Our six-month anniversary was nearing and unfortunately, I still had no idea what to get Dallas. See, he was always showering me with wonderful gifts. He was really sweet and I wanted to make sure my gift would be memorable. It was hard picking something out for him, though. He basically had everything. I had gone from shop to shop and yet I ended up with nothing.
Six months was quite big, in my opinion. It was nice knowing that my first relationship was going so smoothly. It was perfect. Being in a relationship was really wonderful. You had someone to confide in, to love, to care for. I was very comfortable with Dallas. But I also knew that being in a relationship wasn't some mandatory thing in life. I knew for sure that people didn't need someone to feel complete. People could find happiness in so many things in life.
I glanced at Dylan as I had my breakfast and I wondered. If he could have a second chance at love, would he take it?
"Dylan?"
He looked up from his book. "Yeah?"
"Was Catherine your first love?" I asked, taking in his peaceful features.
Dylan's eyes clouded. He sighed and looked back down. "Yeah. Yeah, she was."
I nodded and continued my breakfast. I knew that he didn't like being asked about Catherine. It was a very touchy subject for him. For him, it was complicated. He was confused. Her being his first love made it even more painful, considering what she had done. To me, it looked like he was still caught up – he was still in love. Or at least, he still harbored some feelings for the curly-haired beauty. I wondered what he would if he saw her again.
I mean it was weird to think about it but she was in the very same city in the very same state we were in right now. She could be in some coffee shop, looking out the window, thinking of Dylan. She could be reading the texts she had sent to him, hoping he would answer back. She could be with her friends and Dylan would still be on her mind. I knew for sure that Catherine was still in love with Dylan and I knew for sure that she was thinking about him. Did she know he was in New York?
"Don't you want to talk to her?" I blurted out. His head snapped up, his cold eyes locking with mine. I was being stupid, though. What she did was absolutely inexcusable. She hurt Dylan. It cost him a lot. His life wasn't exactly what you would call peaceful. I just wanted him to be happy.
"No. Please let this go."
"Sorry," I said. "But hey, if you're feeling sad, don't forget to look at that napkin I gave you!"
He rolled his eyes. "You're a real artist."
I laughed. "It's nice, I swear!"
"Who do you think murdered that woman?" I asked Amber, my eyes glued to the screen. We were watching some thriller. "Amber?" I craned my neck only to find her snoozing. Grinning, I turned off the TV and draped a blanket over her. She did fall asleep quickly. I thought for a moment, contemplating what to do. Eventually, I decided to visit Dallas to check in on him.
When the elevator opened, I walked down the hallway, my eyes scanning the gold numbers inscribed on the hotel rooms. However, before I could round the corner, I heard frantic voices. I halted to a stop and peeked.
My heart sank.
It was happening again.
Dallas and Abby were standing in the middle of the hallway, their voices low and frantic. I plastered myself against the wall, my hands glued to my side. But I found myself straining my ears to listen in on their conversation. I knew it was selfish of me to do so. I had no right invading someone else's privacy. But this was killing me.
The looks, the gestures, the frantic voices. All of it.
"What are we going to do now?" Abby hissed. "This is not going as planned!"
"Well, what more do you expect from me? I know this isn't going well. I tried my best but you know I couldn't do anything too harsh. It would've looked suspicious!" Dallas snapped.
Abby groaned. "We have to keep those two apart. They're ruining everything. She's ruining everything. They're always around each other that something bad is bound to happen and we'll end up losing. Our plan is failing, Dallas."
"What are we supposed to do?" he asked.
"Let's just try to keep them apart. It's not that hard, you know. He's not fond of her."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Trust me, I know."
The hallway was then quiet and I swallowed, my heart thudding against my chest and my mind racing with so many questions. What were they talking about? Why was I nervous? I heard footsteps approaching. Panicking, I barged into the first door that I found unlocked. I quietly shut it and breathed out a sigh of relief, resting my head against the wooden door. When Dallas and Abby were gone, I still refused to walk. I slid down the wall and pulled my knees to my chest. I was in some supply room.
What was going on?
What was this plan they kept referring to? Why did it sound so complicated? To me, it didn't have any good intentions. I gulped and wiped a mat of sweat off my forehead. I clenched my fists and breathed out, frowning.
"You are overreacting, Aubrey."
I stood up and flung the door open, taking the elevator to Dylan and Tymon's floor. I stared at my battered converse as I walked down the hallway. When I looked up, I found Dylan at his door, keys ready to unlock the room.
Austin frowned at me. "What's up with you?"
I opened my mouth to speak but closed it and shrugged. I approached him and Dylan unlocked the door but didn't open it.
"You look like a mess," he said, folding his arms. "Were you hyperventilating or? Are you okay?"
I didn't know what to say.
I opened my mouth but before I could say anything, I heard them again.
My eyes widened.
Oh, gosh.
I knew that Dallas would stop and talk to me if he saw me but I was still in a state of confusion that I wouldn't know what to say.
"They're here!" I squeaked. "Oh, gosh. Get in, get in!"
"What the..."
Before Dylan could continue, I had flung the door open and shoved him into the room, quickly following him and slamming the door shut. I swallowed and pressed myself against the door, arms wide. I strained my ears and listened to their footsteps until they were no longer audible.
I exhaled slowly and swallowed. My mouth felt dry.
"Will you explain what's going on?" Dylan asked, glaring at me. "Who is 'they'?"
I closed my eyes and sighed, sliding down the wall and putting myself in the same position as I was in the supply room. "Dallas and Abby."
"Well, why'd you shove me? What is going on?" he asked.
"If I knew, I'd tell you."
Dylan stayed silent. Soon, he sat down next me.
