Page 11 of Quarantine Crush
Ihuddle in the corner of the bathroom, my knees pulled tightly to my chest. The rest of the house is quiet, and I try to hold back the sound of my sniffling.
I’m such an idiot.
The sound of Knox’s voice, low and rumbly, reaches me from the other end of my apartment, and I tense. He’s talking to someone. Probably telling them all about how much of a fool I am.
Anxiety curls in my gut, and my heart pounds so hard that I’m afraid it’s going to break through my rib cage and tear out of my body. Or maybe it already has. The ache I feel at Knox’s rejection is soul-crushing. So much worse than I ever imagined. Having my heart ripped out would probably hurt less than this. At least, it would put me out of my misery.
I’m so screwed.
I’m certain that any second now, Knox will come barging in here and demand an explanation. And then, I’ll have to tell him the whole story with words like “unrequited” and “secret crush.” It’s humiliating.
Not to mention, the video–
Shit!
The video!
I fumble with my phone, hurrying to pull up the app. One glance at my account, and I groan with renewed horror. The number of views on the video is in the hundreds already.
Which means I was wrong. Thiscanget worse.
I delete the video, but before I can figure out my next move, my phone rings. I silence it, biting my lip at the sudden noise it made. Hadley’s name flashes on the screen, and I know without a doubt she’s calling because she saw the live-stream.
I can’t deal with her right now.
The ringing stops as the call goes to voicemail. A few seconds later, my phone chimes with a text.
Hadley: Do you need me to help you hide a body? My boss owns a house with oceanfront property.
I roll my eyes and fire off a response, knowing she’ll show up here if I keep ignoring her.
Me: The only body I need help burying is yours. I can’t believe I let you talk me into this! I’m never taking your advice again.
Hadley: I give excellent advice! In fact, I should dethrone Knox as your very best friend.
I ignore her and blow out a breath.
Minutes pass, and I finally register the stiffness in my ass just before it goes numb. I need to move.
With slow, hesitant movements, I push to my feet and exit the bathroom. The bedroom lights are off, and I don’t bother turning them on. Crawling into bed, I draw up the covers until I’m buried beneath them.
Like I’m buried beneath my own failure.
A text lights up my screen, and I sigh, wondering what Hadley wants now before looking at my phone.
My brows bunch when I see the name on the screen.
Knox: Sweet dreams, Emy. See you tomorrow. P.S. We need more beer.
I exhale.
His text is so . . . normal.
It makes me wonder if I’ve somehow blown the whole thing out of proportion. Is it possible that he bought my whole “it was a joke” excuse? Maybe I’m smoother than I thought. The thought bolsters my confidence. Even though my heart is breaking with the knowledge that Knox isn’t interested in being more than my friend, a sliver of hope worms its way into my heart. Maybe we can make it through this visit with our friendship intact. Maybe, just maybe, everything will look better tomorrow. Especially if I act like today never happened. I can do that . . . right?
5
Knox
