The Challenge

38

My phone buzzed again as soon as I put it on my charger. I groaned. It was probably Harry with another lovesick text message. I wouldn’t admit it outloud, okay I probably would, but they made my heart sing to read his sweet words. It was even more of a reason to rejoice when he said them outloud like he had earlier. He loved me, I loved him. Things should be simple, right?

Nope. Of course they couldn’t, because it was my life. I glanced at my phone and saw it was Juliette who had messaged me.

Juliette: Hi love haven’t heard from you in a few days

Me: I’m sorry it’s been rough lately

Juliette: heavy seas and heavy hearts call for vodka

Me: Maybe not the best idea right now

Juliette: You could still use my company though right?

Me: Of course, come over plz?

Juliette: thought you’d never ask

Juliette: miss you bb

Ha, baby. Juliette was one funny chick. Unless, she wasn’t kidding. Then that’d be kind of weird. Or not, actually, since we actually had hooked up in the past.

She arrived about twenty minutes after she sent her text and I let her in, realizing how skimpy my pajamas had been when I watched her eyes rake up and down my body. She moved close to me and wrapped her arms around me.

“Tell me what’s going on,” she said as we moved into the kitchen. I put the kettle on to make some tea and told her about how I went to Harry’s on Sunday and I had confessed my feelings for him, telling him I loved him and he left me and how him and Louis had gotten in a fight and Alex was abusive. She loved when I told her all the sordid details of the sex with Alex and shared that she had a secret BDSM fetish herself and kind of enjoying being abused.

“But not to the point where you get a black eye, Gee.” She moved my hair back from my face and her fingers brushed over my cheeks and my lips before she removed her hands.

I felt a slight chill at her touch but shrugged off the feeling. “I know, Juliette. You’re like the fifth person to tell me that.”

“And I’ll tell you it over and over again. It’s fun to be tied up, but you do not let men have the upper hand in these kinds of situations,” she admonished, shaking her head at me, her blonde ponytail bouncing left and right behind her head.

“I know! But there’s been an even more interesting development to this story.”

Her eyes widened. “Share!”

I told her how Louis had come over and mentioned what Harry had done with flashing around pictures of me, Gemma came over and called Harry and he sounded just as wrecked as I did even if he didn’t show it towards me. I finished my story with the exchange between Harry and I from earlier that evening. I glanced at my phone and saw it was nearly 1 in the morning.

“So you and Harry and you and Louis are all on the same page now then?” She asked once I finished.

I nodded. “It appears so. And here I am left even more confused as ever.”

Juliette sipped the tea in front of her. “No, Georgia. This is perfect. The playing field is even. You have the chance to grab the upper hand now in this situation.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

She sighed. “Georgia, you are so dense sometimes. You have not one, but two men who want to be with you? Make them prove how bad they want to be with you. Use those womanly charms to your advantage and give yourself the upper hand and enjoy the attention you are about to enjoy, my friend.”