makes me want to keep making bad decisions over and over again.”
She sat me down on the sidewalk and wrapped a caring arm around my shoulder. “Let it out, girl.”
“I’m lost, damn it, so damn fucking lost. And I shouldn’t be. Aren’t the twins and I supposed to have a baby together? Shouldn’t they care more, instead of kicking me out without even talking it through? I trusted them more than that. They repeated ‘I love you’ so many times. I thought they actually meant it. Turns out it’s all a scam.” I clenched my fists. Rather than just getting sad again—I’d been drowning myself in that emotion way too much—I got angry and sad at the same time.
“It’s normal. You’ll get over it.”
I gritted my teeth. “I’m afraid I won’t. It’s like I’m cheated. Betrayed.”
“It’s a typical breakup, deary. Breakups suck and hurt like hell, especially if the relationship ended like the way yours did. You will forget them.” She stood up and offered a hand. “Let’s go. I’ll drive you home. I’ll even make you a smoothie.”
***
“Feeling better?” Kristie asked, walking me down the corridor. I’d die without a friend like her. Without her by my side, acting as a godsent angel and sticking it out with me every step of the way, getting through my thousand-and-one breakups would be ten times more painful.
I wiped my face with my tissue. “Much. Thanks for letting me bawl to you in the car. It really helped.” I told her most of what had happened. How perfect things seemed, and our little quarrels. I skipped through the racy bits, filling them up with some white lies, replacing the stories of physical abuse with emotional ones and leaving things vague. She didn’t press much. Instead, she acted as a listener. She knew she didn’t have to keep talking. She only had to let me get my frustrations out.
“You ought to be thankful,” she joked. “Half the tissues in my box are gone.”
I rolled my eyes and grinned. “Sorry about that.” As I took out my keys, Kristie got a call.
She picked it up within the third ring. “Hey, what’s up? Oh… okay. I don’t know.”
“Who is it?” I mouthed.
Covering the phone’s mouthpiece, she whispered, “Keith.”
Keith was Kristie’s new boyfriend. They got hooked up back when I had just met the twins, and from what I’d heard, their relationship was hitting off better than a home run.
She continued talking to him as I awkwardly stood at the doorway with my keys, wondering whether I should open the door or not. As she hung up the call, she flashed me a guilty look. “So…”
“You need to go.” And there was the evil Luck God again, raining down on my parade.
“Yeah, Keith forgot his house keys and he needs me there to open the door for him.”
My jaw dropped slightly. “The both of you have already moved in together? Since when?”
Cringing, she backed away and fiddled with her fingers. “Kind of. I stay at his place sometimes. I’ve got his spare keys.”
“Oh.” I tried to shrug Kristie’s departure off. Her presence helped to calm my nerves, but I couldn’t get too dependent. “I guess that can’t be helped. I’ll see you around?”
“Work has been busy lately. Being Deputy Director isn’t as awesome as it sounds.” The twins managed to get Kristie promoted a few weeks back, right before I found out I was pregnant. She chewed her lower lip. “I might not be free til this weekend.”
“It’s fine. I’ll handle myself.” Not.
Kristie flashed me a mocking smirk. “Sure, I believe you. You’re the worst at handling breakups. Call me when you need someone to talk to, okay? Meetings can wait.”
“I’m not that bad at handling breakups.”
“That guy before Damien. What was his name?”
Darn. That was a one-time incident. I didn’t like her bringing that up. “Brad.”
“I had to get you out of his apartment after you hit him and nearly knocked his door down.”
I grinned playfully.
She sat me down on the sidewalk and wrapped a caring arm around my shoulder. “Let it out, girl.”
“I’m lost, damn it, so damn fucking lost. And I shouldn’t be. Aren’t the twins and I supposed to have a baby together? Shouldn’t they care more, instead of kicking me out without even talking it through? I trusted them more than that. They repeated ‘I love you’ so many times. I thought they actually meant it. Turns out it’s all a scam.” I clenched my fists. Rather than just getting sad again—I’d been drowning myself in that emotion way too much—I got angry and sad at the same time.
“It’s normal. You’ll get over it.”
I gritted my teeth. “I’m afraid I won’t. It’s like I’m cheated. Betrayed.”
“It’s a typical breakup, deary. Breakups suck and hurt like hell, especially if the relationship ended like the way yours did. You will forget them.” She stood up and offered a hand. “Let’s go. I’ll drive you home. I’ll even make you a smoothie.”
***
“Feeling better?” Kristie asked, walking me down the corridor. I’d die without a friend like her. Without her by my side, acting as a godsent angel and sticking it out with me every step of the way, getting through my thousand-and-one breakups would be ten times more painful.
I wiped my face with my tissue. “Much. Thanks for letting me bawl to you in the car. It really helped.” I told her most of what had happened. How perfect things seemed, and our little quarrels. I skipped through the racy bits, filling them up with some white lies, replacing the stories of physical abuse with emotional ones and leaving things vague. She didn’t press much. Instead, she acted as a listener. She knew she didn’t have to keep talking. She only had to let me get my frustrations out.
“You ought to be thankful,” she joked. “Half the tissues in my box are gone.”
I rolled my eyes and grinned. “Sorry about that.” As I took out my keys, Kristie got a call.
She picked it up within the third ring. “Hey, what’s up? Oh… okay. I don’t know.”
“Who is it?” I mouthed.
Covering the phone’s mouthpiece, she whispered, “Keith.”
Keith was Kristie’s new boyfriend. They got hooked up back when I had just met the twins, and from what I’d heard, their relationship was hitting off better than a home run.
She continued talking to him as I awkwardly stood at the doorway with my keys, wondering whether I should open the door or not. As she hung up the call, she flashed me a guilty look. “So…”
“You need to go.” And there was the evil Luck God again, raining down on my parade.
“Yeah, Keith forgot his house keys and he needs me there to open the door for him.”
My jaw dropped slightly. “The both of you have already moved in together? Since when?”
Cringing, she backed away and fiddled with her fingers. “Kind of. I stay at his place sometimes. I’ve got his spare keys.”
“Oh.” I tried to shrug Kristie’s departure off. Her presence helped to calm my nerves, but I couldn’t get too dependent. “I guess that can’t be helped. I’ll see you around?”
“Work has been busy lately. Being Deputy Director isn’t as awesome as it sounds.” The twins managed to get Kristie promoted a few weeks back, right before I found out I was pregnant. She chewed her lower lip. “I might not be free til this weekend.”
“It’s fine. I’ll handle myself.” Not.
Kristie flashed me a mocking smirk. “Sure, I believe you. You’re the worst at handling breakups. Call me when you need someone to talk to, okay? Meetings can wait.”
“I’m not that bad at handling breakups.”
“That guy before Damien. What was his name?”
Darn. That was a one-time incident. I didn’t like her bringing that up. “Brad.”
“I had to get you out of his apartment after you hit him and nearly knocked his door down.”
I grinned playfully.
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