded like you were ready to do something stupid like tell her that you love her. You were so imperceptive to what you were doing and saying. That's not like you, but I also know how obstinate you can be. If I had told you the truth and what a mistake you were making, it would have driven you even closer to her just to prove me wrong."
"First of all, don't pretend like you have my best interest at heart. If you had, you wouldn't have fucked your best friend's son, would you?"
"Christian, you know that's not how it was…"
"No, Elena, I'm going to say my piece, and you're going to listen. I am no longer your submissive. I am a man who is perfectly able to make my own decisions and know what is best for me."
"How could you have known that… girl is best for you? You didn't even know her. You didn't know her true intentions. I know how girls like that are. She saw dollar signs the second she met you. And, I doubt she is even in the lifestyle so why get involved with someone when you know it won't work out anyway." Elena is starting to sound like the demonstrative woman he knew so long ago.
"No, she isn't in the lifestyle, but she was beautiful, enchanting, and sweet. She is a good person. But you never gave me a chance to get to know her. You let me believe a lie this whole time."
"Christian, listen to me," Elena's voice gets stronger, "I know what I did was harsh, but I did it because I care about you and I don't want anything bad to happen to you."
Christian feels rage build in his stomach and move up into his throat unfurling along the way. "You care about me? You don't want anything bad to happen to me?" Christian's voice is growing louder and angrier. "If you didn't want anything to hurt me, you wouldn't have forced me to scrub your kitchen floor with a toothbrush naked while you whipped me. No, you didn't do this for me. You did it for your benefit - I don't know what that is, but I don't care. One thing you always told me was that you would never lie to me and would always tell me the truth. Now that is gone." Christian takes a deep breath following his diatribe.
"No, I didn't lie to you, don't be so dramatic. I didn't teach you to act this way towards me. I didn't teach you to go around jumping blindly into situations that are no good for you. Have you forgotten everything I've taught you?"
"You didn't teach me anything. I am what I am because of me, because of my dedication and determination. I am what I am because I'm smart, Elena. Not because you got wet caning me for looking at you the wrong way."
"Don't you dare speak to me like that! I demand your respect." Elena's full Domme is coming out. But this time it doesn't frighten Christian like it used to.
"Elena, respect is earned, not given out. And you've just lost my respect. I trusted you! I would have never expected this from someone I considered to be a close friend. You're a washed up hack who is scared of being replaced by a beautifully sweet girl. You are just an empty woman wrapped in black clothing afraid people will see what a pathetic trailer trash piece of shit you are. That's why Linc left you. It wasn't because of me; it was because you were, are, and will always be nothing."
"Well, I never…" Elena is indignant, but Christian doesn't give her a chance to finish her sentence.
"Now you have. Fuck off, Elena." Satisfied he got the last word he hangs up his phone. He can't work like this. Adrenaline is pumping through his veins, and he needs to get it worked out.
Calmly, he gets up, picks up his suit jacket from off the chair in his office and walks out of his office. "Andrea, I am going to see Claude Bastille. I won't be back today." He doesn't wait for Andrea to answer. He doesn't need to.