Hey, not me!

Chapter Thirty-two: Broken hearts.

"The vening shoff," Sheila's muffled voice sounded in my ear through the phone. I couldn't make sense of what she had just mumbled through what was clearly sobbing.

"What? Honey, I can't hear you. Please speak up." I coaxed.

"Titus dumped me. The wedding is off," she spoke up. Her voice was heavy with tears and I almost didn't understand what she said. It was too shocking for my brain to comprehend.

"What? How could he? I will kill that bastard!" I blurted out as soon as the information registered in my mind .

"It is not his fault," Sheila defended.

"How is it not his fault? Isn't he the one who broke things off?" I asked.

"He did but I am the one who wouldn't stop complaining about how everything is so awful. He said he couldn't take it anymore and that I should take sometime to think about what I really wanted." She explained.

"He said that. I swear I will kill him!" I reaffirmed.

"Didn't you hear me? I am the one who drove him crazy with my whining and complaining," she insisted.

"I heard you the first time. And the fact that he made you think and feel like this is your fault is the exact reason why I will skewer him as soon as I set my eyes on him. How dare he! You are the sweetest, most patient, most calm person I know. How dare he say that you whine and complain?" I found myself getting angrier by the moment. This was my best friend and I would never let anyone hurt her. Not even Titus.

"He didn't use those words," she still defended.

"Which ones did he use?" I accused.

"He said that he didn't like that I kept focusing on the negative. He said that he wasn't sure if I loved him anymore since all I did was tell him how awful his family is to me. And he asked for a break so that I could make up my mind on whether I wanted to marry him," she elaborated.

"Omg, he is so dead. His parents are shitty to you. I have seen it and he is a fool to leave you because of them. He should be lucky you didn't dump his ass the first day his mother was rude to you. I should really like to own a gun right about now," I said vehemently.

"You can't kill him!" Sheila exclaimed.

"Oh I know, but if I had a gun I'd fire at his leg and claim it was an accident," I clarified.

"Don't do that. Just come over and keep me company. I don't want to be alone," she requested.

"You are right babe. Let me freshen up and come right over. Hang in there babe. I love you," I assured.

"Okay. I will be waiting. I love you," she responded.

I stared at the phone in my hand for a long time after I hang up. I didn't know what to say or to think in that moment. The wedding plans had been going on smoothly and this turn of events was completely unexpected. Ever since we came back from my cousin's wedding, Sheila and Titus were almost inseparable. It was clear to see that they truly in love. For these past 10weeks they had been so obnoxious to be around. This break was as sudden as it was confusing and I didn't know what to do. I could start by just being there for my friend.

I was ready and out of my apartment in ten minutes. I hadn't made any plans for the day and if the circumstances had been different I would have enjoyed having a reason to leave the house. There were only so many lazy Sundays a girl could have and I had run out of those weeks ago. I didn't, however, enjoy the respite to being cooped up at home alone. The price that came with it was too high. I just hoped Titus would come to his senses soon.

I stopped at the supermarket on my way over to grab a tub of ice cream. Every broken heart's cure was a good binge eating of unhealthy foods. That, and Sheila was absolutely crazy about mint flavoured ice cream. I planned to distract her for a bit so that she wouldn't feel too dreary. The chances of this working were quite low but it was worth a shot. I was rewarded for my trouble when I showed at her place.

"Ice cream!" She exclaimed excitedly as she grabbed the tub from me. She then settled on the couch and dug in with a spoon that had magically appeared from somewhere. I smiled lightly at her antics. I joined her on the seat and sat quietly. I had never been good at this and I just hoped she would start talking as soon as she was ready. It was quiet for a long while as she gulped down the ice cream at an alarming rate.

"Oh oh, I don't feel too good." She said suddenly as she pushed away the pitiful remains.

"You had too much?" I asked worriedly.

"Yes," she groaned. And then she gave a small sad giggle. "It is better this way. Now am too full and too nauseated to focus on my broken heart. Isn't that nice?" She went on.

"Oh babe, I really hate this for you. Do you want talk about it?" I inquired.

"I don't know," she replied uncertainly. "I mean, I thought he'd always be here. That we would fight sometimes and disagree but he would still stay. I didn't think he would leave. And the wedding is in a month's time. What am I going to do? I keep telling myself to call him, to beg him to take me back but I can't bring myself to. What if he said no? What if he really doesn't want me anymore? Aisha, what am I going to do? Please tell me that I will be fine, that I won't hurt like this forever. Please. Aisha, please."

"Babe, I don't know a thing about love. What I do know is that Titus loves you, I have seen the way he looks at you. And maybe he just needs a moment to clear his head. Maybe the pressure got to him too and he just isn't brave enough to tell you this. Take some time. Breathe. Gather yourself. And then you can talk to him. Everything will work out fine, it better. And even if you don't get back together, you will get through this. I promise." I wondered if I went too far to promise her this but I knew she needed it.

"I will die if he doesn't come back," she confessed.

"No, you won't. I won't let you," I interjected. "You will live. And you will fight, for you, because you are worth it."