Page 136 of His Cursed Heart

“Yes, Everette, I did those things, but I had to protect the little girl in me. I was raised to think I’m useless. Stupid. Not nearly good enough as her. So, I made the decision to break my heart and let you be happy with my sister.” Her body softens and I can see her shoulders relax. Only it’s not relaxation, it’s tiredness.

“My relationship with Keres felt more like friendship. I couldn’t kiss her freely or hold her when she slept. I couldn’t fuck her. I think my heart always told me that something is wrong, but I chose to ignore it. And if I’m thinking about it, it’s better that Keres was mine first.” Her round eyes fill with tears.

“Because she really made you happy?”

“Because she died, not you!” I snap, my anger making me lose my temper with her. “Because if you die,

I will follow you, Althea. I can’t fucking imagine a life without you anymore. If you were mine from the beginning,”

“I would’ve been the one in the grave.” She whispers.

I nod, the thought of her in a coffin haunting my being.

“Everette,” She whispers and my heart falls.

I desperately wanted Keres to call me like this, to give me the emotions that I felt that day. But now that I hear Althea saying my name, my brain shows me images with her above me, asking me my name. Her sassy Italian accent joking about my name. My mind is full of her, like the last four years never happened.

“Call me Everest.” I beg her.

“What?”

“Call me Everest, Althea.”

Her small fingers grip my face and her forehead rests on mine. “You were never mine the way I was yours, Everest.”

My palms turn into fists and flashbacks are turning my brain in a TV screen. For the first time in four years, I have visions about that day. About Althea.

Her brown eyes looking alert at me, her fingers holding and slapping lightly my face, her shaky voice that tried to keep me awake, her plead for me to not die. The minutes that made me fall for Althea are back in my mind and all I want to do is crush her to my body tightly and never let her go.

But a part of me is selfish and wants to be mad at her. Mad because we wasted four years of our lives, hurt because she lied to me about something so big. My heart feels betrayed and for once, all I want to do is to drink until I forget all that happened.

I let go of her neck, looking at her broken face one

more time.

I let out a painful sigh, turning toward the door.

“Where are you going?” Her panicked voice almost stopping me.

“I have no idea.”

“Everette please,”

“I just need to clear my head, Althea.” I say roughly.

“You’ll come back, right?” Her scared face almost makes me fall on my knees. I want to ignore her, or to say that I won’t be back soon, but I can’t stand seeing her look like a broken doll.

“I will.”

She says I was never hers like she was mine, but my heart started beating for the first time when her fingers gripped my face, four years ago.

"You said we'll be drinking and yet I don't see any shots in front of us."

I roll my eyes at Allan's displeasure and I continue looking out of the window, staring at the lights of Chicago.

After leaving Althea in our bedroom, I texted Allan to meet me at my parents’ house. I had no intention on drinking or going into one of his clubs, but I had to convince him to come here.

Fortunately, Emmeline isn't here and neither are my parents. I don't have the energy to explain to them how fucked up my life has been this past four years.

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