Landmine - Post Malone

19

True to his word, after they have finished dinner and he has checked her hands one more time, he tells her to bring her file on Isla. Dillon lays out all the evidence she has on the table and starts at the very beginning. She tells Austin about her childhood. It was good. Her parents had always been very loving and kind, and their home was a safety net. She and Isla had always been close growing up, and even though they had their own bedrooms, they had preferred to share a room. Dillon explains how she had cried so much when Isla got an apartment in the city when she turned twenty but felt much better when they visited the apartment, and Isla surprised her with her own room. She had made sure to get a two-bedroom apartment so Dillon had room when she visited and eventually move into once she finished high school.

And that's exactly what happened. As soon as she was done high school, she moved in with Isla and started college. Once again, they had fallen into old habits, and Dillon had ended up sleeping in Isla's room most nights. Isla had tried college, but it wasn't for her, so she had dropped out and fluttered between jobs; she was a bit of a free spirit - but she was a happy girl, so Dillon had been happy for her. Dillon goes on to explain how she had met her boyfriend at college. They had graduated together, and once both found steady jobs in the finance field, they had decided to move in together. She had searched for three-bedroom apartments fully intending on Isla moving in with them.

At first, Isla had been excited about the idea, but it was during the apartment search that she had met her boyfriend. Isla had backed off from moving in with Dillon explaining that it was time they mature a little and live in their own homes. Dillon had been a little hurt but she knew Isla was right. They had to grow up some time. She had found a two-bedroom in the same apartment block, so even though they no longer lived together, they were still close by. It had been great for a few months but Isla had grown a little more distant each day and increasingly annoyed every time Dillon begged to meet her boyfriend. Dillon's hurt had continued to grow when visits with Isla had turned from a daily occurrence to weekly and then monthly.

Dillon's boyfriend at the time, Roger, had not noticed Dillon's sadness at the distance that was developing between the sisters, and when she reached out to him for a little comfort, he simply told her it was just part of life, and she needed to grow up.

"I don't like Roger," Austin mumbles, stopping Dillon's story. "He would not like you either. The two of you are nothing alike. He wears suits and puts gel in his hair. But he was not all bad and for a long time, I thought he was the love of my life. But, after Isla disappeared and I started searching he turned on me and would fight with me at the very mention of Isla's name. I came home one day, and he told me to choose - life with him or searching for Isla. I chose Isla and he left," she says.

"Good riddance."

"He reaches out from time to time. Last time I saw him he said he would take me back. But, the condition was that I forgot about Isla. I can't do that and, honestly, I have no love left for him."

"He sounds spineless."

"You sound a little jealous," Dillon says grinning at him.

"I would be if there was anything to be jealous about. Let's move on, I am not overly excited about speaking about your ex...or any ex for that matter," he snips. "How many women in this town have you slept with and are still friends with? How many women will I become friends with only to find out you slept with them in the past?" she asks. She does not really want to know, but she would also prefer to be in the know. She hopes it's not anyone she has met yet. She won't be bitchy to any of the women Austin has slept with but would prefer to keep them at arm's length. "Why has the topic turned this way?" Austin mumbles, looking uncomfortable. "I am not looking for a fight and I am certainly not oblivious to the fact that you had a life before me. I am not angry Austin. But we are sleeping together and we have started building something together. I will share my dating history, too, if you like."