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Breakups were never easy. Alex had to be struggling with the loss of Lance, yet he didn’t talk about it. If he wanted to come out whole at the other end of this trauma, he’d need to work through his issues.
That Thursday, another movie night was in the cards. Mixed drinks waited, and the movie hung on pause, ready to play. Alex was in the shower and the pizza was on the kitchen counter getting cold. He’d been in there a while. She left the couch and went over to knock on the bathroom door.
“Pizza’s here,” she called through the wood.
Grazing her knuckle up and down, she worried for him. When she was in his shower, she didn’t even close the door, much less lock it. Alex did both. That wouldn’t be anything to do with her being heterosexual and everything to do with him needing some privacy. The shower spray could hide any multitude of shames. Not that he should be ashamed. If he needed a good cry, she’d embrace being a shoulder for him, but it didn’t seem he was the type. Some people preferred to keep that kind of vulnerability to themselves. Still, she ached for the pain he must be going through.
No response. Had he heard her? Was he okay in there?
Her phone rang in the bedroom. She ran through and grabbed it up from Alex’s charging dock, not surprised to read Gwenie’s name.
“Hey, sweetie,” she said, sitting on the edge of the bed.
“He did it again,” Gwen growled, her anger right there on the surface. “The asshole.”
She frowned. “Bryan?”
“Who else?”
She hadn’t needed more than one guess. In her friendship group, there was only one person capable of making Gwen angry to such a degree. They’d lived through it so many times. If only there was a way to get Tia out of the destructive relationship. To make her see how bad Bryan was for her.
“He broke up with her?”
“Again. Yeah, and she’s all over the place,” Gwen said. “I don’t know what to do. She won’t stop crying.”
“You need me to bring wine?” she asked, torn between supporting Alex and the similar, more dramatic, need of Tia half a dozen blocks over. “Alex is in the shower.”
“Bring him too. Maybe he can talk some sense into her.”
Shaking her head, she looked toward the door. “He’s going through his own stuff. I don’t want him to be alone, but I don’t want to break him either. Let me talk to him. If he’s okay with being by himself tonight, I’ll come home… I’m sure he’ll say he will be, but to get a proper read, I need to look at him while I ask.”
“Okay,” Gwen said and exhaled. “I don’t know how much more of this she can take. The guy just loves it, putting her through this shit. I’d love to just—”
“I know what you’d love to do; I’d love to do it too. She deserves much more. Much, much more. Being with him is just so damaging. We pick up the pieces every single time. Yet you know he’ll come swanning back into her life in a couple of days, couple of weeks, and she’ll take him back.”
Gwen growled in frustration. “Someone needs to kick him in the ‘nads. Hard… and often.”
Breathing out a sort of laugh, she appreciated how much her friend cared. “I’ll talk to Alex and call you back… or just be home. Soon.”
“Thanks, Rainie. She needs you.”
“I know, thanks for calling.”
After hanging up, she sank back to lie on the bed, clutching the phone to her chest. Relationships were so difficult. They caused so much pain. Were they even worth it? Being with a guy, just for the sake of being with a guy, was a ridiculous notion. She was an optimist. Wasn’t she? Happily ever after was possible. It was… right? Relationships could be built on trust and respect. Anything else just wouldn’t stack up.
Life really was only for the strong.
The bathroom door opened. She sat up just in time to see Alex enter the bedroom, hair wet, small white towel wrapped around his hips.
“Whoa, boy,” she said, grinning as she leaped up, leaving her phone behind.
“What’s up?” he asked, heading for the closet.
“Wait up a second,” she said, rushing over to grab his wrist to draw him back into the bedroom. “You are hot, baby.”
His brows rose. “‘Scuse me?”
She laughed, opening her hand to press it against his defined pec. “You’re always on the phone, rushing over to your desk, dealing with paperwork. I thought that’s what you did all day.”
