The next morning Rose woke up with a surprisingly mild headache and a bad case of dry mouth.
Doing her best to be quiet and let Yasmin continue sleeping, Rose got out of the bed and made her way into the kitchen, getting a pot of coffee going while she whipped up some pancake batter and took some Advil.
"You're my favourite person in the world right now." Yasmin said as she stumbled into the kitchen not ten minutes after the coffee was done brewing. "And you're making pancakes? You're the love of my life."
Rose giggled, placing the last of the steaming pancakes on a plate and setting them in the middle of the set table.
"I thought the sustenance might do us some good." Rose said.
Just as she was about to dig into the steaming plate in front of her, Rose's phone vibrated with a message from Sam.
Morning! How're you feeling?
She quickly typed a response, describing the minor hangover and medicinal properties of pancakes and coffee.
I'm glad you're feeling okay.
Rose waited to type a response when she saw the three dots that meant Sam was still typing appear, then disappear, and appear again.
If you're free later today could we meet up and talk?
Rose's heart sank into her stomach, her hangover suddenly felt a hundred times work and the pancakes in her mouth suddenly felt like sawdust. She might not be well-versed in the dating world but she did know that wasn't a good sign.
"You good?" Yasmin asked, her eyes scrunched and laser focused on Rose's panicked expression.
"I'm not sure. I guess I'll find out later, Sam wants to talk." Rose said, lifting her attention from her phone to stare stricken and wide-eyed across the table at her friend.
***
A couple hours later, Rose walked into 'The Busy Bean' feeling like she might throw up and it would have nothing to do with the hangover that had left her hours ago. She steeled herself when she saw Sam sitting at a table with two steaming mugs in front of him and sat in the seat he'd left for her.
"Hey. I got you a vanilla latte." Sam said, pushing the hot drink a little closer to her.
"Thanks." Rose said, humming in satisfaction when the warmth of the mug seeped into her hands. "So, what did you want to talk about? Is there something wrong?"
Sam was silent for a minute.
"I don't really know how to say this, I feel like it'll probably make me seem like an asshole but just hear me out okay?" Sam asked, waiting for Rose's nod of confirmation before he continued speaking.
"I'm just going to say it," Sam took a deep breath. "I don't think you really want to be with me."
"What are you talking about?" Rose asked, immediately forgetting her agreement.
"I don't think we should keep dating. You don't tell me anything unless I drag it out of you or someone else accidentally mentions it to me first, you shy away from me and make excuses to not hang out, and it feels like you have a crush on Clayton. Not to mention you blew off dinner with my parents! Even if the Clayton thing isn't true, you don't trust me, something you would do if you actually wanted to be in a relationship with me." Sam said, smiling ruefully at Rose.
Rose felt her entire body tense throughout his rant, until at the end all her tension just vanished.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realise I was pushing you away at first and then I just kept letting it happen, it was easier." Rose said, "I know it doesn't mean much, but I am sorry and I didn't mean to hurt you. It's not that I don't trust you, I just don't think I know how to."
YOU ARE READING
The One They Left Behind
Romance"If you loved me, why was it so easy for you to walk away?" Rose was used to being forgotten. Her mother had left, then her brother. The one person she never expected to leave her was Diana, her best friend. Diana left in 10th grade, leaving an opt...
