I look down at the t-shirt I'm practically swimming in, as do the two girls in the room with me. It's almost comical the way their faces move as if synchronised.
“Oh my god, how did I not pick up on that? Why are you wearing Brad's clothes if you only came over this morning?”
“Well, I ended up spending the night here?” Not sure why that came out as a question.
“Elaborate. Stop holding back, woman!”
I sigh, “After Brad and Larissa left, I locked up and headed up to scrub the night from my skin, but as soon as I got out of the shower, Pickles started going batshit.”
“I don't like where this is going,” Jaime frowns.
Wincing, I relay everything that happened.
“Fucking hell!” Elle’s reaction is validating because she almost never swears.
“But who phoned the police if your phone was dead?” Max asks.
“Turns out Mrs Finnegan across the road had called them before he even started kicking the door in because she spotted him skulking around and looking suspicious. I've never been more thankful for the curtain-twitching, nosey old bat!”
“Amen, sista,” Jaime nods.
“Anyways, the police showed up as he was trying to kick my door in again, so they arrested him pretty quickly. I was still in the midst of giving my statement when suddenly Brad appeared out of nowhere, completely freaking out!”
“How did he know, though?”
“He didn't! He said he dropped Larissa home, and they broke up and he came to get me.”
Elle and Maxawwwin unison as Jaime slaps the table shouting, “Yes, Brad! Fucking right and all!”
“So you're finally together? No more of thishe's too young, he doesn't really want mebullshit?”
“I mean,” I look away guiltily, “I don't know. We haven't actually talked about it. He hasn't said it's what he wants, so maybe...maybe he's just being a good guy?”
“Shari. My dearest idiot,” I frown at that because Elle's meant to be the sweet one, “the man ended his valentine's date to drive an hour to get you, then he broke up with his girlfriend and immediately came back to get you for a second time in the same night. No guy is doing that just for funsies! He loves you and you need to trust that it's real. Trust us that we can tell and wouldn't be rooting for him otherwise!”
“Yeah. Maybe.”
“No!” Jaime slaps the table again, making me jump. “Nomaybe! I'm tired of watching you sabotage your own happiness because you're scared. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but it's exactly what you've been doing. Do you even know how lucky you are to have found one of the good ones?” her voice cracks slightly and guilt floods me.
“She's right, babe,” Elle pouts at me sympathetically.
“And I'm sorry to tell you, but you're not only hurting yourself in the process. You're breaking Brad's heart and denying Lizzie the chance to have a ‘normal’ family.”
My eyes well up with the realisation that Jaime is right, and that the others agree with her. I haven't just been hurting myself. Or Brad. My decisions have affected Lizzie, too. She might not know any different, but doesn't she deserve the chance to have that cookie-cutter family life? To watch her parents be in love and witness firsthand what real love looks like? If he does even love me, that is.
“Yeah, ok,” I manage to croak out, my lower lip trembling with the effort of holding back my tears. “I guess we need to have a real conversation.”
“Awww babe, don't cry! I can't reach through this bloody tablet! Guys, hug her for me,” Max's face is smooshed up to the camera, hugging her iPad, I'm assuming.
Two pairs of arms crush me in a fierce hug, and that's how Brad and the brood find us when they return.
By the time everyone leaves – after lunch because we all decided to spend the morning together – I'm exhausted and can't stop yawning. Brad sends Lizzie and me up to bed for a nap, insisting he has something he needs to take care of anyways and that I'm not intruding on his space.
I drift off wondering how to broach the subject of us, secretly hoping he'll be the one to bring it up like he has every other time, because I'm a coward.
BRAD
“Hey man, I think this is the last of it. Pretty much everything else is furniture,” Trey claps me on the back as he steps back into Shari's lounge.
