The four of them finally survived the excruciating silence.
When they arrived at Yvonne's apartment, Perry naturally got out to walk her to the door.
Bonnie was unsure if she should intervene, but Yvonne, her face flushed red, waved a dismissive hand at the car before dragging Perry inside.
As Lawrence drove away, he glanced in the rearview mirror and caught sight of Perry forcefully kissing Yvonne beneath the glow of the streetlights.
Bonnie saw it, too.
Great. Now it was just the two of them, and the awkwardness had multiplied.
Bonnie silently turned on the stereo, letting the music fill the quiet space.
Lawrence pressed a fist to his lips, coughing lightly to change the subject. "I always thought your colleague was trying to pursue you."
Bonnie tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, her tone light and joking. "I'm practically his supervisor. Who falls in love with their boss? The guy probably dreams about architectural drafts every night."
Lawrence chuckled, but the movement pulled at his cut, and he winced. Bonnie turned her head and noticed the wound on his lip had darkened.
After a brief hesitation, she asked him to pull over.
Lawrence wanted to say it was just a scratch and didn't need tending to, but when he saw Bonnie looking down, quietly unscrewing the cap of the saline solution, he smartly kept his mouth shut.
She kept her eyes cast down, focusing entirely on the wound. Between the alcohol and the car ride, her head was spinning. She felt a bizarre disconnect, as if her actions were moving faster than her brain could process.
By the time she realized she was already pressing a saturated cotton swab to his mouth, it was too late to back out.
That would make things even weirder.
Feigning perfect calm, she carefully cleaned the cut, applying a layer of iodine followed by some ointment.
"Perry mistook you for Yvonne's ex. Judging by his stance, he put his whole weight into that swing. I thought you were going to get knocked out cold."
The kid was young and full of raw energy.
"Don't hold it against him. He's just a kid who hasn't grown up yet."
"Alright. I won't hold a grudge against your friend," Lawrence murmured softly.


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