She takes off and I’m momentarily boosted by her positive attitude, but soon enough, reality hits and I’m right back to feelinglikecrap.
They finally call my name and I take up my drink. No sooner do I spin around than I bump into the one person I could go a lifetime without ever seeingagain.
“Oh, it’s you.” I scowl up at my ex. I used to live and die by the intervals of time when Justin and I could finally be together, and now I’m slightly repulsed by the sightofhim.
“Hey, did you get a load of who’s sitting over there?” He hitches his thumb behind him and I glance back, nearly falling through the floor. It’s dizzying seeing the one you love sitting with the onetheylove, and itisn’tyou.
“Oh my shit!” I jump just as Knox glances over, and our eyes lock. A current as heavy as the ocean travels between us—magnetically charged, electric, and maybe even fatal. It snaps and sizzles and threatens to explode the entire building to smithereens with all the sparks it’sputtingoff.
“What’s he doing with her?” Justin gruffs it out as if the sight pisses him off as much as it does me. “Never mind. It looks like she got her way. Shealwaysdoes.”
Knox winces at the two of us, then proceeds to glare over at Justin. And in a moment of insanity, I realize what I havetodo.
“Come here.” My arms wrap around his back so fast that my drink nearly goes flying. I take my free hand and smash his head to mine until my lips find his, and it’s all I can do not to throw up. I’ve kissed these lips a thousand times, and never before have they repulsed me, but right now I’d rather be kissing a raccoon’s bunghole while having my eyes scratched out with its razor sharp claws. But this? This is a necessary evil. Then in a moment of spectacular, heartbreaking clarity, I realize I am kissing someone who was once my boyfriend to make someone else who was once my boyfriend jealous—a bizarre role reversal from the last few weeks, and an all-around mindfuck. I’m kissing Justin to make Knox insane when just a few short weeks ago I was kissing Knox to make Justin lose his mind. I think it’s safe to say the only person who has lost her mindisme.
No sooner do I push Justin away than a fist hooks into his chin, and before I know it, a full-blown brawl is taking place right here in front of the coffee counter between Knox and Justin. Fists are flying, girls are screaming, employees are threatening to call the police. A few guys, buff enough to be on the football team, struggle to break it up, but Knox is fighting with wild abandon, with so much fury, so much passion I’m afraid he’ll be charged with a felony before the night is through. I’d throw myself into the heap to try to stop the assault, but I’m not certifiable. I like my nose just where Godputit.
Jen staggers over in all her tiny troll glory, skintight latex dress, heels so high they make me dizzy lookingatthem.
“Stop fighting!” Her helium-inspired voice sounds like a fire alarm, and both boys momentarily glance up at her. “You will not fight over me! I’m done with both of you!” She gives a quick look at the crowd amassed around us. “I am officially breaking up with these two buffoons!” Her eyes stray to the beefy boys whose chests are still puffed from trying to break up the brawl. “As of now, I am officially on the market, boys!” She steps over Justin’s leg on her way to the front, and my jaw hits thefloor.
She’s breaking up with both of them? That means she just kicked Knox to the curb for asecondtime.
The commotion stops, and Knox gets up before holding a hand out toJustin.
Justin glares at it a moment before accepting, and Knox helps him tohisfeet.
“I’m sorry about that.” Knox sags as he looks to Justin. “I got a little carried away.” He looks over to me with pain in his eyes, something far deeper than physical wounds can provide. “So, is this thing between the two of you”—he swallows hard, and his Adam’s apple goes for a ride—“is itbackon?”
“No,” both Justin and I answer in unison, and I pause to scowl overathim.
“No?” Knox keeps those baby blues glued to mine, and his cheek rises on one side with the hint of a wickedsmile.
The crowd dissipates, the employees get back behind the counter, and so far no signs of any cops storming theplace.
“Take it outside next time!” someone shouts from the back, but both Knox and I are too busy getting lost in oneanother’seyes.
“I’m outta here.” Justin takes off without another word, and just like that, both Justin and Janelle are out of our lives for good. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping. But it doesn’t change the fact my heart is still lying at my feet in a thousand shatteredpieces.
“You want to take it outside?” I try to sound pissed, ready for a fight myself, but it comes out weak, pathetic, reeking ofdesperation.
“No.” His cheeks depress a moment, right along with my heart. “I want to take it over here.” Knox picks up my hand and leads me in haste to the side of the establishment closest to the windows, to a table filled with two of my sisters fromKappaG.
“No, no, no.” He has a momentary freak-out. “Where is it? The box. It was sittingrighthere.”
“Eww—was that yours? One of the baristas came by and tossed it.” The redhead looks as if she’s about to get sick. Then in a moment, her expression morphs into panic. “Oh my God!” She looks to me. “I swear we won’t tell a soul.” She looks from Knox to me. “Congratulations, Ithink.”
“Shit.” Knox bows his head in defeat before turning to me. “It was a pregnancy test. She wouldn’ttakeit.”
I suck in a hard breath. “Oh my God! She let youthink—”
“Yes. But it wasn’t true.” His lips invert as if he’s trying to hold it together. “I thought it might be, so I withdrew. I didn’t know how to tell you. I didn’t want to say those words out loud to anyone.” He shakes his head as he steps in close. “So that’s why I let everything fall to shit instead.” He scratches the back of his neck while wincing. “Can you forgive me? If I would have been upfront with you to begin with, we might have avoided this entire mess. I want you back in my life, back in my bed. I’ve missed you. It was a slow, agonizing death without you. Will you take me back? I miss the hell outofus.”
The girls at the table break out into a choir ofawwas if we just transformed into a couple of cuddlingkoalas.
“You want me to take you back?” The words break up unnaturally with the sound of my panting. “I’m sorry, but I can’t takeyouback.”
“Youwhat?” The girl sitting opposite the redhead explodes withfrustration.
