AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He sighed. “I need another cigarette.”
“I don’t have any cigarettes,” she said.
He scratched his neck. “I didn’t do this to you.”
“What?”
“I might have fucked people, but I didn’t… I didn’t let anyone in. I saved that for you.”
“Oh,” she said. “So, I was supposed to understand that? I was supposed to know that we were free, and we weren’t in a relationship, but that I was supposed to keep my heart only for you? Because that’s not what you said to me.”
“No, I…” He nodded. “You’re right. I fucked up. I guess I didn’t realize…”
“You liked it because it was unequal,” she said. “You liked it because you had me, and you also had them. But I was really never allowed to have anyone else.”
“No.”
She raised her eyebrows.
He sighed. “I don’t know.” He shook his head. “I’m going to go buy some cigarettes.”
“Okay,” she said.
“You’re not coming with me?”
“You want me to?”
He sighed again. “Maybe he’s a phase. Maybe you work this out and we get through it—”
“I don’t think so. I think even if it doesn’t work out with him, you and me are never going to be—”
“But we’reus, Dahlia. That doesn’t change. We promised each other—”
“You’re right,” she said. “That doesn’t change. We’reus.”
He sniffed. He swiped the heel of his hand across his cheekbone, not looking at her. “No more fucking, then. I can do that. And, uh, if he makes you happy… you know, I’ll figure out how to be happy for you.”
She gave him a small smile. “Don’t buy cigarettes.”
“Fuck it, you just dumped me, I can buy cigarettes.”
She sighed. “I did not dump you.”
He pulled her close and kissed her forehead. “I’ll miss you,” he whispered. Then he backed off, sniffing again, not meeting her gaze. “We need to get a roommate.”
“Yeah,” she said. “We do.”
ix.
NILES LEANED AGAINSTthe bar in the front room of the Mecklenberg and watched as Dahlia and Tommy walked up to the door. He watched as Tommy kissed her temple and then went out the front door, leaving her alone.
She turned to look at Niles. Shrugged. Came over to stand next to him.
He wasn’t sure what to do. Were they pretending not to be in a thing with each other? That was the bargain, right? But, they worked together. They were friends. So, he could acknowledge her. “Hey,” he said.
“Hey,” she said.
The bartender came over. It was Lucy.
