Page 176 of Homewrecker

“And whatever he decides?”

I nodded. “I’ll survive.”

Klair smiled. “There you go.”

I opened the door.

“And Blair?”

“What?”

“Make some fucking friends.”

I laughed. “Goodnight.”

I made it a few steps out her front door before pulling out my phone again. I went to Nash’s text thread.

Blair: Sorry. I’ve been in my head the last few days. I didn’t mean to be distant.

Blair: And before you ask, no, you didn’t do anything.

I hit send.

Three dots appeared.

Nash: I figured. You want to talk about it?

I smiled.

Blair: Eventually. I promise. Right now I just want to stop being weird.

Nash: Thank God because I was starting to think the sex was trash.

My mouth dropped. “THIS MOTHERFUCKER.”

I heard Klair yell from inside her apartment. “WHAT?”

I opened her door and held up my phone. “THIS NIGGA SAID HE THOUGHT I WAS IGNORING HIM BECAUSE THE SEX WAS TRASH!”

Klair stared at me then fell back laughing.

I slammed the door laughing. My phone buzzed again.

Nash: Too soon?

I shook my head.

Blair: Goodnight Nash LOL.

Nash: It’s 8:14.

Blair: Then goodnight early.

Nash: Weird ass. Call me when you get home.

I’d been hurting my own feelings on his behalf. Creating his reaction, writing his lines, and choosing his ending. It was the same thing I’d done with Caleb in a different direction.

Back then, I’d created fantasies to keep myself inside something unhealthy. Now I was creating nightmares to scare myself away from something that might actually be good. Both required me to live somewhere other than reality.