Denying Dylan | ✔️

(8) "I'm so confused."

I'm going to have to watch them lapping up this summer vacation. She's going to be all over him. They'll share a New Years kiss. She'll look perfect in her bikini. This is the exact opposite of the vacation that I had planned. I'd have rather come alone than shown up in another country with my best friend and found his witch of a fiancée here too.

"Charlie?" Dylan looks around, confused, as if someone might materialise and explain this situation to him. "What are you doing here?"

Her sleek smooth bob moves soft and delicate as she shrugs with a sweet smile. "I thought it'd be nice to spend New Year's Eve together. Especially in such a warm beautiful country."

"Yeah but I told you that I was coming with Bea. Remember. We had a bit of a debate about it."

She makes a pssh with her rich red lips and acts as if the very idea of her being a total cow is outrageous and amusing. "I'm here now. Aren't you happy to see me?"

Dylan gives her a small smile and nods before pressing a kiss on her contoured cheek. With his eyes not able to see hers, she looks at me and her smile is so evil that I swear devil horns shoot out of her skull for a brief moment. But then Dyl leans back and she's all sweet smiles and fake bullshit again.

I have to remember though, she is his fiancée. And I'd hate me too if I were her. I have to actively remind myself that she's protecting what's hers. Or otherwise I'll go insane and smother her with a resort pillow.

But then again, I never used to feel bad about how much time Dyl and I spent together. I hated the fact that she couldn't understand that we were best friends and nothing more. And now that I've developed feelings towards him, I have this small part of me that's empathetic for Charlie. Literally, everything has shifted in our dynamic and I'm the only one who knows it.

Now I'm not sure whether to back off or continue acting how I always have. What a mess.

"So," she slips on her shades and grips the handle of her bag. "Where to?"

I almost tell her that Hell is down. But there's no point. I'm going to be stuck with her for the next four days. I might as well pretend that I don't hate her.

"We have to catch a bus to The Coromandel," I tell her, taking small satisfaction in the speed at which her smile drops.

"The bus? Does this place not have car service? Uber?"

"They do have Uber," Dylan lets her know. "But it's too far and a cab from here to there would be super expensive. We were talking to some of the airport staff about it. The bus is the most affordable mode there."

"Yeah because we're poor, Dylan," Charlie snaps with sarcasm. "I'm not getting on a bus."

So that was how I ended up in the back seat of a rental car with Dylan in the driver's seat and Charlie in the passenger side. She's the worst back seat driver that I've ever encountered.

"Dylan don't get so close to the other cars," she gestures her thin fingers at the window and sighs. "This is so weird. I hate it. We're on the wrong side of the road."

"You wanted to bring a rental," I snap back. "You're not even the one driving. But go ahead and take a turn if you're so caught up on driving in a different country."

"It's fine, Bea," Dyl catches me in the rear view mirror and smiles. It's no comfort. Nothing could comfort me at this point. Nothing except for perhaps being side swiped on the passenger side and conveniently only taking out one person.

Oh. I need help.

Charlie twists, the leather seat squelching beneath her. She fixes me with a sarcastic smile. "I don't drive, Bea."