I don’t want to see anyone associated with Stella right now. It’s been a couple of weeks since she dumped me, and I still feel like shit. That shit feeling has infiltrated into my entire life too. I’ve been choking at all of my games, so much so Coach is about ready to bench me. I flunked a test in my communications class, and I’m going to flunk one in calculus. I don’t care anymore. When will I ever fucking use calculus in my life? Never, that’s when. It’s all fucking bullshit.
“How are you doing, Alex?”
Oh crap, she’s talking to me. “Fine.”
“Just fine?”
Please make her stop. “Yeah, just fine.”
“Did you know that Stella and I finally got to move into our dorm at Hinman?” she mentions in a singsong way.
“Good for you.” I can’t muster up any excitement about that news. I haven’t seen the girl but once in the stairwell. I figured she’d fallen off the face of the earth. Fine by me.
Lily interrupts my internal rant when she says, “And her mom is doing much better, by the way.”
“Oh yeah, good to know.” What is she talking about? What was wrong with Stella’s mom? I want to know, but I don’t want to ask. That’ll start an entire conversation that I don’t want to have. But today isn’t my day, I guess. She keeps going.
“Yeah, they were all scared. They thought it was a heart attack. It was touch and go. Her dad rushed her to the ER, you know, on the morning of the homecoming game. You knew that’s why she wasn’t at your game, didn’t you?”
“No, I didn’t know that,” I reply curtly.
“Yep, Bradley got a call from his mom and rushed over to Stella’s place to get her. They didn’t want her driving herself because she was so upset. Can you imagine?”
What is this girl up to? “Sure. I can imagine,” I say as deadpan as possible.
“It’s a good thing too. She was beside herself. Then, when she realized that she left her phone back at her dorm, she was really freaked out. I had no idea anything was happening until late Sunday night.”
“Uh-huh,” I mutter absently. So, that’s why she didn’t get a hold of me. It doesn’t explain why she got back together with—wait a second…. “That bitch!” I shout.
“What?” Lily says, startled.
“Brooke. That fucking bitch told me that Stella left with Bradley because they’d gotten back together that morning.”
Lily looks completely shocked. “She did? Why would she do that? Well, besides that fact that she’s the fucking devil.”
“Dude, I told you she was bad news,” Hank reminds me.
“So, Stella didn’t get back together with Bradley? All this time I thought they were back together.” I’m rambling now and talking to no one in particular.
“She never got back together with Bradley. Why would she? She lovedyou.”
“Loved?” I say weakly.
“You broke her heart, Alex. She’s been a wreck. I can barely get her to leave our dorm room, and it’s been days. Hell, it’s been weeks. She missed an entire week of class after she caught you coming out of her bathroom. Brooke told her that you two?—”
“No! Nothing happened. I passed out on the couch. That’s it.”
“He’s been miserable too, baby,” says Hank to Lily.
“I know, but he had Brooke to help soothe his wounds.”
“I didn’t sleep with her! I didn't touch the bitch.”
“I don’t know if Stella will believe that. You were pretty mean to her on the phone. You left her a very nasty message.”
“I did? I was wasted. What did I say? Do I want to know?”
“Probably not, but you should so you know what you’re up against. You told her you were glad to be rid of her ‘fat, ugly face.’”
