The Way We Were

Chapter 5 //

Silence. "Did you call her, Lena? I thought we weren't gonna go see her till after Jack's?" She asked.

"I..-I.." I stuttered out, "I guess she lives here...with Jack."

Her face grew suspicious, "Like roommates?"

I swallowed loudly, "Like in a relationship." I fought back tears, hearing those words come out of my mouth felt surreal. He was Jack, my Jack. How could he do this to me? I understood that Jack would move onto someone new, but I'd never imagine he'd be moving on with my bestfriend. The same best friend who looked us in the eye and said, "You guys are made for each other. You're gonna get married one day, I swear!"

Daphne let out a laugh, "You're joking, right?" She locked eyes with Claire, who had a guilty expression and then moved her eyes to Jack, who had the same expression.

"Tell me you're joking." She sternly spit out. When no one responded, she lost it.

"What the fuck, Claire? What the fuck, how can you do that to Lena? You're fucked up! I can't believe that's how you treat a friend, a BEST friend!" She stopped for a breath, "And, fuck you, Jack! All those nights spent crying for Lena, for what? So you can go and sleep with her best friend? Were you guys seeing each other when you and Lena were still together?!" She asked.

"Never!" Jack declared.

"So, what changed?" She asked. She awaited her response, but received only more silence. She shook her head and laughed, her long high ponytail swaying from side-to-side. "You guys are garbage." She let out before storming out.

Without making eye contact, I exited the house. I had never known true heartbreak until that moment. Visions of Jack and Claire popped into my head. Did he look her in the eyes and say 'Oh God, I love you so much, its crazy.' the way he did with me? Did he actually love her the way we loved each other?

"Are you okay?" Daphne asked, with great concern. She was still fuming with anger. "Fucking dick. I thought he was one of the good guys."

I wanted to hate him, so badly I wanted to hate him. But, I couldn't. I knew, deep inside, he would never intentionally hurt me.

"I don't hate him...I'm hurt, but I'm not angry. I just need to understand." I explained.

"You're a better person than I am." She smiled.

"I'm gonna invite them over for dinner tonight. Wait here."

I got out of the car and walked towards his door. I knocked, and within .05 seconds, Jack appeared with sympathetic eyes.

"I need an explanation. You owe me that. Come over. You and Claire, around 7." Before giving him a chance to respond, I turned my back to him and made my way to the car.

I wondered how long Jack and Claire harbored these feelings for each other. I wondered if Jack had thought of Claire when he and I were still together. I wondered if he felt relief from my departure, knowing him and Claire could finally be together. It broke my heart to think so.

Daphne knew better than to keep picking at the subject, so we drove in silence.

"I think I need to be alone, if that's okay." I mumbled.

"That's fine." she gave me her big bright signature Daphne smile. Her smile made everything a little bit easier to cope with.

We arrived at her parents house and before she got out of the car, she turned back to me. "Feel better!' she shouted, tugging me into a big bear hug.

I waited until she was in her house before driving off. I don't remember how I got home. What I do remember is walking through the front door, shaking so hard that it took me multiple attempts at trying to get my key in the hole, with my swollen red eyes. No one was home yet, giving me the chance to lay down and take the information in before getting bombarded with questions. My heart felt as if there had been a stampede of wild and pissed off animals. Did Jack feel this way when I had left?