Page 8 of The Fool

“Yeah, and the Nate who tried dirty dancing with Mick to piss him off when he was working?” Lily adds.

My eyes bulge over the thought of seeing a fun-loving and carefree Nathaniel Carter. However, I soon feel the heat of him glaring in my direction, as if to warn me to never mention what I’ve just been privy to again. Trust me, I wouldn’t risk having to engage with him any more than I have to. When it comes to Nathaniel Carter, I stick to professional talk, and even then, I keep it to the bare minimum.

“Good afternoon, ladies,” he utters as he turns his back and waves, returning to his office with a bounce in his step.

“I know I’m going to pay for that later,” I mumble to myself, only to see that Callie and Lily must have heard me, given the confused expressions on their faces. I offer nothing more than a fake smile and quickly shuffle out the door to avoid any questions about it. They only know the Nathaniel Carter who is loved by all, who am I to give them the other version of him?

She’s a nobody who thought she could do better; what a bitch. Dean deserves so much better. She should go and crawl under a rock and die somewhere. Slut!

No one, that’s who. I’m nobody.

_____

Bea

After a short walk away from theMedina Technologiesbuilding, we reach a small café and take a seat in one of the booths to have our lunch. It’s a beautiful day so everyone has decided to sit on the veranda out front, which means the café itself is quiet. It’s a place I usually come to when I get to have a rare lunch with Finn. In fact, it was the very first place we came to after our first group therapy meeting; we often argue over who introduced who to it. It sells all the normal lunch stuff - sandwiches, salads, baked potatoes, fries, plus a huge selection of ridiculously delicious cakes and cookies. Alas, I settle for ordering a salad today, only because I feel under pressure to at least look like I give a shit about what I eat.

“Green salad, please,” I tell the waiter.

To my surprise, Callie and Lily look at me like I just ordered grilled roadkill, which to be fair, would probably be far tastier. I can’t say I’m looking forward to stomach rumbles all afternoon, but perhaps Nathaniel will allow me five minutes to go and raid the vending machines.

“Chicken and avocado baguette, please, with sweet potato fries,” Callie orders, not giving two shits about calories or fat content.

Girl could lose some weight too. Have you seen how much she eats at lunch? She might hang with the boys, but it doesn’t mean she can eat like one.

“Ooh, sounds good,” Lily says, “I’ll have what she said but with sweet potatochips.” She grins smugly while Callie rolls her eyes. Lily is from England but moved over here when she was a teenager. Her accent can be a little strange sometimes, but ultimately, she sounds British.

“Can I scrap my order, please?” I quickly ask the waiter, trying to block out the negativity of my past. Finn is constantly reminding me to be in the present; to not listen to my history. “I’ll have the ham and cheese toasted sandwich and regular fries, please.”

The waiter gives me a quick nod and a wink before taking the order through to the kitchen. I bet he’s laughing at me, but at least I can’t see it.

“Good girl!” Callie laughs before taking a sip of her soda.

“So, Cameron says you’re both ready for your wedding, Lily, you must be so excited.” I give her a beaming smile, which is beginning to feel real instead of one made from anxiety.

“Yeah, most of it is done,” she says casually, and with a wave of her hand.

“Are you nervous?” I ask. Getting married must be exciting, not that I’ll ever know. I won’t let a man near me; I would say that’s a pretty big barrier to my getting married.

“Nope,” she replies with a shrug of her shoulders. “But, since you asked, we were wondering if you would like to be Callie’s guest. If you’re not busy, that is.”

“I’m a totally fun wedding guest; I’ll look after you,” Callie adds with a grin. Knowing what little I do know about Callie, I don’t doubt her.

“Really?” I can’t help smiling, probably with too many teeth on show. In fact, I suddenly feel overcome with emotion. “I don’t know what to say, that’s really sweet of you. I’ve never been to a wedding before.”

“Oh, you’ll love it,” Callie says with a smile written all over her face. “Two words - free bar!” She then winks at me, and I can’t help but laugh. Her fun and happy attitude is incredibly infectious.

“So, is that a yes?” Lily asks, looking genuinely excited by the prospect. I can’t remember the last time I had girlfriends, except Leah, but I’ve always considered her friendship mandatory because of Ben. As much as I love her, I don’t believe she would choose to be friends if it wasn’t for my relationship with him.

“I’d love to, thank you,” I finally reply, but then my heart drops and I feel the smile slip from my face. It must be obvious too, for their confused expressions are now staring at me for some sort of explanation.

“What’s wrong? Do you have other plans?” Lily asks with concern written all over her face.

“No, nothing like that, but…” How do I put my worries into words that won’t paint her future brother-in-law and friend into the cold bastard he usually is to me? “Well, it’s just that…I’m not so sure Nathaniel will be pleased to see me there.”

“Oh, screw Mr Moody Pants,” Callie says, swatting her hand out in front of her. “Plus, we won’t tell him. It’s not like it’s a work thing, is it?”

I nod my head, even though I’m totally unconvinced by her words.

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