Page 39 of Always Choosing You

“I need to use the bathroom,” Melanie whispered, moving to get up from her seat.

“Don’t miss,” she teased.

Melanie rolled her eyes. “I’ll be right back.”

Rory smiled, wiggling into her seat to get comfortable. They were halfway through the film, and she was loving it. The happy little clam was currently not happy, because nothing was going his way. The story was cute, but the artwork was even better. She couldn’t help but marvel at every shot. She wished she could have a remote and pause each motion, take in every detail.

Lost in a world of lines, colors, and singing clams, she didn’t glance over when Melanie sat back down.

“Do you think they had real people dancing to try to capture these movements, or do you think they drew it all?” Rory asked.

“Are you dating him?” said a deep, not-Melanie-at-all voice.

She spun around to face Tyler, who was now sitting next to her, his bulky frame taking up the entire seat.

“What are you doing here?” she hissed.

“I went to the bathroom and passed by Melanie, so I knew you’d be alone,” he said. “Answer me.”

She crossed her arms, feeling a bit smug at the way he was looking at her. Oh, he was angry. She could practically feel the steam coming out of his ears. “Why do you care?”

“Because he treats you like scum,” he said, the volume of his voice causing a few moviegoers around them to turn.

“Be quiet or we’re going to get kicked out,” she whispered.

“Honestly, Ry, I knew you liked him. I picked up on that. But I really didn’t think you would stoop as low as dating him.”

“We’re not dating.”

Tyler laughed, but it was a sarcastic I can’t believe I’m hearing this kind of laugh. “That makes it so much worse.”

“Again, why do you care?” she hissed. “Don’t you have a queen to attend to?”

Tyler shook his head. “It’s not like that.”

“What the hell does that mean? Because from what I saw, it is like that. Holding hands, taking her to the movies, introducing her to your friends, bringing her over to meet the parents, then up to your room and closing the curtains.”

“It’s not like that,” he repeated.

“Whatever, Tyler,” she said, using his full name. Letting him know that she wasn’t messing around, that she was furious with him, too. “I told you I wanted things to go back to what they were, but now you’re busy with your girlfriend and you don’t give a shit about me anymore.”

His face fell. “Is that really what you think?”

“Yes, it is. And you know who has been there for me?”

“Don’t say that asshole’s name.”

“HEY,” said a very angry-looking cinema employee who’d appeared out of nowhere. “If you two don’t quiet down I’m going to have to kick you out. Final warning.”

Melanie returned then, sidestepping to make room for the employee stomping back up the stairs. She noticed who was occupying her seat, and her doe-eyes widened again.

“Get out of her seat,” Rory spat.

Tyler shook his head. “You’re making a huge mistake.”

“Says the guy who’s dating the Homecoming Queen to gain popularity.”

She knew she would regret those words later. But right now, a sick, twisted part of her wanted him to know how she felt, wanted him to hurt.