Page 12 of Baked

I felt relieved at his response, immediately typing back.

Nothing. I’m at Carter’s. Can you come get me?

Already on my way.

I quietly looked back over at Carter, passed the fuck out. It annoyed me how much he cared only for himself. I wanted to whack him with a pillow and scream and shout. Times like this made me regret dating him. I just wanted out of here. Away from him. My feet hit the floor as I quickly dressed and gathered my things. It wasn’t long before Haze texted me back saying he was here.

I met him at Carter’s door. “That was quick. Were you nearby?” I asked, shutting the door behind me.

Haze grinned. “Sort of.”

“And you were just awake this early? What the hell have you been doing?” I almost didn’t want to know, noticing he was now wearing jeans and his leather jacket, telling me he had plans last night. “You know what—I don’t want to know.” I never liked hearing about his girlfriends and hookups, especially when it involved Mary-Jane.

“Don’t worry about it. You needed me, so I’m here. Come on, let’s get you back home.” He placed his arm around my waist andwalked me to the passenger side of his car and opened the door. I tried not to show my face as I ducked inside, my cheeks flustered by his touch. “Here.” Haze handed me one of his oversized t-shirts. “Figured you’d want to change into something more comfortable.” As he closed the door, I inhaled his scent from the shirt, quickly tugging it over my body before he could see me.

I tried to unzip my dress, but it was stuck. “Fuck. Um, Haze?” He looked at me as he closed his door. “Do you mind? I can’t get it?” I turned, lifting my hair and raising the shirt to show him the back of my dress. He remained silent, so quiet I could almost swear I heard my heart beating.

What was he doing?

“Haze?” His fingers gripped the zipper, effortlessly yanking it as it unsnapped. The feel of his fingertips hovering over my skin gave me chills.

“I got you,” he whispered while he unzipped my dress. His hand remained still for a minute, resting on my bare lower back before he pulled back. “There.”

With a swallow, I dropped the t-shirt and pulled the dress off and through the neck hole, tossing it in his back seat. My eyes met his as he stared at me, making my cheeks blush once more. “What?” I asked.

His eyes fell to my lap. The hem of his t-shirt barely covered my crotch. I tugged at the end, pulling it down to keep my vagina from view. Haze laughed softly to himself. “Seatbelt, Indi.” My cheeks burned so hot I knew they were red.

“Right, right!” I immediately buckled in as he put the car in drive and drove us back home. The entire trip back we sat in silence.

Why the fuck would you think he was looking? You idiot. He’s your brother! Get your shit together, Indi. Stop thinking such things and just focus on Carter. Carter, right. My boyfriend. My boyfriend, Carter.I began to focus on Carter andhis features. His long, wavy blonde hair, his blue eyes and toned body. How fit he was, thanks to playing hockey on weekends with his friends. Carter was beyond attractive, which is why Mary-Jane couldn’t keep her eyes or hands off him. It was bad enough she was still lingering around, hooked on Haze. But now Carter. I didn’t like sharing with her…especially not Haze.

I don’t know why he had to pick her…out of everyone he could have, why her? Why Mary-Jane? Was it something that happened that night? That night?—

The car parked and turned off as I realized how fast time had flown. I must’ve been lost in my thoughts the entire way back. The sun was barely peeking over the horizon as I yawned.

“You seem tired, Indi.” Haze opened my door for me. “Why don’t you head back to bed? I’ll take care of Kush.”He was always so sweet. Kush was technically my cat, but Haze always cared for him like he was ours. And I really appreciated it. As did Kush.

Truthfully, I wanted to go to back to sleep, but the fear of seeing that fucking mask suddenly crept back into my bones, making me nervous. “Maybe. I—I had a nightmare earlier.”

“What was it about?” He asked as we stepped into the apartment. Kush trotted over to us with his stubby little legs. He meowed softly, rubbing along our legs.

“Nothing. I think I might need to take some Melatonin or something.” I picked the heavy cat up and cuddled him close as he purred into me. “I missed you too, little man.”

Haze walked past me. “I might have just the thing.” He went into his room as I placed Kush back down. When he reentered the room, he had a small Ziploc of something in his hand.

“What’s that? More weed?” I teased.

“Special edibles, actually.” He shook the bag full of what appeared to be squares before pulling one out. “I made these the other night. Sugar-coated fruit bites infused with an extra special dose of THC. I made these for myself to help withrelaxing and sleeping.” He tossed an orange cube in my direction. “Try one.”

I examined the small cube closely, sniffing it. “Oh man, that doesn’t exactly smell right.”

“Oh stop. You haven’t even tried it yet!” Haze teased, watching me. “Go on. Eat it.”

I wasn’t sure why, but the fruit square made me a bit nervous. “Well, if it helps me sleep,” I whispered, tossing it into my mouth. The sugar coating was sweet, but it had a second taste to it I couldn’t quite pinpoint. A powdery substance that quickly dissolved with the sugar as the bitter and tangy orange flavor of the fruit edible flooded my mouth. The texture was odd, half hardened and half bouncy, like a gummy. My face tightened and moved, giving away my thoughts.

“Damn Indi, if you don’t like it, just say it.” Haze chuckled.

“No, no,” I swallowed the edible, trying to get the bitter aftertaste from my mouth. “Just uh—not what I expected.”

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