A Little Dinged Up (gxg)

Chapter 18

It wasn't hard to follow Max since he was moving much slower in the walking boot and knee brace. He made his way to a table in the corner of the large banquet room, where the rest of the crew sat. My breath almost caught in my throat as I saw Trish there, her almond skin almost glowing in the light, and her eyes found mine before widening in shock. Max found a seat next to her, and since the tables were set up for groups of eight, there were still three seats left. I took one next to Nat, while Miki sat next to me leaving an empty spot between her and Sonny.

They all looked extremely uncomfortable.

"What the hell Hunter?" Max growled at me. "Get away from our table!"

"What? This is open seating, and you guys are the only ones I really know," I pointed out. "Are you afraid you're going to lose your Twinkie eating privileges?"

Trish's mouth gagged in disgust at that, and she shifted away from him. "It isn't my fault that she chose me over you." Max smirked at me, knowing that he did indeed have the girl.

"Hey, if she stooped that low, then I guess she is all yours." I looked over at Trish. "I just need to know why everyone left, and then I'll be on my way."

"We don't owe you any explanation!" Juliette exclaimed as Trish opened her mouth to speak.

"Fine. I don't need one from mommy dearest. It was obvious why you left, you had to prop up your son's failing online career. I just want to know why my girl left me for someone who she lets make cream filling jokes about her."

Max's face twisted in hatred. "Bullshit, I never said that! You're just trying to turn my new girlfriend against me!" Did he really think she'd believe him over me? He might, and maybe she would. But he had also been stupid.

For Trish's part, she was turning red with anger as she turned to Max. "What the fuck Max? Cream filling? And I'm not your girlfriend!"

"I never said that!" Max actually managed to look indignant at that accusation while lying through his teeth.

"Max, you're a fucking moron, you know that, right? It must be genetics." I threw a smile at his mom.

"Fuck you, Hunter!"

"Seriously Max, I was in the middle of an interview when you said all that. Not only did Miki hear everything, but it was on a hot mic. Odds are that crap you said you didn't say is streaming on TMZ already," I explained. "I had just wanted to come here for closure, but I guess I don't need it anymore. Fuck you all. Trish, I don't know what the hell I did to push you away, but I hope this is the future you wanted, because it is all yours. You really picked a real winner of a team."

I stood up, and started heading for the exit, followed by a flustered Miki who was trying to be polite and making apologies for leaving so soon. I couldn't stay there for another second. Even seeing Trish just made me angry. I don't know why I needed to see her again, she had clearly made her choice. When I left the main hall, I paused to lean against the wall, struggling to breathe while holding back my tears. I really hated this, so much. I still didn't know why Trish had left, but now I didn't really care.

"Are you okay?" Miki asked, her hands clenched in front of her as though trying not to hug me.

I nodded quickly. "Yeah. All good. Think you can order us a Lyft? I need to use the bathroom."

She pulled out her phone and started poking it with her fingers. "I'm on it!"

"Thanks," I muttered. I walked into the nearest ladies' room and splashed some cold water on my face. I needed to get a grip.