Page 57 of Come Back to Me

Please don’t say something dumb.

Leaning against the counter with my arms crossed in frontof my chest, I take a moment to figure out how I’m going to respond to her.

I got it.

“I learned that my best friend and my ex-girlfriend have been secretly talking to each other about me behind my back for the past six years.”

This is going to get old real fast.

She stands there, a blank expression taking over her face. Her eyes are glassy and reflecting the artificial light in the kitchen. “I’m never going to hear the end of that, am I?”

“Not until I get past it.” I wait a minute until I say something. “What’s something new that you learned today?”

“I learned you were convinced that our relationship wasn’t real.” She huffs. “Do you know how much it hurt to hear you say that? It sounded like you regretted all of it. Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Do you regret kissing me at the Halloween party during sophomore year? Do you regret being with me? Do you regret the two years we spent together?”

Well, there goes the lighthearted rhythm we had. Now, it’s overshadowed by broken hearts and an overwhelming sense of anguish and pain.

“Why would you ask me these questions?”

“Answer the damn questions, Gray!”

“I can’t!” I shout back at her.

“What do you mean you can’t?” She waits for me to answer her, but nothing slips out of my mouth. “That tells me all I need to know. I thought we could be mature enough to talk through everything and that we could be somewhat friendly with each other, but I was wrong.” She brings her hands up to her mouth, covering it. “I shouldn’t have come back here with you.”

“Don’t do this,” I say.

She rolls her eyes, nostrils flaring. “Don’t do what?”

“Fuck!” I shout. “I don’t know.”

Storming away from me with her purse in hand, Violet ends up in front of the bathroom. I follow her, and she can’t even look at me. No, she doesn’t want to look at me. Her body shakes as she falls onto the floor.

Before I can sit next to her, she sticks her hands out. “Don’t. Touch. Me.” When she regains her balance, she stands up and rushes into the bathroom.

The door slams shut, and I think my heart just broke all over again.

now

VIOLET

“Violet, will you please come out of the bathroom?” Grayson asks me through the door.

I shake my head. “Please leave me alone. Go continue making dinner before everything goes bad.”

“Vi.”

“Just go!” I yell.

Hearing footsteps get quieter, I sit on the toilet with my hands on my head.

I should’ve known I was setting myself up for heartbreak.

I can’t process the fact that he believes our relationship was a waste of time. He didn’t say it out loud, but I could see it in his eyes.