Page 51 of Fundamentals in Flirting

“Oh. I can’t get to sleep.”

“I’m fairly aware of that fact, but what would you like me to do?”

“Stop breathing.”

“That’s a bit harsh.”

“Well. Stop breathing so loudly. All I can focus on is your loud man-breathing.”

Teddy gave a derisive snort. “I’m not doing ‘man-breathing’. I’m breathing normally.”

“Normal for a walrus with sinusitis,” I retorted.

“Fine. I’ll try to breathe quietly, like a teeny tiny mouse, if that helps. But if I die of asphyxiation in my sleep, then it’s completely your fault.”

“I’d really appreciate your rodent-breathing efforts, thanks.”

We were silent for a while, and I noticed with amusement that he was indeed trying really hard to breathe inordinately quietly. I closed my eyes, finally starting to relax, until I felt myself drifting towards blissful nothingness, concentrating on my own inhalation and exhalation to settle my mind further.

“Hannah?”

My eyes flew open.

Dammit.

“What is it, Teddy?” I asked with a sigh.

“What happened with Jonathan?”

I remained still for a moment, unsure what to say. I could tell him to mind his own beeswax. Or I could gloss over the horrible truth of the relationship and try to preserve a little dignity. Or I could tell him the whole, ugly story.

And I honestly didn’t know which I was going to choose before I opened my mouth.

“He cheated on me with his PhD student.”

“Wow. What an arsehole.”

“Yes. But it was all my fault, apparently.”

“How did you work that one out, Hannah?” Teddy shifted on the floor, his voice getting louder as he turned towards me.

“I didn’t need to work it out. He told me as much to my face.”

“What an arsehole,” he said once more. His voice was indignant – outraged on my behalf.

“Again, yes.”

“You’re not going to go back to him, are you?”

“I don’t know.” That was the honest answer because I really didn’t know.

“I don’t think you should.”

“Noted.”

The following moments of silence made me believe that the conversation was over. I closed my eyes, staring unflinchingly at the dark insides of my eyelids and fighting down the nausea that still erupted in me whenever I relived the afternoon of that horrible discovery. The feelings of rejection and disgust still lived so close to the surface, even now, so many months later. Yet, how could it be that the lure of my old life was still so strong?

“Is that why you’re so reluctant to believe anyone could possibly like you?” Teddy whispered.

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