Page 101 of Just for Fun
“I insulted Zara on purpose,” he admits when I don’t say anything. “I wanted to prove to you that I was right about her…”
“You insulted her way before you even met her in person,” I remind him. “Those drawings…”
“They’re badass,” he cuts me off. “I knew they were of her. I hated her on sight just because I don’t trust any women, no matter who they are.”
This is a lot more than he’s ever been willing to share about the demons in his head.
“What about the girls?” He’s been acting normal around them. “Evie and Carrie, and…”
Alex lets out a heavy sigh. “I’m just always waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“They always leave…”
“Not always,” I snort. “My parents have been married for thirty-two years. And I’ll have you know that my mom is awesome.”
He laughs a little, but it sounds forced. “Your mom is the exception.”
Running my hands through my hair, I pull at it until it hurts. Alex is fucked up, and he decided to ruin what I had with Zara only to prove to himself that he was right.
“You only hate women?” I finally ask. “Or all the people in general?”
“I…” He doesn’t know what to say. “I hate my mother.”
I pull on my hair harder and drop my forehead against the steering wheel. I don’t know if it’s my brain not working or his.
“What the fuck does Zara have to do you with mother?”
“I always assume all women are like her.” He sounds ashamed by the confession. “I never give them the benefit of the doubt because what’s the point, right?”
I snort. “Not even fuckin’ close.”
“I guess I didn’t want you to get hurt…”
“Oh, that’s fuckin’ rich, man. You were brutal to this poor girl. You destroyed her! And your excuse was that you were doing me a favor?”
I start laughing like lunatic.
“I know that doesn’t sound right, but I’m sorry to say, right before she left, she called some dude named Owen. He was coming to get her, so…”
I think I just popped a vein. My eye is twitching, and it is safe to say that I shouldn’t be driving right now. Chances of me getting into an accident are high due to the extreme anger I feel.
“Owen is her brother.” I don’t know how, but I do manage to grind that out.
Alex is startled into silence. “What?”
“Brother!” I yell, an instant headache settles in the back of my head. “Owen is her brother!”
Alex clears his throat nervously. “I didn’t know that.”
“How would you fuckin’ know? You just assumed a bunch of garbage, then decided there was no way you could be wrong.”
He stays quiet for a little longer. “I’m really sorry, man,” he sighs. “I’ll call her and make it right to you.”
My hands clench on the wheel. “Please don’t fuckin’ try to help me anymore. You did enough.”
I don’t wait for him to respond. Instead, I disconnect the call and lean back. I try to brainstorm on a way to get back with Zara, but I am lost. Also, if this ever ends well for me, I will call the rest of the group so we can stage an intervention for Alex. He’s fucked up, and he needs to know just how bad.
