My phone’s in the air, thrown out of frustration without a second thought. With a loudthud, it lands on the living room carpet.
“Shit!” I wail. The last thing I need today is a broken phone on top of everything else.
The front door hits me in the back.
“Laur?” Libby's voice calls, trying to open the door and hitting me again.
“One second,” I blubber, dragging myself a few feet forward on the floor.
“Can I come in now?” Libby inquires softly through the crack in the door.
“Okay,” I respond, choking back tears.
The second Libby lays eyes on me, puffy-eyed and distraught in our entry way, she bends down beside me. “Laur, what’s wrong?”
My answer gets lost as I break down in tears. Libby tries to calm me, rubbing my back in a soothing motion and telling me everything will be okay. I pray she’s right.
Slowly, I move from sprawled on the floor to sitting, resting my head on Libby’s shoulder. The tears still stream down my face.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Libby asks quietly.
“I need a tissue,” I snivel.
Libby immediately stands, going to the bathroom and grabbing me the entire box of issues.
“Thanks,” I mumble, blowing my nose so hard it hurts.
My phone rings and Bren’s name comes across the screen, but I need a minute to gather myself.
“Will you still be free in fifteen minutes?” I bawl into the phone, my voice hoarse and distraught.
“What’s wrong, Laur?” Bren’s bubbly voice, a gentle whisper.
“Will you still be free in fifteen minutes?” I ask again with a sniffle.
“Yeah,” Bren starts, but before she can say another word, I tell her I’ll call her back.
Every muscle in my body aches as I get up off the ground. Handing Libby back the box of tissues, I tell her I’m going to take a shower, then will fill her and Bren in at the same time. I need time to process this before I talk.
My tears mix with the warm water as it runs down my body. Question after question plagues my mind.
Why is she here?
Did she know who I was?
Is she still in love with him?
Will she try to win him back?
My heart breaks wrapping my mind around the last question. Even if she does want him back, Lucas loves me. The little he shared about Raven wasn’t positive, I doubt he would be interested even if I wasn’t in the picture, which brings me back to the first question again.
“What the hell is she doing here?” I whisper to the shower walls, wishing they would give me the answers, so I don’t have to talk to her to find out.
With sopping wet hair, I pull on my comfiest sweatshirt that technically belongs to Lucas and head down the stairs. Each step makes me more mopey.
“She’s out of the shower,” Libby says into her phone. “Here, sweetie.” She hands me a cup of piping hot liquid. “I made you some tea.”
Taking the mug from her, I instantly place it on the counter. “Thanks, but it’s at least ninety degrees outside.”
