Page 32 of Like Home
Duncan’s glazed blue eyes turn to me and he spits, “Who the fuck are you?”
“Ryan Garett.”
Something like recognition lights his eyes. “Oh shit. You’re the guy that bitch is sleepin’ with!”
“If you’re talking about Summer, I’d use her name if I were you,” I say, my voice lowering an octave.
Duncan steps up to me, nearly toe to toe, and puffs up like an overblown rooster. He’s a much shorter man, so he has to look up at me when he’s this close. He seems to lose a little steam when he realizes how much bigger I am. “Listen, man, there’s no reason to throw a fit over her.I dunno what she told you, but she’s still with Jared. Howshecan have two guys after her I’ll never know, but get out while you can. I never trusted that b-” he looks at me and despite his drunkenness, wisely adjusts his words. “Woman.”
I sigh heavily and say, “She’s not with Jared anymore. Summer wouldn’t do that.” I take a step back, not wanting to cause a scene.
He laughs, an ugly, braying sound reminiscent of a donkey. “Damn. You poor sucker.” He tips back his mug to swallow the last dregs of his beer. “She’s got you wrapped around her finger too, huh? What is it with that chick?” He leans haphazardly against the wall, belching in a way that tells me he’s about a second from puking.
“What do you have against her? You act like she broke up with you,not your friend.” I cross my arms.
He flings himself off the wall in my direction, poking a finger intomy chest, “Now you just shut the hell up!” Spittle flies in my face and I’m about two seconds from decking him. Luke must read my face, because he gets between us and guides Duncan outside. Duncan sloppily pulls against him the whole way, but eventually follows him out the door like a toddler throwing a tantrum in the middle of a store.
I’m still fuming when Victor pops up, a pitcher of beer in hand. “What happened? Where’s Luke going?” He sets the pitcher on the tabletop that lines the wall.
Chris says, “Duncan spilled beer all over Ryan and then insulted Summer. He said she was two-timing him and Jared.”
Before I can even start to defend her, Victor scoffs and says, “No way. There’s no way she’d do that.” I instantly like Victor even more than I did before.
“Exactly. She knows my relationship history. She wouldn’t do that to me or anyone else,” I say, pouring myself a beer from the pitcher. Despite my shirt sticking to my back, I won’t let Duncan ruin the night for me.
“He was just piss drunk,” Chris says, waving his hand, “He’s never liked Summer either. Duncan didn’t really pay her any attention until our senior year of high school when Jared and Summer started dating. Jared started spending all his free time with her, and I guess Duncan didn’t like being on the back burner. Especially once they had their daughter, Ellie?”
“Emma,” I correct.
“Emma, right. Anyway, once they had her, Jared obviously had even less time for his friend. And since Summer didn’t like Duncan either, they only ever got to hang when they played video games or occasionally on the weekend.” Victor and Chris start adding chalk to the ends of their pool cues.
“How do you know all this?” I ask, taking a sip of the cool beer and feeling my shoulders creep down from my ears.
Chris shrugs and says, “Most people in town know at least some of it. I work with Jared and have for the last few years, so Iheard the rest from him. We aren’t exactly friends, but we talk at work sometimes.”
“So, you don’t care that I’m with Summer now?” I ask. I never thought to see how these guys feel about Jared or if they have any sort of bond with him. It makes me a little nervous now that I know he and Jared are acquaintances. I hope I haven’t alienated one of my first real friends in years.
“Nah. As long as you guys are happy, who cares? Jared and Summer have been on a downward spiral for a long time. Maybe they’ll both be happier apart,” Chris says, shrugging and lining up his shot. I nod, thankful that I didn’t mess up a new friendship. I sit quietly for a while, watching their game unfold. The Taproom has gotten much quieter since it seems there’s a break in the karaoke singing. Music plays at a volume low enough to allow people to talk without shouting, alternating between pop hits and classic rock.
We’re having a good time, but it’s hard not to replay Summer telling me that Jared kissed her last week. I know she said that she feels done with him, but what if I really am just a rebound? Just a pit stop before getting back with him or finding someone better? Last I heard, Lydia and her British dude got married. Maybe that's all I’m good for: A last bit of fun before settling down. Even if Summer wouldn’t do that on purpose, I can’t deny that I think about it.
Once their game is halfway over and my beer is nearly gone, Luke comes back shaking his head full of shaggy brown hair. “That guy is an idiot. Glad you didn’t hit him,” he says, pulling a chair up to sit next to me. I’m glad for the interruption because I was going down a road that would only end in me being upset. Luke pours himself a beer and refills mine afterward. We clink our glasses in a silent toast that tonight hadn’t ended in violence.
“Yeah me too,” I sigh, “I wanted to though. Even if I wasn’t dating Summer I’d want to punch him for talking about anyonelike that.” My anger stokes, remembering the words Duncan said tonight.
“I get it. I really do. Honestly, I think Duncan had a thing for Summer before Jared got with her back in high school. I don’t think he took too well to losing the girl he was interested in and his best buddy all at once,” Luke shares, fiddling with his glass of beer.
I ask, “What makes you say that? Chris said he didn’t pay her any attention until she started dating Jared.”
“I was in the same Spanish class where they did a group project that brought Summer and Jared together. From an outsider’s perspective, it was pretty clear that they both liked her, but I think she was oblivious. I don’t know if Jared and Duncan ever talked about it, but one day it seemed like Jared and Summer were a thing, and then Duncan hated Summer all of a sudden.”
“If they were fighting over her, how did they stay friends?” I wonder.
“I honestly don’t know. Like I said, I have no clue if they ever talked it out or if Jared just went for it. Duncan and Jared have been friends for so long, they probably were able to work it out.” Luke shrugs.
“Doesn’t explain why he hates her either. I mean, come on, a girl from high school rejects you and you hold a grudge for years after? Seems insanely petty,” I say with a shake of my head.
“Not to defend him, but Duncan didn’t exactly have the best home life growing up. A drunk for a dad, and his mom never stood up for him when he got under his old man’s foot. And I guess small towns make rejection a lot harder. Especially if that girl dates your best friend. He also clearly has an alcohol problem, which is not exactly known for boosting critical thinking skills,” Luke says. At my look of incredulity, he continues, “I’m not defending him. I think he’s a total jackass. I honestly wouldn’t have blamed you for decking him tonight if it came to that. I’m just thinking out loud.”
