Page 13 of Addicted

We stopped outside my apartment building, and I grabbed Cleo’s arm and hooked mine through hers.

“I’m sure.”

We walked up the stairs together and stopped beside the door.

“Can you wait for me?” I asked, shrugging off my coat and handing it to her.

She gave me a look that said,Duh, bitch,and I let go of her elbowto open the apartment door. I went to close it but thought better of it, leaving it partially open, so I didn’t have to repeat everything for Cleo later.

Curtis was awake and in his room with the door shut. I could hear the muffled sounds of whatever game he was playing and the soft sound of music.

I opened the door. Curtis didn’t look up from the screen, but his headphones were slightly askew. I knew he had heard me.

“Curtis, we need to talk,” I said, my voice surprisingly even and somber.

“I’m in the middle of someth—”

“It’s about Ruby.”Nope, that wasn’t right. Get it together, drunk brain.

Curtis looked briefly over at me before squinting. “Who?”

Of course, he didn’t remember the name of my fucking cat. It had been years since we’d argued about her.

Rage began to boil beneath the skin of my cheeks, but I kept talking.

“The ring is too small,” I said, changing subjects. Curtis still wasn’t looking at me, his fingers were dancing across keys as he kept his gaze on his monitor.

“On your left, yeah, I got him,” he said into the microphone at his lips. He had the nerve to flick his hand at me without looking. “Leave it, I’ll get it fixed or whatever.”

“I stopped by the jeweler, Curtis.”

He startled, looking over at me before glancing back at his computer. His lips thinned before he said, “Oh, can they resize it, I have the rec—”

“Stop lying! Why would you keep lying?” I yelled.

He paled, looking nervous as he started fidgeting with his computer. “Wait—”

“Ruby was my cat. Of course you don’t remember? ’It’s just a cat, Denise, stop crying.’ That’s what you said.”

His face squished together as he turned to me and pulled off his headphones, “Itwasjust a cat, and you were being ridiculous!”

“No. I was grieving a pet I’d had for twenty years!”

“Jesus Christ, it was on death’s door for months. Was I supposed to pretend I was shocked that it croaked?!”

“Oh, but you’ll pretend this thing is fucking real!” I pulled the ring from my pocket. “This is a lie. It’s disgusting.Youare disgusting.”

I threw it at him. “Even if it was real. Even if you had asked me, I would’ve said no.”

“Denise, watch how you talk—” He was getting angry.

“Or what?”I leaned close to him and laughed. “Exactly. Your threats are just like your promises… empty.”

Curtis stood, his chest heaving.

“Get the fuck out of my house. Return that shitty ring. Maybe then your broke ass will have some money for a bus ticket back to Nebraska.”

I turned to leave and got halfway to the door before Curtis grabbed my upper arm in a bruising grip and pulled me backward.

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