Status Quo

Chapter 36 - Unforseen Shadows

"Hello?" I say and I can already feel my palms sweating despite the chill that makes my stomach muscles clench.

"Am I speaking with Josephine?" a British voice asks.

"This is she" I reply, and I don't know why I used that form of speech but it just came out that way.

"Great" he says and I can hear him breathe out in relief, "you do not know how bloody hard it was to get your number after that message you sent me"

"Hard to get my number? Well I'm flattered" I say and laugh at my lame joke when he laughs, "But why did you need my number?"

"Because I realized something when I saw a post that you were tagged in when you were holding hands with this guy Micheal Dane"

"Ahhh" I say pretending to feign ignorance, "so you're a friend of Micheal, what a delightful surprise"

"You sound like a really smart person, pretending not to know who I am and why I called when you're the one who reached out to me in the first place" He chuckles and it only makes me more anxious, "The hashtag The Red Devil really did you justice and that bastard Micheal has no idea what he's gotten himself into stepping on your toes"

"That person that you call a bastard is my boyfriend" I say venomously because I don't like the idea of someone insulting him in that manner even though he isn't actually my boyfriend, I think.

"That's impossible" he says and chuckles again.

"What's impossible?" I ask, already feeling dread building up inside of me because I don't even know what to think of anymore since the people around me have been hitting me with surprises left and right.

"That bastard having a girlfriend is impossible" he laughs and it seems like he has the upper hand and wants to leave me in suspense, begging for the truth because if he really just called to tell me then he would have gotten over with it already.

"Listen you piece of shit, you being in another country doesn't stop me from stepping all over you if I want to" I say, "all what you saw in that hashtag is nothing compared to what the people around me have actually faced so if you don't want your barely evident social life to go down the drain then you better speak the fuck up and drop the games"

"Chill, I was only trying to liven up the mood because what I'm about to tell you will surprise the hell out of you"

"Again with the suspense" I say and grit my teeth because the nervousness is making my stomach turn and swirl in a painful way.

"Micheal can't be dating you because he's gay"

"Excuse me?" I say incredulously, "who do you think you are to make such accusations?"

"I'm his ex boyfriend sweetheart" He replies and I can hear the smugness in his voice.

The chill of the weather doesn't affect me anymore as I begin to feel suddenly hot, I abruptly end the call because I don't know what else to say. My head is spinning and I feel like any moment from now I might throw up if I don't steady myself on something.

My chest feels tight and it's like I'm about to have a panic attack, I tell myself to be calm and to take reassuring breaths so I don't lose it. I can't believe it, no I won't believe it because it can't be true, it's all a lie, a prank to make me lose it.

The boy that smiles at me all day and tells me that just saying his name drives him senseless isn't gay, that's impossible, if he was gay then he wouldn't have been able to look me in the eyes and tell me that he cares about and then kiss me countless times. If he was gay then he wouldn't have been threatening me to stay away from Shaze because he didn't like the idea of Shaze and I being together.