Mary reached across the table and touched Bonnie’s hand. “Mine, too. I’ve missed you. I’ve missed hanging out and getting our nails done together. I miss Margarita Thursdays at Tim’s Taqueria.”
Fighting back tears, Bonnie nodded. The lump in her throat prevented her from telling Mary how much she missed those same things. Lauren had taken not only herself out of Bonnie’s life, but so many others who were important to her. Mary was one of those people. It wasn’t fair.
“I feel like Lauren is close to changing her mind about you. I think she’s beginning to realize that maybe she was wrong about what was going on or not going on between you and Mitch.”
“Nothing was going on.”
“I know,” Mary assured her, leaning back in her seat.
“What happens if she decides to change her mind? Is she going to ask me to forgive her for what she’s doing to me?” Bonnie needed to make it clear that Lauren was not the victim in this situation. Lauren was the one who needed to beg for Bonnie’s forgiveness, not the other way around.
“I don’t know that she’ll be looking for you to forgive her as much as she’d let everyone know she’s forgiven you.”
“Forgiven me for what?” Bonnie’s voice rose so much that some of the other patrons couldn’t help but stare.
“Don’t get upset. I know it’s not ideal.”
“‘Don’t get upset’? I didn’t do anything. I was treated like a social pariah. She attempted to run me out of town. She got my dad fired. At the very least, I deserve an apology. A very public one, at that.”
Mary picked up her menu again as if she needed to use it to protect herself from Bonnie’s anger. Bonnie knew Mary hadn’t come here to be yelled at. She was clearly here to negotiate the terms of this reunification. However, Bonnie wasn’t ready to meet Lauren halfway. She wanted Lauren to do some crawling. It was only fair.
“You know Lauren. She’s not going to fully admit being wrong. I also think there’s a part of her that is so afraid that you will tell her you want nothing to do with her if she does try to make amends. I need to know that if Lauren wants to be cordial, will you be open to it, or is there no coming back from this?”
It was a valid question and not one Bonnie wanted to answer without truly thinking about the potential consequences. There was a strong part of her that didn’t want to talk to Lauren Cole ever again. There was another part that wanted to be invited over for a Netflix binge with wine and popcorn like they used to do all the time.
The waitress came over to take their orders, offering Bonnie some of that time to think about how she wanted to respond. If she let Lauren believe all she had to do was lift the curse, she’d be giving her the message that it was somehow okay to treat her friends that way. Not even just friends, but more so people in general.
Once the waitress went to put in their orders, Bonnie rested her forearms on the table. “Listen, I know it’s hard for Lauren to eat some crow. She doesn’t do it. Ever. But I guess that’s why it’s even more important for her to do it in this situation. Her strong opinions about me have nearly destroyed my career and my reputation. She actually got my father fired. It’s not okay. She should be sorry about that.”
“Here’s what I know,” Mary said, folding her hands together. “She should apologize, but I’m not sure she will. She wants to move on, but she won’t even do that unless she knows you’re going to move on as well.”
Bonnie could feel her cheeks getting hot. “So what you’re saying is that if I don’t go along with her publicly forgiving me for something I didn’t do, she’s going to keep this going?”
Mary expression was sympathetic. “Pretty much.”
“And you’re okay with that? You’re going to continue to shun me if that’s what Lauren asks you to do?” Her temper was rising. Anger wasn’t an emotion that Bonnie had had to manage very often until recently. She wasn’t very good at it.
“Obviously I would keep trying to convince Lauren to stop. I know Cheryl thinks she should make up with you, too. We’ll both keep trying.”
Bonnie stood up and tossed her napkin on the table. She would not be staying to eat. Not with someone who wasn’t willing to stand up for what was right. “That makes you a terrible friend. To me and to Lauren.”
She found the waitress and canceled her lunch order, offering her a tip for her trouble. Bonnie got in her car, and a flood of emotion poured out of her. What kind of world was she living in where people would choose to follow someone so clearly in the wrong? Maybe what she needed to do was pack up her things and get out of Blue Springs for good. Leave the town and all the horrible people in it behind.
It felt like the right thing to do in this moment, but she knew she couldn’t leave her father behind. He would never leave because everything in Blue Springs reminded him of her mother. He needed to be there, because that was where the memory of her still remained.
Bonnie couldn’t run. In fact, the ultimate revenge against Lauren would be to stay in Blue Springs and act like none of this bothered her in the least. She wiped her face and checked her reflection in her rearview mirror. The people Bonnie wanted in her life would stand up for her. Sasha, her dad, her boss Gordon, and Aaron. He had stood by her through all of it. Even when his family turned on him. He knew what was right, and he was willing to fight for
