Forbidden

Chapter 4

Stella's voice was stuck in Amanda's head. The nagging, obnoxious, loud sound of the world famous model aggravated her. But with Max and Harper at her job, she felt better.

Days melted into weeks. Amanda was used to the secretary duties she was left with, even though she had too much free time in her opinion. Having time to walk around the department floor allowed her to hear gossip.

"Didn't you hear? Someone's getting promoted," one said. "I know," another replied. "I heard it's one of the department assistants."

Amanda never entertained the conversations. "A waste of time," she often thought.

On a cool November, she sat at her desk. Stella assigned her the task to sort the papers then put them back together. "I know there's others to do it," she sighed as she bit her nails. "I just want you to do it instead."

Amanda wanted to say something. To scream or argue. Something. "Hey, you," Max smiled, waking her from her thoughts. "What's up?" "My blood pressure," Amanda greeted, rubbing her temples. "I have a cure for that," Max said as she pulled up a chair. "What's that?" "Come to the bar tonight." "Sure."

Max left, leaving the address on a piece of paper. "Come around 9. I'll see you there." Amanda nodded, folding the paper and putting it in her pocket.

After work, she grabbed her things and took the first train home. She told Dayne about the invite. "Ok, let's go," he said, putting his shoes on. "She only invited me," she told him. Dayne shook his head. "I don't think she'll mind."

The two walked into the bar together. Amanda still felt uneasy. She didn't want to abuse Max's kindness, especially since they just became friends.

They spotted Max sitting in a booth in the far end of the bar. She had a beer in her hand, some of the foam sticking to her lip. "Hey," she greeted, wiping the mustache off. "You made it." "Of course," Amanda smiled back. "I want you to meet my boyfriend, Dayne."

Dayne stayed quite, nodding at the acknowledgement. They sat in the booth and ordered a couple more beers. "How long have you two been together," Max asked, taking another gulp. Amanda liftwd her cup. "We have been together for-" "Almost two years," Dayne interrupted.

Amanda glared at him. "That's a long time," Max mumbled into her drink. "My girlfriend and I were together for 5 months." Amanda directed her attention to her. So did Dayne. "You said 'were'?" "You said 'girlfriend'?" They asked at the same time.

"Yeah," Max said, answering both of their questions. "I did say 'girlfriend'. We broke up about a year ago." "That's disgusting," Dayne gagged.

Max rolled her eyes. "Excuse me?" "You heard me. That's disgusting! I should have known there was something up. You dress like a man anyways."

"Dayne," Amanda whispered at him. She never felt so upset or embarrassed. He humiliated her. Dayne just stared at Max. "You know what, we're leaving. Come on, Amanda." Amanda stayed in her seat. "Let's go, Amanda." She stayed still. Dayne clenched his teeth. "I said let's-"

"I'm not going!" Amanda's words spilled out faster than she could catch them. She felt so embarrassed and humiliated. Dayne leaned over her, the smell of beer lingering on his breath. "Fine," he sneered. And then he left.

Amanda watched as the bar doors closed behind him. She felt terrified. They always argued, but not to this point. "Are you okay?" Max's voice startled her.

Amanda nodded. "I am so sorry about Dayne. He can be a jerk and-" "Don't worry about it," Max said. "It's not your fault that he's an ass. How are you even dating him?" No one ever asked her that question. How did they get together? Was it college? A party? A one night stand?

"I don't know," Amanda shrugged. "Never really thought about it." She took another sip of her beer. "Nevermind that. What about this ex of your's?"

Max leaned back into her seat. "My ex is not important. You probably don't know her. Speak of the devil." Amanda turned to see who she was talking about. A woman dressed in a red dress walked in, arm and arm with a man blue suit. They sat together at the bar. When the woman turned around, Amanda got a better look at her face.

"Harper?!" Max shushed her. "Harper," Amanda whispered, still surprised. "Yes, her," Max confirmed.
Amanda was confused. "But she's the-" "I know." "But I thought-" "I know." "So she's-" "Bisexual," Max explained.

Harper was laughing with the man. She looked happy. You could even see it in her eyes as she drank her wine. She flirted and winked at the man. "She looks happy," Amanda smiled. "Yeah. Happy," Max dragged, asking for another beer.

The night continued with light conversation and laughter. Amanda caught Max staring at Harper every once in a while. "She's in the way of the game," Max lied. Soon, the two said good night, and Amanda went home.

When she opened the door, she found Dayne on the couch with a beer in hand. More cans layed on the floor. Amanda knew this meant trouble. A bad argument and alcohol didn't mix well with either of them.

"Where have you been," Dayne asked, getting up from the couch. "I was with Max," Amanda said, calmly putting away her things. "I don't like her. You shouldn't be friends." Amanda felt upset. "How dare you say who may friends should and should not be?" "Because I am you fucking boyfriend!"

"You act more like my dad, who I already have," she yelled back. "I don't want you here until you act like my boyfriend." Dayne grabbed his keys and his coat. "Fine. I'll leave. Don't expect me back." "I won't!" With that, Amanda closed the door in his face.

"Stupid," she whispered to herself, later in the bed. "Why did you kick him out on the coldest night ever?" She scrunched into a ball, pulling the entire blanket over her. She knew she meant what she said. She had to deal with Dayne's attitude for too long.

However, she still felt bad. She missed him. She missed him cuddling her. She missed his kisses. She missed the angry sex. Amanda buried her head into her pillow. Her heart felt ful labout the entire situation. Sadness and loneliness washed over her. Tears came, and pulled her into a deep sleep.