Too Much Clickbait - Sequel to Clickbait

19

Gabbie's P.O.V
I had gotten a text from Katie that she was on her way home. I immediately offered to pick her up from the airport, refusing to take no for an answer. I had only waited for twenty minute outside of the airport until I heard Katie knocking on my passenger side door. I unlocked the door, putting my phone on the center console. She threw her luggage in the backseat and quickly got into the passenger side, buckling her seatbelt as she spoke. "I'm so fucking happy to be home finally."
I laughed, beginning to drive off and towards her home. "I'm happy you're home too, honestly. I felt guilty that you stayed longer than all of us did."
"Really? It was only a few days." Katie lightly laughed, shrugging.
I shrugged. A few minutes of silence followed us, Katie on her phone and the radio playing nearly inaudible. I looked over at her quickly before going back to the road, seeing the amount of traffic we would be stuck in. "Hey... So I've been thinking... My lease is almost up."
I watched as Katie dropped her phone into her lap, her head whipping to the side to look at me. "Are you serious? Dude... My loft is paid off."
"How much did you sell Heath's car for?" I laughed, shaking my head.
"Let's just say that I sold it with enough leftover to pay for three months extra, minimum, in utilities, as well as new furniture." Katie snorted, trying to keep from laughing. "It's a three bedroom, two and a half bath... I use one of the rooms for my studio and office. You can have the third bedroom, I have no problem with that."
"Who's dick did you suck to get that?" I joked.
"Sean." Katie spat out, picking up her phone again and scrolling through Twitter. I stared at her with a look of shock until she explained herself. "It was a joke!"
"You're not joking one bit, you little skank." She joined in laughing with me. Another stint of silence came over us where I felt like I should speak about something that had been plaguing me, especially these last few months. "Hey, listen... I know this isn't the time to ask this, but I want to be up front about everything."
"I'm all ears." She smiled cheerfully at me, putting her phone down again.
"The shit with Zane...." I felt poison taint my mouth when I finished saying his name. "I don't think you should trust him."
"What do you mean?" The hair on aKatie's arms perked up with fear instantly.
"It's like Survivor out here, okay, we gotta' be fending for ourselves. I can't keep secrets anymore." I looked over to see Katie looking at me like I had lost it. I sighed, putting my car in park in the standstill traffic and turning to her. "Zane knows about the abortion and-"
"Does Heath?" Katie screamed. She threw her hands behind her head, pulling at the roots of her hair. "How the hell does Zane even know?"
"He never admitted to it, but I know he found out because there was this doctor card on the counter. He had come over and I left him for, like, five minutes.... When he left, the card was gone, and I knew he instantly knew." I shook my head at the year old memory. "We promised we would never discuss it along with...."
"Spit it out." Katie said, gritting her teeth.
"Zane knows abou Amber and Heath's past..." I turned back to the road, not wanting to see Katie's face. I glanced from the corner of my eye, seeing Katie raise an eyebrow. I let out an exaggerated sigh before sitting. "Amber and Heath knew each other from school-"
"I knew that." Katie cur m off, still confused.
"Did you know that he grew up with her since she was three." I blurted out, leaving Katie speechless. She shook her head slowly, no. "Apparently, they were close family friends. His family is, like, super close to hers.... They were, like, meant to be-" I looked at Katie's face and watched her slump back in her seat. I instantly stopped speaking.
I felt a sinking feeling on my chest as I began to drive, the traffic finally breaking up. Katie didn't speak for another few minutes, her voice sounding low when she did. "You know... I'm not mad about him being with her. I'm so happy that he's happy, honestly. I just...." Katie sniffled and I realized she was crying, another stabbing feeling entering my chest. "I don't know if I ever knew who he really was."
"Sure you did-" I tried to ease her pain, but she cut me off.
"No, I really didn't, Gabs!" I tried not to show how happy I was for her to say my old nickname again as to not give her mixed signals and make her think I wasn't taking her seriously. "I didn't hear about Amber until we were getting married! And even then, I had to figure out on my own terms he was even seeing a girl! He never... He never liked to open up to me. At all. But, I.... It's my fault. I never pushed him because I was scared pushing him would make him leave and now he's-"
"You need to quit bitchin." I rolled my eyes, ignoring her eyes in order to stay strong. "You are friends with him again! You have a gorgeous boyfriend! You have a beautiful house! You want to feel bad for yourself, fine! But remember that this is your fault and if you want to change it, fucking change it!"
"I've missed you a lot." Katie sat back in her seat, drying her cheeks.