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I sigh, and play with the ends of my hair. “Fine. But we better not be going to the one place in town I refuse to go to.”
“Of course not,” Ally assures me, waving her hand in the air. “We’re not dumb.”
Locking up, we step out onto the porch, and I breathe in the fresh, pine scented air – my lungs taking in the sweet, tangy smell like they haven’t in weeks.
I fold myself into the back seat of Ally’s car and watch the trees blur by. I know it’s time I get back to the real world, and I know my friends mean well and are just looking out for me, but I don’t know if I’ll ever feel like I did when I was with him again. And I guess I just have to accept that.
I’ve been lost in thought, just staring out the window at nothing in particular, when it hits me where we just parked.
“No. You said we weren’t going here,” I say, a slight panic in my voice.
“Mel, you need to face him. This has gone on for too long, and your stubbornness will only further your misery. He’s miserable, you’re miserable, and you both need to talk.”
“He’s miserable?” I ask, sounding hopeful. Damn it, I’m given a crumb of information, and I grab at it like a whole damn cookie.
“Yes,” Ally says, looking at me in the rearview mirror.
“How do you know?”
“Because I saw him when I went out with Courtney after work last weekend. And I hear the gossip in the café. He’s being short with customers, borderline rude, not smiling or laughing like usual, and he looks distant.”
She must see the tears swimming in my eyes because she continues. “He’s not the same, Mel. And neither are you. If this was over between you two, wouldn’t one of you be relieved and somewhat happy?”
I don’t answer her. I don’t need to. Because the answer is yes, one of us would at least feel fine. And if what she’s saying is true, then I have to see it for myself.
I look at the front door of the bar with trepidation.
“You’ve got this, Mel. Don’t let him take your new life from you. Talk to him. See what happens. And if he fucked up like you think, then we’ll get obliterated and I’ll make sure all our drinks are free.” Ash shrugs, and we all climb out of the car.
“Thanks, guys,” I say to them, and they both give me winning smiles.
“We’ve got your back, Mel,” Ally tells me, and they link their arms with me as we walk towards the door.
I let them go in ahead of me, and then I sneak in after. I step into the shadows next to the door, and while everyone looks at Ally and Ash, I stay hidden. I don’t want looks of pity, and I don’t want any extra attention drawn to me.
It’s a busy Friday night, and we weave our way through the people and tables until we reach the far right table in the corner we occupied the first time we came here. It gives me a view of the place without being in the thick of it.
Keeping my head semi-down, I take a minute to muster the courage to look over at the bar, and the second I do, my heart squeezes in my chest at the sight of him.
My god, he’s beautiful.
His hair is messy like he’s been running his hands through it, his face is hard with his jaw set, and a scowl rests on his perfect lips, that if I try, I can still feel on mine.
His beard is overgrown, and I can see the tired set of his eyes, but all-in-all, he still looks like my perfect man.
“He looks fine to me,” I whisper.
“Mel, he looks like a fucking mess,” Ash says in disbelief. “You can’t see that? Or are you too lovesick to notice that shit?”
“Ashley,” Ally sighs, hitting her in the arm.
“We said tough love, Al,” she fires back, and Ally nods.
“I see it, but he still looks good.”
Laughing, Ashley shakes her head. “I’ll go get us some drinks, then,” she states, standing.
She makes her way up to the bar, and when Alex sees her, his scowl deepens.
