Page 57 of Dire Straights

“Why are you being so shitty?” She asked, shaking her head in disbelief at me. “First you block me for no reason, now you’re chewing me out for trying to be nice and visit you?”

“I don’twantyou to visit me, Gwen,” I said.

It was weird. Before, I’d always felt bad about saying anything I knew would upset her. I’d do anything to avoid pissing her off, because I knew she’d chew me out and nag me over it every chance she got. But since breaking up and having her presence out of my life… I didn’t care what she thought of me. And all the stuff she’d told me about how annoying I was, and how people wouldn’t like me if not for her… It was all bullshit. I knew that now.

She sighed, looking uncomfortable. “Look, I know you’re pissed that I came up here without telling you, but… I think we should talk.”

“I’m not pissed that you came up here without telling me,” I corrected her. “I just don’t want to be friends with you. Like, I don’t know what else I can say to make you or my momunderstand that. We broke up for a reason, and I don’t want to go back.”

“We broke up because I was stupid and thought I wanted something else, but-”

“Please, stop,” I interrupted her, rolling my palms over my eyes. “You’ve seriously got to be kidding me with this.”

“Ren, I’m sorry,” she insisted. “I made a mistake, and I was wrong. You, of all people, should understand a mistake.”

“You didn’t make a mistake. We were miserable together. Why would you want to go back to that?”

“You were miserable with me?” She asked, looking stunned, like I’d physically shoved her or something. Her shock was… shocking, to say the least. How could she not know how bad it had gotten? Or was she just trying to gaslight me into thinking things were good?

“We argued all the time,” I reminded her. “Everything I did was wrong or annoying in your eyes. Every time we’d see each other, you’d have some laundry list of complaints after.”

“I…” She scoffed, rolling her eyes. “That was me trying to help you! God, you’re always so sensitive about everything.”

“See?” I reiterated. I wasn’t going to lose my temper. That wasn’t the kind of person I was. But she made me so incredibly frustrated. Part of that intense frustration was channeled toward my mom, too. She should have known that surprising me with a visit was a horrible idea. “You think I’m too sensitive, you think I’m annoying. You obviously don’t like me, so what is the point of coming here and acting like us breaking up was a mistake?”

“God, Ren, you’re so stupid. You realize that basically any guy would-”

“Okay, that’s enough.” Maddy sailed around the corner from the back of the house. I guessed he’d gone out through the back door.

“Uh, were you listening to us?” Gwen asked, sounding amazed at his audacity.

“Yeah, I was,” he answered her flatly, with absolutely no abashment. “Was there anything else you wanted to talk about, or are you pretty much done?”

“How is this any of your business?” She demanded, cocking a hand on her hip.

“I’m the birthday boy, so I get whatever I want today,” he said, reaching out to grasp my arm, yanking me over toward him. “And I want him back in the house, and you gone.”

“Are you going to let him talk to me like that?” She asked, turning to me with an incredulous look.

“Um… Yes?” I answered, reflecting her expression back at her. “I told you I don’t want you here. Oh, and stop talking to my damn mom. It’s weird.”

“Whatever. You’re going to regret this,” she promised me. “And if you keep hanging out with fucking freaks like the ones I saw in there, you’re going to turn out like one.”

She whirled on her heel, stomping off back around the house and toward her car.

“That was rude,” I stated, once she was out of sight. I was used to her insulting me, but there was no need to bring my friends into it.

“I’m sure she just meant Caelyx,” Maddy said reassuringly. Turning toward him, the tiny smirk on his face made me lose my composure, and I started cracking up, despite the situation.

“Yeah, totally,” I agreed sarcastically.

“Anyway, forget everything she said.”

“No, I know,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m okay.”

“If you were too sensitive, there’s no way in hell you’d have stuck around with me,” he said.

I chuckled a little. “Okay, that’s true… Still, I’m sorry she ruined your party.”

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