The Secrets We Share

TWENTY SIX

noah

Rebecca was nothing close to what I wanted, but the girl I wanted wasn't here.

She was somewhere in this world, glad that she'd returned my gift, glad that she had severed our relationship.

For a moment Rebecca's eyes were an intelligent, sparkling emerald green. Then they faded to watery blue.

I brought my mouth to hers with a savageness I wasn't in control of.

*

Dawn

Words could not describe the billion bombs going off in my head in that moment.

How could he- how dare he!- casually kiss another girl just days after we'd basically split, though it wasn't official? Did he not ever feel anything for me?

His shirt was off and he was kissing her neck with an emotion that seemed rather closer to anger than lust. His room was in utter chaos.

My actions weren't frozen in time however, unlike my brain, so my fist found no command to stop moving and rapped on the window and then immediately pulled back, horrified.

Noah broke his attack on her neck and looked up, the girl following his eyes to the window.

My blood boiled at the sight of her face.

How dare she.

My whole face prickled red. Red with anger, embarrassment, hurt, a tinge of possessiveness over Noah even though he clearly wasn't mine anymore-

Noah's mouth fell open and he staggered back, letting go of the cafe girl, pushing her away roughly. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Dawn?" He mouthed, confused. The girl tugged on his arm and tried to kiss him again, tried to make me jealous.

He pushed her off him again.

I smiled grimly through the glass. In that moment, I felt like we were on completely opposite sides of the universe, struggling to find a way back to each other through the vast emptiness of stars and planets and solar systems and galaxies and the unknown depths of space humans would never understand.

Though in reality, it was just a few metres of air and an annoying glass pane that is known to humans as a window.

This particular glass window was the only thing stopping me from leaping right into there and punching the cafe girl in the face and kicking Noah right there.  

But that was sadly impossible. 

So I crumpled the letter in my fist, feeling the sharp paper cutting into my flesh, until I could feel a small drop of blood slide down my wrist. Until I could feel the sting.

I threw him one last, long look, then climbed down slowly from the ladder, my heart dropping with each rung. When I reached the ground, Kat hefted the ladder under one arm (she was strong) and dumped it into our car parked on the street. I followed her, took Kat's offered hand, started the car, and together we drove away. 

I was done with Noah.

Done with guys I didn't understand.

Done with this word people called 'love'.

"At least we know that you're lucky that you didn't end up marrying him," Kat whispered into the silence of the car. 

I wiped the blood off my hand onto my jeans. Something jingled on my wrist.

I blinked and looked down at my arm.

Noah's bracelet chimed as I shook my wrist a little.

The one that he'd bought for me at the fair.