The Green Girl ✓

Making decisions

Caden POV

I opened the door to the pub, feeling way too emotional to just go home. I rarely had the need to talk things with someone, but that was the only thing on my mind today. Lately, I’d spill my guts to Alice but she was the reason for my current distress. So I was back to my old confessor.

“Cade, what are you doing here?” Cillian asked me, looking up from the box he used to carry the alcohol to the storage and back to the bar.

“I need a drink.”

“You do realize it’s barely noon, right Caden?” I didn’t answer and just walked in his direction. “Technically I haven’t even opened yet.” He went on, turning his back to the box so he could face me instead.

“Whiskey,” was all I said, sitting on one of the wooden stools. “Better make them two.”

He looked me over carefully, seeking out the reason for my behavior. I knew I was making him worried and I felt bad about it, but right now I had other things to be concerned with. The man finally sighed in defeat, poured some whiskey in a glass which he handed to me and left the bottle on the bar.

I took a big gulp fully aware of the fact that he was watching me expectantly, waiting for the explanation I wasn’t ready to give him yet. I mean, what could I say? I didn’t even know how to start or how much to tell him.

I took another sip of the amber beverage and let out a huge gush of air through my mouth.

“Keegan and Alice made out.” I stated coolly, looking ahead of me at nothing in particular. I waited for him to respond but when he didn’t I lifted my eyes to meet his. “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

“I don’t know what to say.” He explained in a simple, calm manner.

Silence settled in as I looked ahead of me again, nervously tapping my fingers on the bar.

“It was bound to happen.” He added with a sigh, making me turn my head to him again with what was no doubt a confused expression on my face. “Well, maybe not with Keegan, but Alice is a cute girl so it was only a matter of time before she started dating someone.”

“They are not dating,” I explained through a growl. “It was Keegan who kissed her; it was him who wanted more; it was that bastard who…”

“Hey, hey, Caden… Slow down and think about what you’re saying!” He placed his hands upwards with the palms turned my way as if he was trying to hold me back. “Do you even realize that you just called your best friend “a bastard”? Not to mention that you look like you want to murder the boy.”

“Oh, I don’t want to murder him,” I started with a sickeningly sweet tone. “I just want to rip off his head without him dying, then stitch it back on so I can rip it off again and again, and again…” I could feel myself getting more and more pissed off with every word I uttered.

“Why?” His sudden question interrupted my rant.

“What do you mean “why”?”

“If they are happy together, why would you want to rip off his head?”

“They are not happy together.” I glared at him as I went on: “They are not even together and they will never be together.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Cillian replied, taking a piece of cloth and starting to wipe the surface of the bar. “She’s bound to end up with someone eventually so why not Keegan?”

My mouth momentarily fell open in shock at his words before setting in a hard line. I was so angry I bet I could cause him pain just by staring at him. But he did not look at me and just kept on casually wiping.