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“Brody is my friend.” Even as the words leave me, I know them not to be true. Brody is anything but a friend. He’s a good man to go to for a party, but that’s it.
“You know he’s not, Hunter. He’ll dump you once he’s had his fun.”
I know, I want to say, but I bite my tongue.
“Take it easy with the partying, Hunter,” says Adrien while patting my shoulder. “I worry about you. And Evelyn does, too.”
“Even Evelyn?” I say with a forced smile.
Adrien rolls his eyes and guides me out of the restroom and toward the very long line of people checking in at the Delta kiosk. “Yeah, even Evelyn.”
It’s good to know I still have a friend in Adrien, but would he still be there if he knew the truth about me? What would he say if I told him I’m an addict? Would he dump me? I sigh as I follow him toward the line, not wanting to think about that right now, when I need to focus on getting home. I take out my phone and frown at the missed calls and messages from Rachel, wondering why she still wants to be with me when I am such a fuck-up.
***
Chicago is cold and windy as is expected. My apartment is exactly how I left it—with beer and liquor bottles littering the counter and more bottles surrounding the sofa. The floor is a bit sticky where I spilled vodka a week ago. Clothes clutter the sofa, and more clothes lie forgotten in the hallway.
I stare at the place, hearing nothing but the sound of horns wafting through from the window. After living here for the last few months, this place still doesn’t feel like home. It’s too quiet. There’s no one here to greet me. No one to demand for a game night, or pizza, or to go watch a football game. There’s only me and my loneliness. Nothing more.
I sigh while stalking through the apartment, leaving my suitcase in the middle of the foyer. I dump my body onto the couch, lying fully down and allowing my discarded clothes to comfort me. The place smells like sweat. I’ll definitely have to clean before Rachel and the bros come. The bottles will definitely have to go and the fridge will need to be cleaned—meaning no beer and liquor whatsoever inside this place while they are here.
Thinking of Rachel and the bros, I slide out my phone from my suit jacket and pull up Rachel’s contact information. I missed her phone calls. She’s probably pissed with me, but it doesn’t matter. I want to hear her voice, even if that means we’ll be fighting for the next few hours.
I should tell her what’s going on. This isn’t fair to her. She’s probably thinking I’m cheating on her. I’m definitely lying and keeping secrets from her, which does go hand in hand with cheating. She deserves better than me.
I dial her number and listen to the ringtone, wondering if she will ignore me. She should ignore me. I have been a dreadful boyfriend to her.
“Hey!”
My eyes prickle with tears as I hear her voice. She doesn’t sound angry. She actually sounds excited. “Hey,” I say nervously. “I didn’t think you would pick up.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Well, because.” I frown. Why isn’t she upset?
“You called me last night, silly.”
I blink. I don’t remember doing that. “Yeah?” I say while sitting up.
“Yeah! You don’t remember? I guess it was quite late.”
Shit! Was I really that drunk? Did she notice anything unusual? God, she must have known something was up.
“You did sound pretty exhausted.”
I chuckle nervously. She must really have faith in me if she thinks I’m not drinking.
“Anyway, don’t worry about it, Hunter. I know you’re busy. I just wish we had more communication. But I know you love me and I love you, too.”
“Yeah, good,” I say with a nod as if she’s standing right in front of me.
“I’m so excited to see your place next week!”
My frown deepens. “Next week?”
“Yeah, silly. It’s Thanksgiving.”
“Already?” I shout while looking around at the bottles. I need to clean now. I thought I had at least a couple more weeks, but she’s coming next Wednesday?
