Page 20 of Home in Nevada

I clench my jaw, heat rushing to my face. “Fuck you, Lucy.”

She laughs harder, clearly enjoying this way more than she should.

I glare at the road ahead, the silence between us stretching uncomfortably. I hate that she’s reading into this, digging into me like she’s some kind of relationship expert.

“Just so you know… That was before he told me about his boyfriend,” I admit reluctantly, my voice low.

“So? Doesn’t he know about Tiffany?”

I hesitate, the guilt slicing through me like a blade. “...Yes.”

Her expression flickers, briefly surprised, but she doesn’t say anything.

The guilt gnaws at me, but beneath it, another emotion tears me apart: jealousy. I’m fucking livid. Jamie has a boyfriend. A boyfriend who gets to call himhis, who gets to laugh at his dumb jokes and hear his late-night thoughts—the ones Jamie used to share with me. A boyfriend who was supposed to be the only one to kiss him the way I did, who gets to touch him in ways I can’t even let myself think about right now.

I thought what we had was… special. Something just ours. Something untouchable. But now he’s with some other guy? Holding him, kissing him, like we didn’t mean anything? LikeIdidn’t mean anything? He replaced me?

It feels like the ground’s been ripped out from under me. I’m left standing here, clinging to scraps of what I thought we were. And Jamie’s simply moved on, like I was just another stop along the way.

I feel alone in this whole mess for the first time, completely untethered.

“Well, at least Jamie seems to be doing just fine in the reality check department,” Lucy finally says, her tone light but pointed. She glances at me again, her expression sharpening. “Wait… Are you pissed about that? That he has a boyfriend?”

“No,” I lie flatly.

She pauses, her gaze narrowing as she studies me, like she’s trying to piece me together. “Jeff, you left. You freaked out and left him.”

“That was our thing,” I snap.

“Because you’re bi,” she says, matter-of-fact, like it’s the most obvious truth in the world.

I roll my eyes, annoyed that she’s so entertained by my misery. “It was our thing. I don’t care what it makes me.”

Lucy smirks, leaning back in her seat. “And you’re still going to tell Tiffany? And give her a present?”

I nod, the guilt settling deeper into my chest.

“Your funeral, dude…” She grins, wiping her hands of the drama. Her grin widens, and she gestures at the road. “So… where are you taking me, exactly?”

The shift in tone feels like a lifeline, a chance to escape this spiraling conversation.

We spend the next few hours shopping, Lucy diving headfirst into full-on shopping mode while I trail behind, bored out of my mind. She flits from rack to rack, holding up clothes for me to approve—or mock—while I nod distractedly, my thoughts still tangled up in Jamie.

At some point, I find a watch for Tiffany. It feels like the right thing to do, a small effort to patch over everything I’m screwing up. But as I pay for it, I can’t help wishing I were anywhere else.

Lucy catches me zoning out and snaps her fingers in front of my face. “Earth to Jeff. You okay, or are you stuck in broody boyfriend limbo?”

I snort. “I’m fine. Just… tired.”

She smirks knowingly but doesn’t press, and we eventually grab lunch at a cozy little spot I’ve been wanting to show her. She orders something loaded with cheese, and I settle for a burger, letting her chatter fill the air. It’s easier than thinking too much.

Afterward, we decide to catch a movie. Something light and mindless. For once, it feels like a break—a pause button on everything unraveling inside me.

And yet, even as we sit in the darkened theater, Lucy laughing at some ridiculous scene, my thoughts drift back to Jamie. To his voice, his laugh, his stupid boyfriend.

Chapter 7

The one where Jeff leaves his heart behind again.

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