Page 26 of Can't Take My Eyes Off You

‘Alright, and Berkley… I still love you.’

‘Yeah, that’s what you keep saying…’ I moan. Love sucks. Like truly. Zero stars.

10

BERKLEY

I’m at Bianca’s with Olivia at her and Bryce’s apartment. It’s about six blocks from my bookstore and four blocks from Will’s apartment building, sitting near the middle ground. We haveRoyalswatch parties so I don’t have to go through it alone. Plus Bryce loves to see himself on television.

It seems I’ve acquired some fans recently because I’ve appeared on a few episodes now. Barely. Like glimpses, yet the paparazzi misses nothing. Because the show sometimes hurts, we’ve even created a drinking game to play while we watch. Anytime Will refers to me on the show, we drink. I leave here either tipsy, or a little bit heartbroken, alot.

Tonight, I’m making an appearance. One of the producers, Cole, has befriended both Will and me, taking a personal interest in the complications of our relationship. When Will gets overly intoxicated, Cole will call me and have me talk him down. You could say I’m his drunken fairy godmother.

After the little diner incident, I called another ‘no face-to-face visits’ penalty for fear that exactly what happened would happen. Not long after, I got a call from Cole that Will was not in a good place and had been in a fight in a bar. I did see him that night but only long enough to find his car, then drive him home and into bed. This is the scene on tonight’s show. I then snuck out when he finally passed out.

My phone dings when I set it on the table. I glance at the notification.Will Adlerflashes across the screen. Ugh. He’s been texting me all day after we fought earlier. Sweet things that usually would make me smile but tonight, they’re just killing me inside. I need to drown them out.

‘Who’s that?’ Olivia asks as my phone buzzesagain.

She sets three beers on the coffee table in front of us. Bianca sets the tray of six shots before us. I down one immediately.

‘Uh, I thought we were playing the Berkley game?’ she asks.

‘Well, now we’re playing the Will-is-shish-kebabbing-Berkley’s-heart game, and I need to get said heart intoxicated so it won’t hurt as much.’ I cock my head, finally picking up my phone.

‘Oh…’ Olivia says, figuring out who’s continually texting me. ‘Bad?’

‘No.’ I shake my head. ‘He’s being completely charming and saying all the right things. “I’m sorry, baby. I love you.”’ I read his words aloud, sighing heavily. He’s sorry that he looks like a drunken idiot on tonight’s show and got me involved.

Olivia pulls a hand over her chest with a groan. ‘Gawd.’ She balks. ‘Why must he be so Casanova and imbecile at once? A real Cascile.’

I laugh to myself. ‘They are literally just words he says to make himself feel better about always doing the wrong thing.’

‘Forward them to me; I’ll talk to him.’

‘No.’ I laugh. Olivia doesn’t have much of a filter when it comes to Will and me. She hates him when I hate him. And her hate is much more murder-y rage than mine.

When the show’s theme song starts, I cringe. Work faster, tequila!

‘Blech,’ Olivia says, tossing a handful of pretzels at the screen when it flashes to a clip of Will and Felicity in the intro.

The episode moves to their apartment. Will’s lounging on the couch in the background, an Xbox controller on his knee, but his eyes are on the phone in his hand. Felicity is sitting on the arm of the couch near him, talking his ear off about her newest business venture.

Olivia gasps. ‘What do you wanna bet he’s textingyouright there? And why doesshehave a theme song? Doyouhave a theme song?’

‘I only save his life once a season. I’m not important enough to have a theme song,’ I remind her, lifting my shoulders.

The scene moves through him out on the town with Felicity, Mike and Finn. When he’s not playing the part of drunken party boy, he’s overly emotional and calling me over and over; parts of my voicemail play through the television speakers. Finally, we see him drinking. A lot. They even air the fight he had, him yelling at someone that Felicity isn’t his girlfriend, Berkley is.

We all do a shot.

That’swhat started the fight that night? Honestly, I didn’t know this part. When I asked him what he fought over as I drove him home, he claimed he didn’t know.

The second my face appears, a song blasts through the speakers, making both Olivia and Bianca burst out a laugh. My jaw drops open that they would choosethissong.

‘Youdohave a theme song!’ Olivia says as she squeals a laugh.

‘Oh my God.’ Bianca laughs with Olivia, her hand now on my shoulder. ‘I’d have paid money to be in the room with Felicity when she heard they chose Billie Eilish’s “MyBoi” as your theme song.’

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