Page 6 of Tangled up in You

“He didn’t hit you, did he?” He frowns.

I shake my head. “No. He didn’t cheat or physically attack me. Maybe that’s why it took me so long. It was always mental. He’d manipulate me into feeling bad for him or guilty for being upset. I tried to be understanding and not push him. I let him get away with lying and played his mind games for so long I think he honestly believed I was the problem in the end. I just couldn’t handle it anymore and decided it was time to live my life for me again.”

“I’m sorry you went through that,” Oliver says. “You deserve to be cherished and not taken for granted.”

“Absolutely!” Kent says. “And we’re going to make sure you remember how important you are from here on out.”

“Oh, really?” I giggle. “Pray tell, how do you plan to do that?”

“By pampering you and showering you with attention.” Simon taps my nose with his fingertip, making me scrunch up my face with a wide grin.

Honestly, they’ve been doing that all night already. This is the first moment I haven’t had a drink in my hand; every time one of them noticed I was running low, they’d go make me another. They have a lot of guests and people who want to hang out with them, but they haven’t left my side once. My ex used to be that way—super attentive and kind—but that died. For Simon, Kent, and Oliver to respond to my needs before I’ve even acknowledged them is giving me butterflies.

They listen when I speak, include me in conversations when they’re talking to someone else. This night is beyond perfect, making me glad my mother dragged me to it. I’ll have to thank her tomorrow.

“Shots!” someone shouts.

To drive away more thoughts of the past, I jump up. The quick movement has me swaying slightly. Oliver and Simon grab my arms to steady me.

“I’m good!” I assure them.

They release me as I head toward the table where the shots are lined up. We each down a drink and everyone cheers. The liquor warms my belly.

“Who wants to play beer pong?” Kent yells over the noise.

“Oliver and I against you and Melanie.” Simon points at Kent in challenge.

“Okay.” I agree when Kent looks at me with his eyebrows raised. “But let me use the ladies’ room first. I’ll be right back.”

“We’ll be here setting it up.” Kent calls after me.

I wave my hand in acknowledgment.

“Wait for us!” Tiffany, a woman we used to go to school with, rushes to hook her arm in mine. “We’ll go with you.”

I cringe, but keep walking. I hate her and her gang of baboons. She’s always pretended to be nice to me to get close to Simon, Kent, and Oliver. Not that it didn’t work. I’m sure they all fucked each other at one time or another back in the day.

Tiffany and her friends aren’t the only ones who used to do it, though. I just hope she doesn’t bombard me with the same fake friendliness as she did when we were younger.

“It’s amazing you and the guys stayed friends all this time,” Tiffany says. “I was sure that once you stopped being neighbors, they’d have left you behind.”

She and her crew giggle as if what she just said is not offensive. I roll my eyes. They haven’t grown up at all in twenty years.

“But here you are, hogging all their attention again. But don’t worry, we’re not jealous. We’re much more mature now. They’re just guys, right?” She slaps my arm playfully.

I wince as her skinny-ass hand cuts through air like a fucking knife stinging my skin.

Faking a smile, I reply, “Of course! Excuse me.”

I point to toward the bathroom before slipping inside. I shut the door and lean back against it. I release a heavy breath.

Thank God that’s over.

As much as I love hanging out with Simon, Oliver, and Kent, there are some cons that go along with it. I’ve dealt with questions of what it’s like, the constant aggravation of being interrogated for information on them, and the whispered gossips of my sluttiness.

You’d think that since high school is over, it wouldn’t be that way anymore, but obviously it is.

I never told Kent, Oliver, or Simon about it. They’re cocky enough without me adding to their oversized egos. But if they knew what others used to whisper about me, they’d have been pissed.

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