Love, On Read (MxM)

Chapter 29: Hypocrite

A/N: no worries, Haruto will return for the next few chapters ;)

Ollie's POV

Of course, they chose a crappy mainstream coffee shop to talk things over with me. The coffee there always tasted burnt, which is why the cold brew I ordered remained barely touched. Even the chairs were unbearable, let alone the obnoxious music they played on the speaker. Mason was sipping on his iced latte while Benjamin had gone to add some milk to his black coffee.

"Talk," I said after taking the tiniest of sips, cringing at the bitterness. "You asked to meet me, so talk."

Mason cleared his throat. "Thanks for meeting with us."

"Just make it quick," I told him, training my eyes down at the table as Benjamin returned, still stirring the wooden stick in his coffee. "I made plans after this."

It was a lie that they probably didn't buy, but I didn't care.

"About the wedding...."

"You're still welcome to come," Mason finished for him.

Setting the drink down a bit roughly, I rolled my eyes. "Why should I go? I've told you I don't want anything to do with it."

"My mom..." Benjamin said just above all the noise from the coffee shop. "She wants you to come."

"Your mother? I haven't seen her since high school, Benjamin. What would she want to see me for? I doubt she remembers what I look like."

He gulped before taking a long sip of his drink. Mason placed a hand on his forearm to comfort him, and I nearly scowled at them for the umpteenth time. "She wants to see you, Ollie. She misses you."

"She never liked me before, remember?" I chuffed. "Ever since my mother confronted her about you, they stopped talking. I think that's the last time I saw her."

"She wants to see you—"

"Why?" my voice raised. "Why now. After everything, what could she possibly want with—"

"My mother is dying, Oliver."

I stopped halfway from bringing my drink to my lips. "What?"

"She's dying, Ollie." He sighed shakily before rubbing his temple. "Cancer. Stage four. They're giving her to the end of the year."

I blinked, watching as Benjamin shed a tear for the first time in a long time and probably not since we were children. Mason was quick to comfort him, squeezing his hand. "Is...is that why you're planning a wedding so soon? For her?"

"Yes..." He breathed. "I wanted her to be there, even if this isn't the best time for us financially. She always wanted to see my wedding; you know that."

I did know that. She hadn't married Benjamin's father and openly regretted it. Whether wishing to marry was because she needed more money for her gambling or whether she truly did love him at one point, I hadn't known.

"And you want me to go to it for her?" I asked, letting the pieces fall in my head. Of course, I felt sorry for him, his mother—regardless of how she behaved towards the end of our friendship. But strangely, it still hurt knowing the whole reason behind why he was here, why they had gotten engaged. He invited me, for her sake, for her to see me and see his wedding like some picture-perfect scene. It wasn't for me. It wasn't a genuine invitation at all. He only cared about how he'd be perceived. Of course, he would comply with his mother's wishes, even if that meant forcing his ex-friend to attend. She hadn't known the hell he put me through or how or why we had fallen apart as friends. As far as she knew, we were still friends.