Girlfriend's Best Friend

Chapter 17

            I was becoming really attached to Brooke, and that scared me. I’d never been so scared that someone would easily find someone better than me and realize how unimportant I was.

            We’d gone on a date to the beach where I’d made a complete idiot out of myself but by showing Brooke a goofier side of me, she was able to do the same and let her guard down for once. I think she really needed that. We’d found a part of the beach that looked like no one had ever been on, and so we made it ours. This beach was exactly like us—no one would ever know about it.

            Every single day that Kelli was gone the entire group had hung out. Of course I’d missed my girlfriend, but with another girl right there it didn’t seem too bad. Alright, now I just sound like an a.sshole. I realize that I’m in a bad situation, juggling two girls—two best friends—at once, and I know from experience, that it eventually would end poorly. I was just trying to do what I always tried to do—make people feel important.

            I knew the feeling of unimportance all too well, but it’s not something I ever told anyone about, because I didn’t like thinking about it. If I could just make someone feel important or needed, then I felt like a good person, but unfortunately I always tried to make too many beautiful girls feel important at the same time.

            The seven of us were hanging out in the park when I started getting angry texts from Kelli that I was with Brooke after Brooke snapchatted her a picture of me shoving an entire ice cream cone in my mouth. The stupid picture Brooke had of me was nothing compared to the hot one that I had of her. She surprised me last night when she sent that to me, and it was the only thing I could think about.

            I’d stopped answering Kelli at this point because she was acting too jealous. I know the plan was to get them jealous at each other so they’d want me even more, but I didn’t need her bitching this much at me after everything I’d done for her.

            This whole day was great—I’d been flirting with Brooke, hugging her, having her sit on my lap, carrying her, and trying my best not to kiss her. I wasn’t going to let Kelli ruin that. I sat on a railing put up in front of some flowers and watched Graham lead Brooke around on a skateboard. I couldn’t help but to blatantly tell her, “You’re lookin’ hot, Brooke.”

            She turned back, surprised I said that in front of everyone. I chuckled, half smiled and said, “Babe, come here.” All my friends looked at each other in confusion as Brooke did as she was told. The guys had asked me plenty of times if I was sure I was over Brooke, and I just reassured them every time that I was.

            “You can’t say that in front of them,” she whispered.

            “Just wanted to say thanks again for that picture you sent me,” the left corner of my mouth smirked.

            “Shhh! I sent you that so you can think of me while we’re together but not act like this,” she said.

            “Looking at this picture and looking at you now,” I bit my lip. I wanted Brooke so bad. Really bad. She knew it too, but I couldn’t just let her have me. My phone vibrated and I took it out of my pocket to see the same caller had also left me nine texts.

            “Shit, Kelli’s calling me,” I got off the railing and pushed Brooke off me, as I answered the phone, “Hey babe, I miss you.”

            Still sure of yourself, Brooke?

          “You miss me?” Kelli asked. “That’s funny because you’re with Brooke and you’re ignoring me. What the hell are you doing?”

            “We’re all just skating around, I didn’t know you texted me,” I lied.

            “Skating around is more important than your girlfriend? Good to know,” she said.

            “Oh my God, Kelli that’s not true!”

            “So Brooke is more important than your girlfriend?”

            “No! You know how much I love you, why do you always question that?”

         “Because we had pointless sex a million times before I left and now you’re probably doing the same to Brooke,” she said. “I can’t believe you’d do that to me, Cody.”

            “What?? Kelli, what are you even saying? I had sex with you because I love you, it wasn’t pointless. I’ve never had sex with Brooke, I’ve never done anything with her! You’re jealousy problem with Brooke has to stop, it’s really pissing me off. The fact that you can’t trust your own boyfriend around your best friend isn’t right. Either you have to take a break from being friends with Brooke or take a break from dating me, because it’s not working,” I laid it out for her, knowing which one she’d choose.

            “I won’t be friends with Brooke anymore, it’s fine,” she chose the wrong one.

            “No, Kelli, that’s not what I’m saying—”

            “So you want to break up with me?”

            “No! You know your friendship with Brooke isn’t even a friendship, right? You both hate each other, and we all know that. I’m saying stop making everything a competition with Brooke or else our relationship isn’t going to work. Brooke’s my friend, and that’s it. I like hanging out with her and I shouldn’t have to be sorry for that, and that’s why I’m not sorry. I’m not going to apologize for hanging out with my friend. It’s bad enough that you barely ever let me hang out with my guy friends and that I have to miss out on so much shit we all used to do because you don’t like it. Go back to being the Kelli I met on day one, and then maybe things with change,” I told her.

            “I’m sorry! Cody, please just listen! I just really love you—” she started to say.

            “If you don’t stop being so obsessed with Brooke, I’m going to break up with you,” I threatened her, knowing that she had no other choice than to stop being so jealous. She had no one else in her life anymore after she ditched everyone for me—she had no choice but to stay with me. I meant too much to her and I knew it.

            And I’d use it to my advantage.