S.O.S/The Winner Takes It All

Chapter 6

When Kristen finally finishes packing, I help her carry the containers down to her car. I lift the last one, pushing it into the back seat. 
I shut the door, walking back a few steps. I didn't want to be too close to her.
The makeup stains have been removed from her face. Kristen leans against her car, gazing at me with contempt. "You know what? You never deserved me. You are the most selfish person I've ever met."

I shake my head, smiling in disbelief. "You're going to turn this on me, are you? How am I selfish? You were the one who cheated! I sat by, trusting you, I was always there for you, were you ever there for me?" 

She places a hand on her hip, clenching her keys. "You're an asshole. You never loved me did you?" 

"Oh you don't know." I bite down on my lip to stop tears from rolling down my face. "I loved you with all of my heart. But not anymore. You've shown me the ugly side of you, and I'm surprised you've hidden it for so long." I rub my eyes, trying to calm myself down. "Just go, Kristen." 

"No. Not until you apologise for your mistakes."

I take a step back, shocked. "My mistakes? I am the one who made a mistake? Shall I list off the mistakes you made recently? Or do you want to avoid all this, and just go home to your new boyfriend?"

Kristen unclenches her fist, gathering her keys up in her fingers before hurling them at me. I turn my face away, tears stinging my eyes as the sharp metal slices my cheek. I cry out in pain as I fall to the ground and at that moment I hear footsteps walk towards me, take the keys, and walk away again.

But before Kristen can get into her car, a voice calls out my name.
"Shayne!"
I hear someone run over to me, and a hand pushes me around to face them.
I open my eyes.
It's Courtney. 

"What are you doing here?" I ask, blinking in confusion.
Kristen stops. "Oh, so is this your new bitch? Courtney Miller? If you're going to date someone else, at least date someone pretty." She sneers, waiting for my reaction.
Courtney helps me get to my feet, and I try to ignore the pain. "Courtney and I aren't dating. You're acting like a child." I glance at my co-worker, my voice growing softer as I continue. "And she is beautiful. Inside and out. Unlike you. You're only pretty on the outside."

Kristen yanks her car door open in anger. She pauses before she goes, to say one last thing to me. "Be careful, Shayne. Courtney's the biggest bitch I know." She gets in, driving off.

"You don't know Courtney!" I shout after her.
Her window rolls down and her middle finger is flipped up at me. I give it back, rolling my eyes.

I turn back to Courtney, and she looks worried. "Are you okay?" she asks. "She threw those keys really hard."
"Is it bad?" I ask, reaching a hand up to touch my face.
Courtney grabs my wrist, bringing my hand back to my side. 
"Why don't we go to your apartment and get you cleaned up?" She suggests, placing her arm around my shoulder.
We enter the apartment building, and Courtney presses the up button on the elevator, stepping back as we wait. It rattles open and we walk in.
I hit my level, leaning against the wall.
We stand in silence for a little bit before Courtney speaks up. "She's kinda a bitch."
I laugh. "Yeah, she kinda is."
Courtney grins at me and the elevator opens on my floor. And for a moment I actually feel complete again.
I pull my keys out of my pocket, unlocking my door.
I immediately walk into the bathroom. I stare at myself in the mirror, examining the cut.
"She really had some force behind that throw." I remark, placing a finger on the blood drying as it runs down my face.

I rip some toilet paper off the roll, wetting it slightly. I begin wiping it off, wincing as I accidentally touch the cut.
Courtney takes the paper from my hand, gently scrubbing the blood off. She cleans around the wound, her brow furrowing in concentration. 
After a few minutes, she steps back. "There. That should be okay for now." 

"Thanks." I gaze at my reflection. Now, there's a lot less blood, only a single horizontal red line is left on my cheek.
I turn, walking out of the bathroom. Courtney follows me, but stops at the front door. "Do you want me to leave, or....?" she asks, her fingers on the handle.


"No. You can stay." 
I want you to stay, I add silently.
She smiles, as if she had known I was going to stop her. "Okay. I'll stay." 


We walk into the kitchen, and I stare down at the faint coffee stain on the floor. Courtney follows my eyes, noticing the stain.

"What happened?" she asks.
"Uh, my cat knocked my mug off the counter, then I..." I try to quickly make up an excuse in place of what actually happened. "...I got distracted and forgot to clean it until later."
That isn't entirely a lie.
"Darn cat." She smiles knowingly. "That's why I have a dog."

I smile back, tearing my eyes away from the floor. "So. Can I talk to you about..." My mouth suddenly turns dry, and I am unable to say Kristen's name. "..her?"
Courtney nods, and I know she understands.

We make our way to the couch, seating ourselves down. "So, you kinda need a little therapy session?" she asks, raking her fingers through her hair. 

"I guess." 

Courtney pulls her knees up to her chest. "Tell me then."

I am slightly surprised by her willingness to listen.
"Okay. Well, I know this sounds stupid and cheesy, but I really thought she was the one. We were happy. We were in love." I wipe a tear away in frustration. "I don't know what I did wrong." 

Courtney leans forward, and I can't help but notice how beautiful her eyes are. "Shayne, you didn't do anything wrong. She made the mistake. I don't think there was anything you could've done to stop her from doing what she did. If she wants to degrade back to her ex, that's her choice. But she just lost the greatest thing she ever had." Courtney pauses. "And I think she realises that. That's why she's angry at you."

I sit there in shock. Everything that Courtney has just told me is basically right, and extremely helpful.
"Hey, are you sure YouTube is your only job? You're not like a therapist or anything?" 

She smiles. "No, I've just done this a lot." Her face turns serious again. "But please don't blame yourself for something she did. Sinking in guilt is terrible, that's something I know."

"Well, Courtney, that short conversation has helped me much more than I thought it would. Thanks so much." I smile at her, pulling her into a hug.

"Anytime, Shayne." she murmurs into my shoulder.