Page 57 of Unfriend Me
My voice echoed over the concrete slab witness to our argument. A bird let out a screech in a nearby tree, probably pissed we were interrupting his dinner. Someone honked in the roundabout leading into Main Street. The sounds of the town we grew up in were all around us, but there was nothing familiar about Titus and me being on opposite ends of a fight.
Titus gave me one last searching, pleading look and then walked off when he didn’t find what he was looking for. His heels kicked up a cloud of dust with each step away from me. I watched him go, stunned silent for once and far too late. The big engine in his truck fired up and he pulled away from the curb without a backward glance, leaving me alone in the darkening evening sky.
My anger diffused like a balloon that had a slow leak. I pivoted in a full circle, taking in the work Titus had put in on this lot the last few weeks. A huge stack of lumber had been delivered on one side, awaiting the framing that would happen soon. All that arguing and I still didn’t know what this project was. All I’d accomplished was possibly breaking up with the best thing that had ever happened to me.
“What the hell just happened here?” I mumbled to the shovel that lay abandoned on the dirt by my feet.
It didn’t answer me, and I’d never felt more alone. My stomach had dropped so far down during the shouting I felt hollowed out. Empty. A shell of the vibrant, kick-ass girl I normally was.
That just wouldn’t do. I lifted my chin, ignoring how it wanted to wobble, and forced myself to pick my way back to my car with my head held high. I’d be fine without Titus. We’d barely started dating. And quite frankly, if he was flirting with other girls so easily and keeping secrets from me, I’d just dodged a bullet by ending things now.
I should have felt relief. Freedom. Maybe a little disoriented by the sudden change in relationship status.
But all I felt was devastated.
23
Titus
“Give us the recap.”
It almost sounded like Jayden was in my living room. I could go check it out, but my limbs had just reached that perfect state of numbness. That state of drunk where everything feels good, but the room hasn’t started spinning yet. The alcohol sweet spot was as elusive as the spirit note. I couldn’t leave now that I’d found it. I snuggled deeper into my pillows and tried to turn up the volume on my phone. I made a new playlist this week. I called it Fuck You, Amelia. They were perfect, angry breakup songs.
“He spent all last weekend drunk, then had to eat an entire dozen of donuts to sober up enough on Monday to work. As soon as he got home tonight, he hit the bottle again. Figured it was time to call in reinforcements. He’s wallowing.”
I pried open one eye. Fuckin’ Rip. I wasn’t wallowing. Wallowing was for losers. I was merely partying on the weekends like a normal twenty-eight-year-old. You know, partying from my bedroom. Alone. Finding my phone down by my foot, I tried to focus on the volume button. I could have sworn I turned up the music to drown everything out.
“Is this about his brother being arrested again last weekend or is this about Amelia?’
Fuck. Even Bain was here. Didn’t they know this was a goddamn solo party?
“Probably both, but mostly Amelia. They broke up from what I could get out of Titus. Although Dom calling him again to get bailed out didn’t help things.”
Jesus. When had Rip become a little gossiper on the level of the town greats like Poppy?
“I can hear youuu…” I yodeled at top volume.
I winced as the loud noise hurt my head. And my top lip got stuck on my teeth. Damn. When was the last time I drank any water? Or brushed my teeth?
“So, how are we playing this? Do I need to go get my moonshine stash or are we trying to sober him up?”
I smiled at that. My buddy Charlie was here. He was a good guy. Not a hard-ass at all. He shared his moonshine and that shit would put hair on your chest.
“I think it’s time to slap some sense into him. He can’t lose his liver over a woman. Even if it is Amelia.”
Great. Somebody left killjoy Rip in charge.
My door burst open and I cringed at the noise. Hands lifted me off my bed. I started swinging but only caught air.
“Guys, come on. Da numbs are gone,” I whined, eyes still closed. I was afraid if the numbness was gone, that meant the room would start spinning.
“Use your legs, you Neanderthal.”
Bain was a meanie. I stuck my lower lip out. “Don’t wanna.”
Jayden slapped me on the back and I lurched forward, forced to use my legs just to avoid face planting. “Time for a men-only bonfire.”
That sounded good. I straightened my knees and attempted to walk with one eye cracked open. Thankfully, someone let me lean on them the whole way out to Rip’s truck. They could have been more gentle when they threw me in the passenger side, but then Bain handed me a flask and I was willing to overlook it.
