Page 61 of Pretend
No.
He’s the guy who betrayed me and had the nerve to tell me I was a lousy girlfriend.
When I get to my doorstep, I find Bailey hugging her knees, cradling herself with worried lines under her dark eyes.
I roll my eyes when the Uber parks the car in the driveway.
She’s crying? Really?
I thank the Uber driver, getting my bag and hooking it over my shoulder as I try my hardest not to run up to her and rip her to shreds. Instead, I remind myself not to sink to her level and pretend she’s not sitting there sulking in her guilt I want no part of.
As soon as I stand before her, she gets up, brushes off her knees, and wipes her wet cheeks.
“Alessia, please forgive me. I’m sorry, I’ve just been lonely, and your friendship means the world to me.”
“Meant.” I correct her, fighting back tears of my own. I open the door, taking my key out of the hole. “Our friendshipmeantthe world to you. Now we’re strangers. It’s funny how this world works, right? It’s funny how you go from sleepovers, jokes, and thinking you had someone you can lean on until you realize everyone is on their own chasing their own selfish goals, no matter who gets hurt, right?” I step inside and slam the door in her face. Letting my back hit the door, I slide down until I’m sitting, finally succumbing to the hurt I hid last night.
“Please don’t do this. Please don’t drop me from your life,” Bailey begs through the door with muffled pleas.
“No, Bailey!Youdropped me from your life the moment you decided that our friendship wasn’t worth keeping over a guy,” I bellow out, crying. “I told you about him. I told you the things we would go through, how I thought he was lying to me when I had my suspicions, and you were behind it all? Fucking my boyfriend? You can have him, Bailey. I don’t need this.”
“Fine, Alessia! Fine! Drop me! Jack is right. You are stubborn and don’t listen to anyone. No wonder he came crawling to me.”
Oh, God. I’m not going to entertain this any longer. I meant it when I said they’re meant for each other. I don’t need this right now. I’m leaving tonight, and I need to get dressed.
I scoff, licking my teeth and rubbing the tears away. I get up from the floor and head for my bedroom. I promise myself that this will be the last time I’ll ever cry over them.
I open the door, swinging it open, ready to go straight to the bathroom. I tuck my fingers underneath Daegan’s all-black shirt, but a bouquet of black colored sunflowers sits in the center of my kitchen table, wrapped in brown paper with one single bright yellow in the center of them all.
Who? What?
How?
Is this Jack’s lame attempt to apologize? He’s never bought me flowers before, so why start now? If he thinks flowers will get me to crawl back to him, he’s got it all wrong. I no longer want anything from him. I’ve never been so sure of a decision in my life.
I grab the bouquet of flowers, and my phone buzzes.
Unknown: Happy birthday.
It’s my stalker again.
21
ALESSIA
As I searchfor fresh clothes, I notice all of Jack’s things are gone.
Good. There’s not an ounce of me that wants him to still loiter in my home.
I hold a frame of us together at our college graduation and shove it deep into my nightstand drawer, closing it like I’m closing a book, ending the last chapter as Jack and Alessia.
If I can’t have Daegan, I do want to try this thing people call ‘dating.’ I’ve been with the same person since I was in college. I won’t let myself sulk in this heartache I didn’t ask for. I think it’s time for me to evolve and try something new. I won’t make any apologies for the way Ichoose to grow.
I walk outsideto check my mail but find my car sitting in the driveway and a mysterious man in an all-black suit. He has aviator sunglasses on, not one facial hair on his chiseled jaw, dark hair gelled perfectly back, no strand out of place, as he sits on the hood of my car, lighting a cigarette.
How? What the hell is going on? Who does he think he is, and how the hell did my car get here?
“Umm? Excuse me? Who are you, and how the hell did you get my car?”
