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Lucas
The next few days were hell for me. I was absolutely distraught, not knowing what to do without Bernadette by my side.
Should I go after her? Should I forget about her? Should I call her?
I had no idea what to do in this kind of situation and it was killing me. I was assuming that since Bernadette hadn’t contacted me at all that she was doing all right and probably was with her mother.
And maybe things were better this way. I didn’t have to worry about being the one who had broken their relationship apart. But the more that I thought about it, the more that I realized that it wasn’t like that at all.
Because I had broken our relationship apart, and I missed her greatly. I missed her more than I could express in words, in a way that would only make sense when I saw her again and pulled her into my arms. If I ever saw her again.
That was the frightening part. I had no idea if I would ever see the woman that I loved so much again, or if our relationship would go back to being the way it had been before. This made me distracted and sloppy at work, and too restless at home to concentrate on anything.
Then I got a text from Vanessa.
We need to talk. Can we get the group together?
Of course, I replied, thankful for the possibility of a distraction. Can I ask what this is about? Or what’s the occasion?
You know what this is about. Her response came back. It sent chills down my spine and made me consider what it was that she meant. Did I know what this was about or what could it be?
Deep down I knew what it was. Vanessa and Bernadette must have been in contact. I didn’t know whether to be scared or excited at the prospect. Maybe Vanessa would know how I could fix things.
I would gladly follow any advice that she gave me. I trusted her deeply and there hadn’t been a time that I had come to regret that yet.
So, of course, I had to say yes.
All right, we can have everyone over. When do you want to do it?
As soon as possible. I’ll text the group chat to arrange something.
I waited and watched as Vanessa arranged within the group chat for everyone to come to meet at my house tomorrow. I was happy that everyone was going to be getting together again soon but also terrified of what it would bring. I was fully expecting, at this point, to be lectured on what I had done.
Tomorrow came, and I couldn’t concentrate the whole day at work. All day I was just thinking of Bernadette and my friends coming over that evening. I was both excited for it and dreading it. I knew that I had done wrong and that Vanessa would put me in my place. As she always did. Whenever someone had messed up, it was Vanessa who put them in their place again.
And if she messed up, then Rachel would very softly tell her that she had done wrong and she would apologize immediately. It was one of the things I enjoyed about their dynamic.
Finally, evening came, and I drove home from work and then ate dinner and set up some light fare for my friends to eat. I was thinking this would just be an intervention of sorts, so I didn’t think that there was anything else I really needed.
It wasn’t like it was board game or movie night after all.
They all arrived soon, one after the other, gathering at the table with me and snacking. And then, everybody was there.
“Okay,” Vanessa said, making everybody quiet down. “Lucas, I already have a vague idea of what happened, but why don’t you tell everyone about the situation with Bernadette.”
Most of them looked confused and I realized that it was just Vanessa who knew what was going on. It did seem strange that she hadn’t told them, but I guessed it made more sense in a way. It meant that I could listen to the organic reactions of my other friends. And I would probably be more likely to actually follow their advice.
Vanessa was a crafty one, that was for sure.
I sighed. I was going to have to do this sooner or later, and I had a feeling that if I didn’t then Vanessa would just step in and tell the whole story for me.
So, I told them about how Bernadette’s mom had come into the office a few days ago and caught Bernadette and me together. Then I filled them in on how Bernadette’s mother didn’t like me, and Bernadette had been kicked out because she was pregnant.
And finally, the words that had all set it off.
“I thought she might just want to rekindle things with her mother, so I told her that I understood if we needed to break things off. Actually, I said that it might be better. She took that as ‘I wanted to break up with her’ and ran off before I even had a chance to explain.”
Rachel gasped. “That doesn’t seem like you, Lucas, just letting her run off like that.”
