Page 96 of Faking It with the Firefighter

“I love you guys too.” There were at least two people who loved and accepted me for all my craziness. I took a deep breath and felt a little better. “Do you guys want to eat outside by the fire pit?”

“Do you have any wood toburn?” Sophie asked.

I tilted my head, having forgotten to get more logs at the store. “I’ve got some scraps of fence left.”

“Anything else?” Charlie asked.

It only took a second to remember I had a pile of things in my closet that I wanted to be rid of. The corners of my mouth turned up in a devilish grin. “Yeah. Hang on.” I dashed upstairs, opened my closet, and grabbed the duffel bag stuffed in the corner. Winston hadn’t managed to get in there to poop on it, but that was okay. It would burn just fine.

I came down carrying Rex’s stuff with a triumphant grin. “The best kindling known to man! Your ex-boyfriend’s junk!”

Charlie looked at me, then at Sophie, then back at me. “Not exactly what I meant, but sure, Abigail. Whatever you want.”

I tossed the duffel on one of the armchairs on the covered porch and grabbed three glasses of wine and a barbecue lighter. While I got the fire going with the fence pieces, Charlie and Sophie set up our meal outside. Winston meowed from inside the patio door, scratching at it. I couldn’t tell if his cry could be translated intoI want to be with youorI want pizza!In either case, he’d have to wait.

“So…what exactly happened last weekend?” Charlie asked.

“You don’t know?” I asked.

Sophie shrugged. “Not really. We’ve heard a thousand different versions of the story, but I’m not sure I’ll believe any of them until I hear it from you.”

Charlie nodded. “Sophie caught the fight streaming on Tammy’s account. She called me right away. By the time we got over there, you’d already been taken in.”

I could hardly look at Sophie, but I forced myself to meet her gaze. “So you saw the whole thing.”

“I saw you smash my cake into Blair’s face,” she said.

“Sorry about that.”

“Don’t be. She deserved it. She deserved a lot worse. What a nightmare.”

“So you saw the kiss too?” I asked.

“I tried to find the original video, but all I could find were people who’d clipped it in reaction videos.” She scooted to the edge of her seat, wine sloshing in her glass. “It looked like Blair went up to him and kissed him. This one creator did a deep dive about Blair’s past, and how she’s bitter because Rex broke it off with her years ago, and she went after Donny as revenge.” Sophie shrugged. “I don’t know what to think.”

I set my pizza aside, my stomach clenching. Hunger was a distant thing. “I feel sick.”

“Oh, my gosh, Abigail. She kissed him right in front of you?” Charlie asked.

I nodded, tears surfacing again. God, I was sick of crying. “I was on my way to the coat room when I heard Blair say, ‘I love you too,’ and then I walked in and they were kissing.” As the memory came flooding back, so did more tears. “It was like walking in on Travis all over again. Only worse because…because…” My voice caught. I couldn’t finish the sentence.

“Because you really cared about Rex?” Sophie prompted softly.

I nodded, an ugly sob making my chest shudder.

“Because you…love him?” Charlie asked.

Words wouldn’t come out. Admitting that I’d fallen so fast and so hard for Rex felt like admitting just how weak and vulnerable and small I really was. I curled into myself and felt my friends’ soothing hands onme while they offered their condolences for yet another heartbreak. After a few minutes of crying, I took in a few deep breaths and a huge gulp of wine.

“And Rex maintains that he didn’t kiss her back?” Sophie asked, eyes intent.

I shrugged. “The way I feel right now, it doesn’t actually matter. He walked away from me. He watched my brother and freaking Bryce Lawson pile on me and talk crap about me, and he did nothing to stand up for me. Instead, he ran off and got himself in that situation. He’s so worried about saving Donny from himself, and I just—I can’t do this. I can’t be the bigger person and pretend that I don’t care, or that I’m okay with always coming last. I want someone to stand up for me. I want someone to chooseme.”

There was a silence, and then Charlie slapped her hands on her thighs. “You know what we need right now?”

“What?”

“To burn some shit.”

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