"Go wash your face because you look like a clown, and please don't wear a short ass dress this time," he yells with a huge shit grin on his face.
I mouth fuck you and flick him off before turning my car around to head back to my dad's. I do need a shower because I stink, and my makeup looks like a kindergartener did it. As I make my way back down the driveway, I start to think about Luke. I want to call him, but I most certainly don't want to listen to that chick's voice on the other end.
Then it hits me, what if the woman who answered his phone last night is the one, he told me about from Colorado; the one he said that he last slept with before me, who he would meet up with every few months. My stomach starts to tie in knots, and I begin to not feel very well just thinking about that. I look down at my phone, just chilling in the cupholder. I grab it and set it on my lap. I contemplate for a solid five minutes whether I should call him or not. I decide to call Ris instead.
"Hey, girl," she answers almost immediately.
"Hey, Ris," I reply to her without hesitation.
"How are you doing? Any news on Luke? Did you find out who that skank was that answered his phone?" she asks, with concern in her voice.
The last two questions I could not answer, and the first one was obvious. I was confused, upset, and conflicted. No matter what, Luke could have just texted me that he needed some time to process things, but he has gone completely MIA.
"I'm okay; spent the afternoon with Jason. He kept my mind off, Luke," I ramble.
"There's still no sign of him. I've come to a possible conclusion on who the girl might be, though."
"Ali, please don't come to any conclusions as they will drive you insane," Ris says sternly.
Since I've thought about the Colorado woman as a possibility, I have made myself sick. But I don't know who else it'd be or why he'd even be with another woman in the first place. I thought he liked me and was even falling in love with me. That's why all of this doesn't add up. It makes zero sense. I want to understand his reasoning, but I can't when he won't talk to me.
"Remember when I told you that he said the last girl he slept with before he slept with me was a chick from Colorado, who he would fool around with every few months. What if it was her?" I ask.
I cringe my teeth waiting for her to explode on me in her Ris way. She is silent for a moment before she speaks. Part of me is thinking that perhaps she agrees with me.
"Girl, trust me when I tell you this. That man is head over heels for you. I have seen the way he looked at you and had to touch you every chance he could. The information he learned at my parents was a lot to process for him. Shit, it was a lot for me when you told me," she states.
Ris loves to give me her philosophical speeches. They usually make me feel better about myself and the situations I am in.
"He needs time to process it. He will be back, and you two will be stronger than ever. Trust me."
I smile as I know she's probably right, and I have nothing to worry about, but I'm still apprehensive over the whole situation. I, as usual, am very likely overthinking everything. I hope she is right.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you," she starts to laugh.
"Brady came into work yesterday as he has taken most of the week off. His face looked so bad. He still had a cut on his eyebrow, nose, and lip. Plus, he had two slight black eyes," she bursts out laughing.
After she catches her breath from her contagious laugher, she continues with her story.
"It was the first time that he's ever looked ugly and like an embarrassed little bitch," she chuckles.
"Good," I reply with some "he deserved it" attitude behind my reply as I laugh with Ris.
Karma is a bitch. He had it coming to him. Just thinking about Brady makes me queasy but a little relaxed to hear about his new makeover.
I pull down my dad's driveway and sit in my car while I continue the conversation with Ris. She goes off more about my relationship with Luke and how we will be just fine once he returns to town. I need to be patient with him and give him some time to process everything. I agree with her, even though it's hard not knowing what's going on with him. I would at least like some acknowledgment from him that he is safe, and we are fine.
After our call ends, I head into my dad's house. The sun is starting to set, so I need to shower and get ready quick to head back over to Jason's for another night of distractions, I hope. I rush up the stairs and head straight for the bathroom. I turn the shower on, and before I step in, I call Luke.
It's ringing. My heart starts to pound. It rings for the second time, then the third, and the fourth. Just as I am about ready to hang up Luke answers.
"Hey."
I freeze as the voice on the other end is Luke's. My heart drops and begins to pound in my chest. I don't say a word but listen.
"Ali?" he says.
A tear slides down my cheek. I lower the phone from my ear, staring down at the floor.
"Ali? Hello?" he says again, muffled from the distance my phone is from my ear.
I press the end call button on my phone and hang up as I rest my arm against my thigh. I stare at the floor
