“Okay. Whatever.” She eyed us suspiciously before planting a kiss on his cheek. “Bye, Dad.”
“Bye, baby girl.” With one more poignant look my way, he added, “You two be careful.” He walked off, leaving behind words that hounded me.
Since we’d graduated, my little stunt with Jett and Molly had popped into my head now and again. Every text Alivia received from Kim, claiming she had gossip, had me nervous that my secret was out. The closer we got to everyone leaving for their respected colleges, the more I worried shit was about to hit the fan.
Still, I had to wonder why I’d never come clean to Alivia. Shit, who was I kidding… I knew the reason. Why bother upsetting her if my plan worked? But now that Trey knew, I had no choice. I needed to tell her… and soon.
Besides that, nothing kept Jett from dumping her any day now, and that created a proverbial time clock counting down in my head. The last time I’d spoken to him was weeks ago. Maybe I hoped all the happy pictures of Molly and Jett together were real and with some sheer stroke of luck I’d actually done them a favor.
The telltale sign that we were both consumed with our own thoughts came when the drive home went by mostly in silence. I had to assume her pensive mood had to do with my rehearsals beginning the next day, and she probably thought the same of me.
It felt like an eternity by the time we pulled up to my building. By then, the speech I’d prepared along the ride had grown roots and implanted itself in every fiber of my being.
“Are you nervous?” she asked when I handed the car keys to my building’s valet.
“A little.” Terrified, but not for the reason she assumed.
“You’re going to be amazing, Shane. Really.” With a nod, I retrieved our bags from the back seat, and she wrapped her arm around my bent elbow as we walked into the lobby.
I listened to her adorable pep talk, nodding and smiling when I needed to. But by the time I unlocked the door and we stepped through, I couldn’t take the pressure and had to get it all off my chest. “Babe, I need to talk to you.”
Her gorgeous blue eyes widened a bit. “Okay.”
The bags landed with a thump before I took her hand and led her through the empty apartment straight to our rooftop terrace. Why I chose to come clean in a place that my girlfriend loved was beyond me. Maybe I hoped that would lessen how angry she’d be.
Once we sat facing each other at one of the bar top tables right outside the patio doors, I cut right to the chase. “I kind of did a thing.”
“What thing?”
“Well…” Her eyes narrowed when I went no further. The hot, stuffy New York air wasn’t responsible for sweat beading on the back of my neck. And now that I’d brought this up, I had to follow through. “Jett and Molly are together because of me.”
Her face fell. “What are you talking about?”
I started by explaining the idea I’d had for a scholarship program, sugarcoating it like an idiot. But my attempts failed when the more I spoke the angrier she became. By the time I relayed the conversation I’d had with her father that morning, Alivia sprang out of her chair and began pacing.
“I can’t believe you did that,” she snapped. I didn’t bother responding… it wouldn’t help. Whenever I pissed her off, our arguments always escalated because I never knew how to keep my mouth shut. This time, I merely sat and took what she needed to unleash. I listened to every reason she rattled off, waiting for her to get it all out. “Why not just tell Molly off, Shane? Or here’s a better idea… why not just let me handle it?” Just when I thought her glare and pause meant she expected me to speak, she threw out, “And what happens when he dumps her?” I had no response for that… not one that she’d be okay hearing. I didn’t know what would happen. I figured by then Molly would have gotten her Jett fill and would move on. “Worse yet… what happens when your parents find out it was all because of a stupid plan?”
Trying to lump all her questions into one response, I said, “I only tried to—”
“I don’t care what you tried to do.” The ice-blue daggers she aimed at me held no compassion for how badly my chest had already ached. “What possessed you to do this?”
The longer pause meant she expected a response this time. “I hated how she made you feel, Liv. And I don’t even know the complete scope of what she said to you most of the time, but I did see that screen shot she sent to her friends. Just remembering the look on your face when you straightened your hair has my blood boiling. She doesn’t get to make you feel that way.”
“That’s my problem, Shane. Not yours!”
“Bullshit, Liv. You are my problem. I love you. She needed to be put in her place. Talking to her would do no good, and I didn’t trust her after she made it like something happened between us the last time I tried to talk to her.”
My excuse caused confusion to slip through the anger. “So you concocted this stupid plan instead? How does that make any sense?”
“It doesn’t now,” I conceded, walking over to where she stood a few feet away. “But at the time I thought it was the perfect solution. The only person that affects Molly is Jett. If things worked out between them, great. If not, that bitch deserves some heartbreak.” The gaping stare I received was not what I was hoping for. “Look, it was dumb, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. But I’ll never be sorry for having your back, Liv… ever.”
Just as I reached for her, she stepped back and raised a palm. “No. I’m really pissed at you right now.” Shoving my hands into my pockets to force myself not to touch her, I nodded for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes. “I need space.”
As she headed for the door, I panicked. “Don’t leave.” If she walked out that door, this fight would go on for days. “Stay here, be angry with me any way you need to… but do it here.”
Hope sparked when she plopped into a chair instead of walking away. “Jesus, Shane.” She stared at me hopelessly, torn between wanting to kill me and wanting to forgive me. “How am I supposed to process this?”
This time, when I approached and squatted before her, she allowed the close proximity. “I fucked up… but this is all on me. This may all go away and no harm done.”
“Or it won’t. People deserve to know what you did.”
“The only people I care about are you and my family. I’ll tell them. Like you, they deserve to know.”
“You only told me because my dad called you out,” she argued.
“No… I only told you today because he did. I planned to tell you eventually, I swear.”
“When? After you left?” My silence caused a frustrated shake of her head, and she pressed her palms into her eyes, refusing to look at me. “Go inside. I need to be alone.”
I stubbornly pried her hands away from her face to kiss her forehead. “I love you, Liv. No matter how dumb this was, the only reason I did it at all is because I love you.” With that, I left her to sit out there alone, respecting her request while holding on to the fact she’d stayed.
Alivia
The only reason I left my ass on that chair was because I couldn’t hurt him by leaving… even if I was furious with him. Besides, he was hurting enough.