I wake up hearing my alarm, I groan rolling over hitting it to turn it off. I go to the bathroom turning on the faucet, I brush my hair feeling the stings at the few knots before I step into the shower. I feel the warm water move over me making me wet as I reach forward grabbing my loofa. I start to lather on bodywash as I start to think about my day since I have a shift. I get dressed quickly and leave.
"Hey." Dalton greets when I walk in the door.
"Hey." I smile sipping my coffee as I walk in. I put down my bag at the counter, and he follows me standing beside me. I let out a yawn.
I was never a fucking morning person. Although that's not why I'm tired, I'm tired because I was behind on sleep when I got here yesterday. Plus, I had to move everything in, my dad did the rest after we got the boxes in so I could leave to go to my interview. I was glad I was able to organize everything being done yesterday.
"You do know it's only two in the afternoon." He speaks walking on past me.
"Yep, don't care." I grumble making him laugh. "I just woke up an hour ago." I tell him.
"Can you focus or do you need the day?" He asks.
"Nope. I'm good." I answer.
"Alright, then." He shrugs with a nod.
The day goes buy in a blur Dalton teaches me how to close before we walk out. He tells me to call if I need anything before raddling off his personal number. When I walk around to get in my car, I freeze seeing none other than Heath leaning against it.
"Heath." I put my hand over my chest, he holds his hands up in response.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you literally." He mutters.
"What do you want?" I ask already feeling sleep start to drift in. "Make it quick." I order.
"We need to talk." He speaks.
"I already told you we don't." I argue.
"Yes, we do, Briar." He steps forward. "We need to talk because I didn't mean to let her hurt you back then. I sure as hell should never have let you walk away." He whispers.
"I may have walked away but you didn't come find me we didn't talk!" I scream. "I can't do this." I mutter.
"She blackmailed me, Briar." He speaks.
"With what?" I speak.
"A video of us. Our first time." He whispers. "I couldn't let her plaster it all over the website so she got to have her fun and I got to watch her delete it." He explains.
"That doesn't make sense." I shake my head. Why wouldn't he come find me and explain? If he had explained it would have saved me from a world of hurt. Maybe we would have had a future.
"Yes, it does. We both had sex at Neil's party remember? The camera angle was from the closet." He explains.
"It doesn't explain why you didn't talk to me." I tell him.
"I didn't know how. I was confused, I was scared, I thought if you knew you would have went running anyway. I thought-" He looks down at the ground. "I don't know what I thought." He whispers.
"It's true Briar." I startle hearing another voice. I turn seeing Neil behind me.
"I should have never ever let her hurt you. I should have never made it out like I was fine with that, because inside I was dying." He speaks.
"So, you just sit back and watch me become the odd man out, let me become the weird pathetic little girl everyone talked about?" I have to ask.
"Part of the agreement was I never touch you again, never be seen with you again." He explains.
"If she deleted the video why bother?!" I ask feeling tears in my eyes.
"I didn't know if she had another copy." He bites out. "You think I didn't want you back?! Didn't long to have you in my arms even if it was just for one more night?" He asks stepping closer his voice turning soft. I turn and run right smack into Neil's chest, he stays stock still though wrapping his arm around me.
"I knew you might run, Briar." He whispers and I turn back around to face Heath. Everything around me envelopes me in a heat so hot that I almost forget about our conversation. "Everything coming out of his mouth right now, is the truth." Neil whispers in my ear. Heath walks stopping a foot before me.
"You broke me." I whisper and he reaches up wiping a tear off my cheek.
"I know baby." He whispers. I turn to Neil now.
"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask.
"He didn't know." Heath answers walking around standing beside Neil.
"I only knew bits and pieces." Neil shrugs. I feel a pull to both of them and it's fucking mind boggling, I sigh turning to my car.
YOU ARE READING
Once And Now Forever
RomanceI moved back to the town I grew up in. I once thought I found the love of my life in high school, it all came crashing down when he betrayed me. It was the most brutal and cruel thing to ever happen to anybody and I got punished. His best friend was...
