Breaking The Game [Book #1]

Chapter 9

Narrator

Monday morning, Allie called in sick. She didn't feel too good and she was going through some emotional trauma of her own. She wanted to see Alix or simply just hear her voice, but she couldn't. They forgot to exchange numbers, again. Allie was sure to make that her first priority whenever she was to see her again.

It was 8:30 at night. Allie laid in her towel on her bed, trying to sort things out in her head. She was anxious, confused, and lonely. She wanted to drink it down like she usually did, but she couldn't. There was no way she was calling in sick tomorrow. She had to save money for rent.

Allie grabbed her phone and dialed Jim's number. He was the only person she could talk to at any time of the day or night. She had no one else and it would just be wrong to run to Kendra about another girl. She heard the ringing until Jim picked up.

"Hey, Allie bear," Jim said in a sleepy voice.

"Hey..." Allie said quietly.

He cleared his throat. "What's wrong? You sound a little down."

"You know, you never showed me your ex-girlfriend... I respect that, but I need to ask you a few things..." Allie said.

"Well, that's true," Jim said awkwardly.

"Was she beautiful to you?" Allie asked, thinking about Alix.

"Yeah." He said quietly. "She's gorgeous - still."

"Wait, so you still see her?" Allie was confused.

"I haven't seen her since we broke up, but from what I hear she hasn't changed." He said with sadness in his voice.

Allie sighed. "Do you miss her?"

"I do. That's the thing about first loves... you never really let them go. It's a piece of you that you sacrifice when you fall for someone." Jim sighed.

"But if we stick to our rules - that won't happen. Right?" Allie felt her heart racing.

"Dude, you can't run away from love. I mean, sticking to the rules will help you avoid it for a while, but..." Jim started.

"But what?" Allie pushed for a real answer.

"You can't stop yourself from falling for someone unless something traumatic happens. Like, they're moving away or somethin'." He explained.

Allie sat up. "What made you fall for your ex?"

Jim stood quiet for a couple of seconds. "Well, first it was her looks. Then I got to know her and her personality clicked with mine."

"Why'd you guys break up?"

Jim sighed. "She wasn't into it like I was."

"I'm sorry if this is hard for you to speak about..." Allie said quietly.

"It just hurts to think about. That's why I spend hours in the gym and pick up random girls." He admitted. "What's up with the sudden interest anyway?"

"Just curious," Allie said quickly.

"Do you have a girl you think you may like?" He asked.

Allie laughed. "Nah, just curious you know. A lot of people suffer from heartbreak..."

"You're missing the point though, Allie bear," Jim said firmly. "It's not about just heartbreak. It's about that fact that you get to share this experience with someone. You get to explore someone else's mind; their thoughts."

"That's not scary to you?" Allie frowned.

"Dude, I never said it wasn't terrifying. It's like playing Russian roulette by yourself."