Sanctuary (A Dan Smith/ Bastille fanfic)

44. Chloe

Fuck. My. Life.

Fuck. Just.. Fuck.

What am I meant to do?

Thoughts run through my head about every single option that I have but before I can make the decision, Eloise makes it for me.

"Chloe Annabelle Hart, what the hell?!" She has a smile on her face but I'm not sure if she means it. I don't know why she would want to be smiling; we aren't exactly on the best of terms. Annoyingly, she does look good though. Her slim and toned stomach is on display in between her crop top and tight denim shorts, her hair is perfectly curled and her make up flawless on her face. I look at my own baggy t-shirt and shorts and curse myself for looking like such a scruff.

"Eloise, hi." I nervously reply, still unsure about how I should act. I don't want to be friends with her and I haven't for over four years, so I don't know why I'm overthinking it. I should tell her that her boyfriends a cheat and tell her to fuck off.

 "You two know each other?" Chris questions with a happy smile on my face. "What a small world."

"Yeah we have some history." I explain to Chris as he nods in recognition of my slight explanation.

"Sorry, hi I'm Chris. You must be Dan's girlfriend Eloise." Chris holds his hand out and shakes Eloise's hand and I immediately want to rip her hand away from his. Knowing her, she'll make a move on him and find it hilarious that she's taken yet another person from me. "How funny that you two know each other!"

"Sorry, I think I'm getting a bit confused." Eloise starts as she eyes Dan. "You never told me you were back in contact with Chloe."

"Back in contact?" Chris furrows his brows as he tries to work out what Eloise means. "Wait, you know each other?!" His brain finally clicks as his eyes dart between Dan and me.

"Well, yeah." Dan crosses his arms and begins to kick his foot against the ground whilst he tries to think of what to say. Dan's never been one for many words anyway.

"I'm still puzzled by all of this." Eloise holds up her hand to stop. "Sorry but who are you?" She snaps at Chris. Don't you dare snap at my friend like that, bitch.

"I'm Chris, like I just said." Chris stands his ground and I want to high five him for not crumbling under Eloise's death stare. "And me and Dan are looking to start a band. But now I'm confused about how Dan and Chloe know each other."

"And where do you come into this?" Eloise glares at me and I want to crawl into a hole and hide away under her glare but I stand strong, knowing that I don't want her to feel like she's won anything, even though she technically did win all those years ago and is still flaunting her prize off for all to see.

"Chris is Chloe's boyfriend." Dan speaks but I cut him off before he can go any further.

"What?" I almost laugh aloud. "No he's not!"

"Don't sound so offended!" Chris pushes my arm jokily. "But no, of course she isn't my girlfriend! She's my best friend. Why would you even think that she was my girlfriend?!"

"What?" Dan's eyes have widened at this new revelation.

"Always the best friend, never the girlfriend." Eloise pouts and raises one eyebrow in a bitchy gesture. "Just how you were like with my boyfriend." I really want to slap that bitch straight around her gobby little mouth.

"Still got confusion going on over here!" Chris waves his hand slightly. "Explain please?"

"Uh so me and Dan were friends a while ago." I begin to explain but Chris's expression is still stuck on confused. God that's what this whole situation is, confusing. "And I knew Eloise from back in Cornwall and introduced them."

"Oh come on Chloe, let's not be shy about this." Eloise's eyes narrow and she turns to Chris and smiles. "Chloe was obsessed with my boyfriend." She smugly grins.

"El!" Dan gasps.

"What? There's no point being nice about it, that's what you told me about Chloe anyway. Or was that not true?" Eloise carries on digging to unveil as much information as she can. Christ, I forgot how much of a manipulative bitch she is.

"You said I was obsessed with you?" I glare at Dan and I want to slap him just as much as I want to slap his girlfriend.

"No.." He looks back at Eloise. "Well yeah, but."

"Fucking hell Dan! Is that what you told her?! Of course you lied about me, it just comes natural to you, doesn't it?" My blood boils at the man stood in front of me and I can't even begin to remember a time where I had feelings for him, that's so far from the present.

"Chloe, don't do this." Panic is set in Dan's eyes as he fears about what information I'm about to disclose.

"Do what Dan? Is there something you aren't telling me?" Eloise sticks her fucking oar in again.

"Yeah Dan, is there something you aren't telling Eloise?" His nervous expression is only fuelling my fire further. He can't do this, not all the time. He can't go around lying and manipulating people and then pretending that he's this shy, awkward, nervous person who doesn't know how to act when there's a slither of confrontation around. He has to start owning up to his problems and mistakes like a man rather than a child who cowers away in fear. It isn't fair to those of us who get caught up in his shit storm.

"Chloe, what's going on?" Chris speaks up again and I almost forgot that he was stood right next to me. "Have you guys got some sort of romantic history?" His eyes drift from me to Dan.

"No! Of course not." Dan shakes his head and does an awkward chuckle. "We were just friends. We were always just friends. Things just weren't left on the best of terms, that's all."

"You could say that, yeah!" I huff loudly, unable to put up with any more of Dan's shit.

"Because you got obsessed with him." Eloise adds and I have to refrain from slapping her.

"I did not get obsessed with him!" My voice rises in volume and pitch as I defend myself. "Are you actually going to stand back and let this bullshit happen Dan?"

"Chloe." Dan's tone is warning and I can just imagine the panic that is setting in his head and it makes me happy. It's sick isn't it? That one person's nervousness and panic gets me somewhat excited, but in reality I have a damn good reason to be pissed off right about now. Not only did Dan do all of that shit to me in the past, but he's never going to admit that out loud. I don't think he's actually ever admitted what happened between us to himself. I don't think he's ever fully processed the fact that he did what he did with me. I want him to admit it though. I want him to understand. I want him to feel the pain that I have felt before. But now isn't the time or the place. We need to talk about this properly together rather than with an audience of Eloise and Chris.

"Dan." I shake my head. "I think we should go Chris." I turn around and pick up the blanket that we placed on the floor just minutes ago. Without another look at Dan and Eloise I turn around and head back towards Chris's car.

How is it that he still has the ability to make me feel this shit?