Page 10 of I Love You, It’s Ruining My Life

I let myself fall into the rhythm of the class, stretching out my stress and breathing out my anger. I was calmer by the time we finished; my anxiety seemed to melt away over the course of the hour. It was replaced by my muscles screaming and a desperate need for water, the direct result of not looking at today’s difficulty level before joining. The rest of the class trickled out as I tried not to think about how sore I was going to be tomorrow when Misty plopped herself at the end of my mat.

“You’re a one-class-a-week girlie, what’s going on that couldn’t wait until I was off work?” Misty asked, her gaze practically infiltrating my soul.

“Kameron sent me a typewriter,” I sighed, glad a lot of what I was feeling didn’t come rushing back now that I was being forced to talk about it.

“What does that even mean?” Misty asked, blinking a few times, “Is this some innuendo you book people use?”

“I mean, he sent a literal typewriter,” I explained, “It’s in my car right now if you don’t believe me.”

“Why?” she asked, her eyebrows scrunching together in confusion. “He does know most people don’t use typewriters, right? I don’t think I’ve ever even seen one outside of an old movie.” I hadn’t realized Misty didn’t know about my old obsession with typewriters, but as I thought back, it suddenly made sense. She’d moved here the last semester of our senior year, while I was still recovering from everything that happened. It hadn’t made sense to share a lot about my friendship with Kameron, especially when she’d immediately had my back when it came to some of the RaineFall backlash I was still getting.

“You know I gave up trying to be an author forever ago,” I said, and she nodded in confirmation. “Kameron doesn’t know that. He apparently thinks I have books in the library and am writing under some secret pen name. When we were younger, I was obsessed with typewriters. To the point I insisted when I was an author, I’d always type my first draft out on one. Which I’m assuming is why he got it.”

“So… it’s not a random typewriter,” Misty asked, clearly not really understanding where the conversation was going, “Is this some kind of weird BookTok hookup thing?”

“Ew!” I grimaced, the whole idea of hooking up with Kameron giving me the ick. Though if I were completely honest, the idea of hooking up with anyone gave me the ick. “And no! Even if it was, which again, it is not; I don’t think he'd kn..”

“Kameron broke your heart when you were seventeen,” Misty interrupted with a kind but sad smile. My eyes widened; I was certain I'd never told her that. Not when it was a secret I swore I’d take to my grave. Not when everyone cast me as the villain who ruined Jack. “You’re afraid of him doing it again. Whether it’s romantic or platonic, you’re afraid to put your heart on the line.”

“How do you know? I never told you about my old crush on Kameron!” I hissed, looking around the room to make sure nobody heard me.

“It was just a theory until right this second. But you were so obvious,” Misty chuckled. “If this had been anyone else, they would've held the grudge against Jack. But the one you hate the most? Kameron. And not even in a “he let his brother name a breakup song after you” way. Like in a way that was clearly more personal.”

“I do have a grudge against Jack,” I defended, not wanting her to be right. “And if I wanted to be read for filth, I’d be talking to Peri right now.”

“You’re just mad because I’m right,” Misty smugly said, punctuating with her sticking her tongue out at me in the most immature way. “And I’m willing to bet a month’s worth of yoga classes you’re still kind of crushing on him, and that’s why you’re mad he’s back.”

“I am not!” I yelled in a way I knew Misty would take as undeniable proof, “We’re both completely different people from who we were in high school. And he’s married. Or was married. He has a kid. Everything about him screams “off limits.””

“But he’s single,” Misty said with a smirk, “And single dads are hot.”

“I am not going to date Kameron Raine,” I insisted, “Why would I?”

“He got you a typewriter,” my best friend smirked at me, “And for you, that’s super romantic.”

“Ugh. No.” I said, getting up. Or attempting to get up. My legs almost gave out the moment I was standing, and I was starting to worry I wouldn’t be able to walk in the morning. “It’s not happening.”

“Never say never!” I heard Misty call after me, and while I’d hoped talking to her would help, I was starting to think I should’ve gone to Peri. In fact, my emotions were all twisted into a question of whether or not Misty was actually right.

So much for her being my emotional validation friend.

The more I thought about it, the more I was convinced she didn’t know what she was talking about. I did not want to date Kameron Raine. I did not want to get involved in his drama. And I especially did not trust he’d ever have my best interests at heart.

The typewriter case stared at me from my front seat, and the moment I got home, I shoved it in my closet where I wouldn’t see it. I didn’t want to manage Kameron’s guilt or his apology. I wanted him to leave me alone. And it'd be nice if the universe finally got on board with the memo.

Chapter eight

Kameron

Coming to One Page felt like a mistake. Growing up, it'd been my home away from home — where Nalini and I'd hang out when her mother was being too much, or I needed a break from my family. Walking in now felt like walking into a time capsule. It still had the same comfy chairs, now worn with age. The same bookshelves, meticulously taken care of so a spot of dust would never touch the books. Even the same bookseller, an older man who kept glaring at me any time Cassidy took a breath. Not that Mr. Robinson was mad at her, he was rather attentive, it was just another person in Briar Hill who seemed to hate me.

It was exhausting.

I hadn’t expected everyone to be excited that I was back. But the animosity was shocking — between the constant glares and sneers, I was starting to wonder how I'd managed to wrong an entire town. The few people who'd accepted my appearance were newer to Briar Hill and didn’t seem to know the history I’d unknowingly left behind when I left. Briar Hill wasn’t a town that forgave easily, and I was starting to give up on ever being accepted back.

The good news was none of animosity had spread to Cassidy — she seemed to have every adult wrapped around her little finger. And if the town could only like one of us, I was glad it was her.

The only reason I’d made my return to One Page Bookstore was for Cassidy — her new friend Liam had invited her to play in his Dice & Dragons game, and his parents assured me there was enough of a selection here for her to get started easily. She’d cornered Mr. Robinson the moment we walked in, independently asking where she could find the materials before launching into an explanation of the rogue princess dragon she was planning on playing. I didn’t understand half of what she talked about when it came to this game, and I planned on sneaking the source books out of her room once she fell asleep to attempt to figure it out. She’d be the sixth kid in the group, and two she already knew from the YWG. It made me glad Cassidy found a group of friends who accepted her. Dragon obsession and all.