Page 6 of A Win-Win Situation

I walked away as soon as I saw them, but not before John heard my outraged gasp. He ran after me—naked, might I add—trying to explain that it wasn't what it looked like. Which was funny because his dick was still wet from her saliva.

I calmly told him it was over and to leave. I reached for the door, grabbing my purse before adding that I wanted no trace of him when I came back home.

Which didn’t exactly work as well as I wanted it to.

I’ve been staying with Adeline for the past two weeks and he still hasn’t moved out.

He texted me saying he needed a little time to find a new place to live, and I told him that was fine—which Adeline wasn’t happy about. The whole "putting my foot down" was harder to do than I thought.

What can I say? I’m weak and a people pleaser. I can't help feeling bad for people when they need help, even if those people are cheating, scumbag, exes.

"What are you thinking about?" Adeline’s voice snaps me out of my thoughts.

Adeline is my rock and one of my best friends. She’s the most beautiful soul on the inside and out. We've known each other since we were five years old, when we bonded over our love for the Powerpuff Girls—the Buttercup to my Bubbles. A few years later we found Sophie, our Blossom. We’ve been the perfect trio ever since, and tomorrow we’re leaving forThe Ultimate French Riviera Vacationin Nice. Which I should be incredibly excited about, but the weight of my breakup and job loss has been hanging over me, making me question if going is even a good idea at the moment.

Adeline is convinced this is the perfect way to reset myself and get ready for a new job.

She’s also convinced it’s the perfect way to get over a cheating boyfriend.

"I don’t think I can come with you tomorrow," I say, avoiding making eye contact with her. However, the look of utter outrage is clear on her face, her eyes narrowing and her mouth tightening in disapproval.

"Of course you can. You’re not letting thathmarstop you from having the best vacation of your life. You’ll enjoy it even more now."

"Why do you think that?"

"Do you remember the time we went to Vegas for Sophie’s birthday weekend? How he texted you non-stop, asking about what you were doing? He even called you to see your outfits several times. Who acts like that?"

She’s right. I remember being so annoyed with him that weekend. We even argued about me going to the club because according to him,"Girls with boyfriends shouldn’t be shaking their asses at clubs in Vegas."Even though I confronted him and went to the club, his words still bothered me throughout the night. Now that I look back at the situation, I realize that it wasn’t okay, but at that moment I didn’t see it that way. He wasn’t all bad, and after the argument, he told me he only acted that way because he was afraid that something would happen to me, and he apologized profusely. Adeline, however, didn't let that go. She never really got along with John, not fully anyway

Sure, we had our good days, and we all used to hang out. They were cordial to each other, which I presume was for my sake, but some days, I could feel the strain in the air with the way they sent each other scathing looks and the muttered Arabic words from Adeline. Their mutual animosity hung heavy between them, a palpable tension in the air.

That’s how my knowledge of Arabic swear words evolved.

I should have trusted her gut instinct. She’s always had a sixth sense when it comes to these things. But, as they say, hindsight is always twenty-twenty.

We all make mistakes, some more than others.

"Leora, stop zoning out!" Her fingers snap in front of my eyes, bringing my focus back to her.

"I’m sorry," I mutter as I sink deeper into the sofa, my thoughts spinning around my head like a whirlwind.

When I'm upset, my coping mechanism is to drown myself in work and invest all of my energy into reaching my goals. Now, I don’t even have a way to cope.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

The only options at the moment are alcohol or the gym.

Seeing as the latter requires physical effort—alcohol it is.

Adeline moves closer to me, her eyes full of sympathy. I know she wants to help, but I don’t know what I need.

"It's okay." Her voice is soft. "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to. Just know that I'm here for you, okay?"

I nod, feeling the tears prick my eyes. Adeline doesn’t have to say anything else; her presence alone is enough to soothe my aching heart.

"I'm sorry," I say, gesturing to the mess that is me. My normally sleek, brown hair is now tangled in a greasy knot on the top of my head, my green eyes swollen from crying and my pale skin duller than ever. My clothes, usually neat, are now wrinkled and haphazardly draped on my body. "I know I’m a disaster."

It’s a stark contrast to Adeline’s beautiful, long, shiny black hair paired with her large, brown, almond eyes. She looks beautiful as always.

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