Just a Little Love Story

Chapter One

Lilian

Already an hour late for Jaden's birthday party, I walked through the crowd of Bellevue Square, looking for the perfect gift for my beautiful friend.

Jaden had everything. From his perfect upbringing to his straight, white teeth, there was nothing he could possibly want. Yet, here I was, wondering what I could buy for him.

I was tired after a day spent answering angry emails about my company's latest food delivery gone missing—not Green Fields' fault really, but due to the carelessness of the delivery guys. The two potheads decided to smoke and drive to a different side of town than the one on their docket. Apologizing is a tiring job, and Seattle is full of people who know how to complain in neat, articulated English.

Closer by Kings of Leon sang from my cell phone. Jaden's handsome face appeared on the screen.

"Lilly? Where are you?" Oh, the husky tones of Jaden's voice...

The man was dangerous. To Lilly—the small little girl who had a crush on Jaden Carlton since she was fourteen—he definitely was. Lilly would snap at attention every time he called her. Jaden only had to whisper her name to make her knees tremble. But I was an adult now, and I used my full name, Lilian, like adults do.

"On my way to your place." A lie. A white one at that, but deep inside me, I knew there still was some Lilly left in me. Maybe more than a little.

Okay, the truth was that every day I fought to overcome Lilly's stupid infatuation for Jaden.

"I want you here," he said.

A chill went through my spine. At the same time too warm and on the verge of freezing, I pressed the phone against my blouse, then I brought it back to my ear. "How many people are there already?"

The long silence told me everything I needed to know.

"I'm not coming. Bye, Jaden." I hung up, shaking, and for the briefest moment I was full Lilly, and Lilly wanted to run as fast as she could to the car and drive to Jaden's. Then they would have sex. The whole night, Jaden would be good to Lilly. So good, she would forget everything about pride, and emancipation, and all the hard work that had transformed Lilly into Lilian. Then the next morning would come, and Jaden would kiss her forehead and say, "See you next time, sweet pea," as he said to all the girls he bedded. And the worst of it was that Jaden truly cared for me. I was the one he always came back to. No matter how long his stories lasted, he would always seek Lilly out when he needed a friend. Or a good lay.

Both born and raised in sleepy Redmond, we went to the same kindergarten, elementary, middle school, and high school—go Mustangs. I then decided to study global economy at the University of Western Washington in Bellingham, while Jaden discovered Computer Science at the University of Washington in Seattle. Divided by less than two hours of freeway, I finally blossomed into an individual who could think of herself as a separate entity from the cute boy who had become a dangerous player.

Instead of going home, my one studio apartment in Redmond overlooking Marymoor Park, I strolled toward the dumpling place—one of the many restaurants inside the mall. I thanked the sheer size of Bellevue Square for forcing me to walk fifteen minutes before reaching the place, because I needed the mild exercise on stiletto heels to cool my thoughts. Then I cursed at the sight of the line waiting for a table. I should have expected eateries would be full on a Friday night, but Jaden's party had somehow taken center stage in my thoughts, and until a moment ago, I wasn't planning on eating out.

"How long is the wait?" I asked the cute girl at the door. She was redirecting the crowd to the side to let people in and out.

Couples and group of friends, smiling and seemingly having a good time, milled all around me, making me feel the odd one out.