"Well, why are you upset?" he questioned and this time with no glares.
I sighed again. "I don't know. I honestly don't know. It's been happening for a while and it has just gotten me confused and nervous."
Dylan turned away from me and frowned. He sighed and stood up next, extending his hand towards me. I looked at it questioningly.
"Come on," he sighed. "Let's go for a walk."
I smiled at him, my heart warming, and took his hand. I stood up and Dylan checked if Dallas and Abby were anywhere in sight. When we were in the hallway, I found myself rushing to get out of the hotel. I didn't want to bump into Dallas and Abby. So when we were finally outside, I was happy. Dylan and I began walking and for a while, it was silent between us.
I smiled.
Dylan wasn't pressuring me to answer or to tell him what was going on. Unlike me when it came to his situations and life. My bad.
"Before we boarded the plane," I began. "I had this bad feeling. First I dismissed it as jitters. I hadn't been on a plane in a long time so I guessed it was the case. But it wasn't. Even after we landed in New York, that bad feeling was there. I don't know why I feel this way but it's bad. I don't know. There's Dallas and Abby. Goodness, when they're together, they're always serious. Their conversations...it's like they don't want anyone to hear about it. I see the way their eyes dart around, checking to see if someone is watching. Their body language is weird and I don't know why it's gotten me so worked up."
"You can always ask him about it," Dylan suggested.
"Gosh, no," I said. "He'd think I don't trust him or that I don't like his friendship with Abby. He'd think that I probably think there's something going on between them. I'm not jealous. That's the thing. I'm just nervous and worried."
"If you don't ask him, then what's going to happen? You're just going to continue feeling nervous and worried."
I sighed. "I know but...I'm scared. I don't want to fight with Dallas – especially not now. Our anniversary is coming up."
It was now the afternoon, the sky a mixture of colors and the wind chilly. It felt nice.
"You're scared about more than one thing," he said. "You have a choice. You can always ask him whats going on or you can—"
When I realized Dylan stopped talking, his sentence left unfinished and hanging in the air, I tilted my head to check on him. He stopped moving, his eyes slightly widened.
"Dylan? Dylan, are you ok—"
Before I could finish, he reached out and grabbed my hand and I was spun around, gently pushed against his chest. We were standing in an alleyway.
"What are you doing?" I squealed.
He was close; close enough to know that his heart was beating wildly. Dylan's forehead nuzzled itself onto my neck, his face hidden.
"If you wanted a hug, you could have just asked, you know!" I said.
"Play along," he whispered. "Please."
I didn't know what struck Dylan to do that. I knew that he wouldn't do that out of the blue. I knew it. I wasn't angry or anything. I just wondered what had made him do that. Ignoring my erratic heart and in order not to look like a fool, I wrapped my arms around him, so it looked like we were hugging. His arms were reluctantly placed on my back. I closed my eyes and swallowed.
When I heard laughter and chatter, I involuntarily opened my eyes. A group of teenagers was passing by. Could that have been Dylan's reason?
And then I saw someone.
Someone familiar.
It slowly dawned on me as I took in her physical appearance; a curly-haired girl with blue eyes. It could have been anybody but Dylan wouldn't have just hugged me because he wanted to. I swallowed and we pulled away when they were gone.
"Was that...was that her?" I asked.
Dylan ran a hand through his hair, his eyes clouding and jaw slackening.
"You want to go sit down somewhere and talk?" I asked.
We walked for a while and eventually used the stairs outside of a building to climb the roof. We were sitting on the ground, this time, and not on the ledge. I pulled my knees up to my chest and looked at him. He was feeling many things at the same time.
He looked dead.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
Dylan nodded.
"I totally get where you're coming from," I said. "Well, in a way. I understand how you panicked when you saw her. It isn't easy. I really do understand. But you know you can tell me anything."
"I have nothing to say," he said, standing up. He walked over to the ledge and gazed at the buildings ahead of us. I followed and stood beside him.
"She's pretty," I said. "Beautiful."
"I'm sorry," Dylan started. I looked at him. "for what happened back there."
"Nah, don't worry about it," I said, grinning. "I knew you've been dying to hug me."
He rolled his eyes but smiled. I smiled even wider. I didn't think I was ever going to get over that.
"If...if you had a second chance at love," I began, fiddling with my hands. "would you take it?"
"What's the point?" he asked. "Nothing's going to last."
I sighed. "I know what she did was awful. It really was. I'm really angry with her and she doesn't even know me! But have you ever wanted to ask her why? Have you ever thought of texting her or calling her to ask why she ever thought it'd be a good idea to cheat on you?"
Dylan swallowed. "I don't want anything to do with her."
I gave him a small smile. "But you still love her."
Dylan exhaled half a bitter laugh and looked at me. "I don't know anything anymore."
Sighing, I wrapped my arms around his torso and pulled him to me for a hug. Dylan's body went still, as it usually did, but it relaxed moments after. This time, he wrapped his arms around me, his head resting on top of mine. I smiled, my heart warming. He had hugged me back.
"You never listen, do you?" he whispered softly. "I told you to stop doing this."
"Are you contagious to hugs or something?" I asked.
"No."
"Then I don't see how it's wrong for me to hug you."
He didn't say anything. He didn't pull away. I was starting to feel much better. I realized I had opened up to Dylan and it wasn't so hard for him to talk to me, either. He even hugged me back. Whatever Dylan and I had and were – it was growing stronger. It was progress. I really did want to help him. I wanted him to be happy.
Before we got back to the hotel, Dylan made sure to buy cans of beer. He wanted to get drunk and I couldn't stop him. But I knew I'd be there for him in the morning.
