Page 35 of Beautiful Storm

“Amelia,” she whines, getting off the bed to stand by my side. “Please, please let me come. I just want to talk to him.”

“With your fist?”

“No. I’m not that violent. A little slap maybe. But you can’t say he doesn’t deserve it. Did you forget I heard his voicemail?”How could I have forgotten?I’ve never witnessed her so angry on my behalf. “You know the one that went something like ‘my pompous ass needs you to sign your brain and creativity over to me so that I can pass your ideas off as my own to finally stop feeling like the talentless hack that I am.’”

“I remember it. Only I remember it a little differently.” I laugh at her antics. “And I take offense to you saying he's talentless. His angsty songs are amazing. But he keeps releasing pop stuff that’s on trend.”

“Just telling it like I see it.”

She has a point. The stuff he’s been releasing hasn’t been great. But the message didn’t exactly go as she described even if it was the same sentiment. Basically he said he’d sign the divorce papers with no pushback if I gave him my notes on all the ideas I had for his band’s music videos, citing that since the ideas stem from the songs he wrote, he’s entitled to them. He doesn’t think I should be able to use them for any other purpose. It’s an absolute joke, and while I have no intention of handing anything over, I agreed to meet him on the off chance that I could convince him to have a proper conversation. To stop and think about all that we’ve been through together and figure out a way to move forward without the hate he seems to have.

Hayley thinks I’m crazy. And maybe I am. But fuck if I’m going to let him get away with the bullshit attitude he’s got at the moment. He’s not the Preston I knew at all, and I want to get to the bottom of it. Not to mention, if we don’t submit his divorce papers in the next few days, it's going to delay the process.

“I’m not trying to defend him, Hayley.” She stares at me with her beautifully shaped eyebrows raised high on her forehead, calling me on my bullshit. “Okay, maybe I’m defending him a little, but if I don’t, I feel stupid. If you truly believe he’s such an awful guy, you must think I’m weak for marrying him.”

God, where did that come from?My eyes well with tears, but I wipe them away as Hayley pulls me into a hug.

“No. God, no. I don’t know him beyond what you told me after the breakup. And since then, he’s been treating you like shit. My ex cheated on me back in Sydney. A few weeks before we came here. I knew he’d done it and I turned a blind eye so that he’d still take me with him. I was hoping the premieres or gossip magazines would get me noticed. I’m not telling you this because I think Preston treated you badly and you ignored it; I’m telling you this so that you know I have no right to judge anyone for their decisions and I never would.”

“Oh, Hayley.” I stand back and frown.

“No.” She shakes her head and squeezes my arm. “I’m fine. But you… You’re an amazing woman. And you definitely have a good head on your shoulders. You’re driven and smart and strong. I have no doubt that you would have kicked Preston to the curb years ago if he wasn’t good to you. I hate him for the way he’s treating younow. Nothing about you or your past could make me think any less than the world of you. And I’m truly hoping you feel the same."

My eyes water for an entirely new reason before I squeeze Hayley in another hug. “I do. I feel the same. You’re definitely stuck with me.”

It’s strange to think that my closest friend is someone I’ve only known for a year. I could have easily spiraled after my breakup, but Hayley kept me afloat and never once let me doubt myself. She’s right… I haven’t painted a very good picture of Preston since our breakup and because I was already doubting ourrelationship when Hayley and I met, I never really spoke fondly of him. But we had years of love. Hewasgood to me for the most part. We changed so much. And now it’s time we ended things once and for all.

Hayley pulls back, her eyes a little glassy from her own tears. “So I can come with you?” She smiles brightly, making me burst out laughing.

“Absolutely not.”

Istand at the threshold, staring at the door of the apartment I once shared with Preston. Preston told me to let myself in, but while my key burns a hole in my pocket, I can’t bring myself to use it. I should have given it back when we first broke up, but at the time, the thought never crossed my mind. Now, I’d do anything to be rid of them…him. Except what he’s asking.

Preston’s quick to answer when I finally knock, opening the door with a hesitant smile. “Amelia, hi,” he says, dressed in my favorite pants of his. The pants that reveal a hint of his ankle…the pants Ialwayscomplimented. I doubt it’s a coincidence.

Ignoring his obvious attempt to make me feel things, I smile back, keeping my gaze above his waist. “Thanks for agreeing to talk. We should have done this properly in the beginning, instead of all our petty arguments. We’re adults. We’re better than that.”

I hope.

A little part of me prays that since I put out into the universe that it’s going to run smoothly, it will. What do they say, project a life you want?

Preston’s brows furrow but he smiles through it. “Yes, you’re right. We should have. It’s good you’re here now. Come in.” Heholds the door open and I pause after stepping inside, a stranger in what was once my sanctuary. I should be able to waltz on through like I own the place. After all, I know where everything is, yet I can’t bring myself to take the first step.

“Lead the way,” I say to Preston, watching as his nervous furrow deepens.

For fifteen years, this man was my world. Now he looks uncomfortable in my presence. And since I feel it, I can imagine I look the same.

“How are things?” he asks, most likely to fill the uncomfortable silence as we walk. “How’s the new job going? Have you started any projects yet?”

“I have and it’s going really well, but it’s different to what I pictured myself doing.”

“Are you allowed to talk about it?”

“Not yet. The plan is to announce in January.”

“That’s great. I’ll have to keep an eye out. Your mom said it was something like Bright Lights Productions?”

Goddammit, Mom. I really need to talk to her—again—about keeping my business to herself, or at least, keeping my business away from my ex and the man who used to be my father.

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