Mangled Attraction

No Men. Ever.

"Babe, turn it off," the groggy voice of Shayla and the shrill sound of beeping filled Jamie's ears. He smacked his alarm clock with a groan.

"I have a class today," he murmured into her curling brown hair. It smelled faintly of roses.

Jamie hated the smell of roses.

He sat up abruptly, making his girlfriend flinch.

"Shayla..." He said her name delicately, "Listen, I don't think this is working out."

Shayla, still half asleep, blinked and sat up with him.

"What?" She croaked.

"I said," Jamie said, "that this isn't working out. I'm breaking up with you, kay?" He hopped out of bed, flicked on the light, and found a red polo to throw on. He saw Shayla's pink bra on the floor and tossed it to her.

Her eyes fluttered, trying to adjust to the light. She touched the bra that landed next to her and looked between it and Jamie.

"Don't forget your stuff when you leave," Jamie reminded her.

The fair girl squeaked, her face red with embarrassment. She sniffed, and in another second she was crying.

"...Was it something I did? Did you not enjoy last night?" She breathed in between tears, "Why, Jamie? I thought...I thought we had something special..."

Jamie's expression remained fixed, though a part of him actually wished he could care for her. His mind bounced back to the ordeal in the parking lot the other day, when he'd been a total ass to that boy. He winced, but shook his head.

That's just how I am, he thought silently.

"Uh, yeah, let's just skip through the whole, 'it's me, not you', 'Let's stay friends', etcetera thing." He stretched and moved over to his desk, gathering his finished homework assignments, "I just feel...nothing for you. Sorry."

He said it as bluntly as possible, striving to keep any emotions he had inside of him. It did him no good to feel bad, so he would just have be an asshole until she never wanted to see him again. Shayla's expression would have crushed Jamison's heart if he hadn't seen it's likeness so many times before. Every single time was the same. The more hearts Jamie broke, the more he believed his own heart was nonexistent.

Jamie allowed himself a few kind words, "I hope you find happiness. I really do." He swung his bag over his shoulder, stuffing the homework and a few dollars inside.

"So, I'm gonna leave now. I promised to meet a friend at Starbucks before class. Just lock up when you leave," He swung open the door and gave the sobbing girl an award-winning smile, "Toodles!"

Closing the door, he walked down the apartment steps and unlocked his car with a satisfying beep. He swung into the seat and sat for a bit. He rested his head on the wheel and let out a great sigh.

"What the hell is wrong with me..." he breathed. His thoughts flicked to the other day again, and he clonked his head a few times on the wheel.

Why do I keep  thinking about them...

A sinking feeling of guilt surfaced within him, but he ignored it.

He tapped his phone screen, texting his best friend that he was on his way, and shoved his key into the ignition.

 He drove down the street to Starbucks, thinking about 'going steady' with his side chick. He parked his car and looked into the clear windows of the coffee shop, seeing a boy with short cropped blond hair flirting with the barista at the counter.