He didn’t reply to a single text.
I guess when he exploded in front of everyone at the bakery and called it off, I thought it was just frustration. Like a fight between us.
But it was real.
He wanted nothing to do with me.
I hadn’t seen him or talked to him since that time.
And I needed to stop texting him.
I could not become that woman.
I put my phone away.
“Emily, tell the kid about your first love,” Miss Crabapple said. “Tell her it’ll be okay.”
“Yeah,” Buzzy said. “Will you tell me about your first boyfriend? Or crush?”
I opened my mouth.
Images of Liam flashed through my head way too fast.
Like they were conveniently stored there…
I felt my cheeks turn red.
“So his name was Liam?” Buzzy asked.
“Yes,” I said. “Liam. We were friends for a long time and then had feelings for each other. But… and this is a big but… we waited too long.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning we kind of just danced around how we felt. Which is fine. Again, you’re a teenager. However, you asked for the story and I’m telling it. I had to move and the night we decided to tell each other our feelings… well, nothing happened.”
“You missed out on it,” Miss Crabapple said. “What about now? Track him down?”
“I know where he is,” I said.
I swallowed hard.
“So?” Buzzy asked. “It sounds so romantic.”
“He’s with someone,” I said. “Engaged to be married.”
“Screw that,” Miss Crabapple said. “You break that wedding up and get your man back.”
I laughed. “It’s not that easy. And I don’t think we should be talking about this with Buzzy. She’s confused as it is.”
“I love this story,” she said. “Tell me more.”
“I wish there was more. There’s not. Time… you know what? This is about you and Oliver. Not me and Liam. If you like Oliver, then keep texting him. And see where it goes. Don’t go by what other people say or do. That’s my best advice, okay? You will never be able to make everyone happy, Buzzy. So make yourself happy.”
“That’s solid advice,” Miss Crabapple said. “I’ll drink to that.”
She took another sip of wine.
Then she began to cough.
She slowly leaned forward and kept coughing.
I took the wine bottle from her hand and watched her.
She didn’t like when someone offered her help.
When she reached for my hand, I knew that was her version of asking for help.
“Ready to go home?” I whispered.
She nodded.
“It hurts tonight,” she whispered. “Everything.”
“Should I call someone?”
“No,” she said. “I just need rest.”
“Okay,” I said. I looked at Buzzy. “We’re going to get going. I’m tired.” I winked at Buzzy.
“Me too,” Buzzy said. “I’m going to finish my homework and text Oliver.”
I helped Miss Crabapple to her feet.
She paused and looked around.
I hadn’t even taken in my surroundings yet.
The top of the building.
The view of the other buildings.
Some bigger. Some smaller.
The stars in the sky.
The sounds and smells.
All of this I took for granted.
For Miss Crabapple, she took it all in because she wasn’t sure when her last time to see it would be.
That hit me hard in the chest.
Buzzy held the door for us and we walked her to her apartment.
Then I slowly walked Miss Crabapple back to hers.
At the door, she looked at me.
“That Liam story,” she said. “Your voice changed. You think about it a lot, don’t you?”
“Oh, stop,” I said.
“I can see it,” she said. “You should find him. Tell him what you’re really thinking.”
“He’s happy.”
“He could be happier with you.”
“I’m not the kind of woman that breaks up an engagement.”
Especially when it’s my best friend.
“Don’t live with regret,” Miss Crabapple said. “Because one day the hourglass appears before your eyes and you realize… shit… I’m actually going to die.”
“Well, I hope for both of our sakes, we live for a little while longer,” I said.
“You more than me,” she said. “Thanks for the help.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m fine. I just need some rest.”
Miss Crabapple shut the door.
I waited for a few minutes just to make sure nothing happened.
I should have never brought up Liam to her and Buzzy.
Maybe it seemed romantic on the surface, but it wasn’t.
He was engaged.
I was single.
Time moved forward.
Our paths just weren’t meant to collide and stay that way.
Chapter Nine
Liam
I stood behind my desk and flipped through the papers Maria, David, and Jacob had been working on.
I nodded.
“This is solid,” I said. “It’s good writing. Protects them but doesn’t give it all away. Who wrote it?”
“We all did,” Maria said.
“Bullshit,” I said. “Who wrote it?”
They all looked at each other.
Maria and David pointed to Jacob.
Jacob’s face turned red.
“It was collaborative,” Jacob said. “I typed it. But Maria had great notes. And David had great edits.”
“I could have typed it myself,” David said. “I didn’t want them to feel left out.”
“You’re a prick, you know that?” I asked David.
“That I am,” David said. “And I’m going to be a prick making six figures knowing how to navigate this industry.”
I grabbed the papers and flung them at David.
I curled my lip. “You want to be a prick? Rewrite it. All of it. All three of you do it. I want three copies on my desk.”
“Are you serious?” Jacob asked.
I looked at him.
I knew his first thought was his fiancée. All the time he was going to miss with her while working on something he had already completed.
But that was life.
Sometimes you worked your ass off and get thrown a shit hand anyway.
“Get the fuck out of here,” I growled. “Three versions on my desk.”
“Yes, sir,” David said.
“Stuff that up your ass, David,” I said.
Maria looked ready to cry.
I felt like a big asshole as I stood there.
I needed them to realize what the real world was like.
There had been countless times where I worked on a project only to have it thrown out the window for no good reason.
Plus, David was going to eat the other two alive. I needed Maria and Jacob to stick up for themselves and show they could compete with David.
I pressed the
