The Very Best of Me

4 - Red Handed

I woke up and the sun was particularly gleeful this morning. It beamed through my curtains as if all the problems in the world were fixed by their incessantly cheerful rays.

I turned over and almost screamed when I realized I wasn't alone. My shock turned into slight anger and I shoved Tommy. He jerked away and groaned.

"Five more minutes." he pleaded.

"Merlyn, you fucking idiot." I reprimanded with a sigh.

I slowly stood off my bed and grabbed my robe of the hook. I wrapped it around myself and walked into the kitchen.

I pulled an carton of vanilla ice cream out of the freezer and a spoon so I could eat it.

I have really shitty eating habits.

I started eating my ice cream while I leaned against the counter. After a few minutes, I heard a knock at my door. I rolled my eyes and started towards the door, ice cream in hand. I got a bit angry when they knocked again in less than 20 seconds.

"I'm coming!" I shouted with a slight groan.

I cursed under my breath and sped away to the door. I shoved another spoonful of ice cream into my mouth before I swung the door open. When I saw who it was, my expression changed a bit.

"Hey. It's early." I said with a smile.

"No, it's not. It's almost 3pm." Oliver said with a small chuckle.

"Really? Oh, I tend to oversleep when I'm off. I have nothing else to do." I revealed while I rested my head against the door.

"So, can I come in? I have something for you." Oliver disclosed with a smile.

I was about to nod and let him in when I realized Tommy was still in my room.

"I can't. I-uh. I'm busy." I stated.

"You literally just told me you're just waking up." Oliver said with his eyebrows furrowing.

"No, I know. I'm busy, though." I lied.

Wow. Nice save, stupid ass. Now he'll really know something's up.

"Are you not alone? Because I can come back later." Oliver offered.

"Yeah, actually. That would be-." I began but was swiftly cut off.

"Hey, Ava. You don't happen to have-." Tommy said as he walked into my living room.

I groaned under my breath and Oliver looked down at me before looking between Tommy and I. I gave him an awkward smile and everything fell silent.

"Yeah, I'm going to go. I'll see you two at the house later, right?" Oliver questioned, his gaze still averting between me and Tommy.

We mumbled sounds of agreement and Oliver nodded. He left, closing the front door behind him. I heard Tommy let out a small chuckle and I lost it.

I began to laugh uncontrollably and I almost fell over from laughing too hard. Once I finally calmed down, I straightened myself up.

"That's one way he could've found out." Tommy joked.

"Stop it. Don't make me laugh. He probably hates us for not telling him." I said while trying to keep myself from laughing again.

"He doesn't hate us. Besides, we're just having fun. He'll relearn the meaning of the word and all will be well." Tommy reassured me.

I walked over to him and handed him the half eaten tub of ice cream.

"You could have that if you want. I'm going to go take a shower." I whispered.

"No, I don't want the ice cream. I'm coming with you!" Tommy called out from behind me.

I smirked to myself as I jogged back to my room.

                                    ———

I walked through Oliver's front door and was greeted by Thea. She gave me a wide smile, which I happily returned.

"Hey. Is he upstairs?" I questioned.

"Yeah. Do me a favor. Scare him." Thea joked.

I laughed and thanked her as I walked to the stairs. I climbed them and made my way to Oliver's room. I knocked on the door and he called for me to come in.

I walked in and smiled at him as I kicked off my shoes and plopped down on his bed. He was laying at the bottom of it, tossing a small ball.

"So how was the ride?" Oliver questioned.

I began to cough and tried to catch my breath, trying to shake my shirt as I did so.

"What?" I asked.

"The ride over here. How was it? Surely the traffic couldn't have been that bad." Oliver offered.

"Joke all you want, Oliver. If you want to be mature and actually talk about what happened, I'll tell you anything you want to know." I said as Oliver smirked at his joke.

"Yeah, I know I've been gone five years. But I want to know when it happened." Oliver revealed.

"Remember how in junior year of high school, I told you I lost my virginity to this older guy in college?" I queried.

"Of course. For months, I couldn't get over the fact that you managed to sleep with someone in college before me." Oliver said with a petty scoff.

"Yeah, I lied about that." I revealed blandly.

Oliver sat up and stared at me, his eyebrow raised in confusion and amusement.

"So you didn't lose your virginity junior year?" Oliver asked inquisitively.

"No, I did. Just not to who you thought I did." I replied.

Oliver was about to ask me another question but it must've clicked because his expression changed to one of realization.

"You didn't." Oliver said vaguely.

"We did." I responded quickly.

"So you lost your virginity to Tommy?" Oliver questioned.

"Yes." I stated.

"Tommy Merlyn? Our best friend, Tommy?" Oliver inquired.

"Yep. It's not that hard to wrap your head around." I softly whispered.

"Except, it kinda is. We haven't been juniors in 10 years. You two hid this from me for 10 years?" Oliver queried.

"No. Technically, we hid it from you for 5 years. You've been gone the past 5 years so there was nothing to hide." I corrected him.

"That's definitely not the point, Ava." Oliver reprimanded.

"No, it's most certainly not. In fact, I don't really see the point." I exclaimed.

"The point is that we're a group. A trio. How are we supposed to stay a trio of two of us are screwing each other?" Oliver questioned.

"I don't think who I fuck is any of your business, Oliver. For years, you have made it abundantly clear that my sex life never has and never will have anything to do with you." I shouted.

Oliver's expression softened and I realized what I said. I cleared my throat and got off the bed. I reached for my shoes and pulled them on as Oliver called out to me.

"Ava, you don't have to leave." Oliver said quietly.

"No, I know. I just have to work in the morning and it's getting a little late. The world doesn't stop just because the A.D.A. called out of work." I said with a faint chuckle.

I walked to the door and opened it, Tommy standing on the other side when I did.

"He's all yours, T. I'm leaving." I whispered.

I walked past him and through the door, sprinting down the hallway. I descended the stairs and went out the front door, closing it behind before I rushed to my car.

You've really screwed the pooch, Ava. The pooch being Tommy.