What About Yout Friends

Talia

I should've known that he was going to leave. I should've acknowledged all the signs and prepared myself. I should've seen the writing on the wall and walked away before he did. Maybe then I wouldn't be sitting on the front steps of my aunt's Dovercourt Rd. Apartment, sipping my tea and watching the families bringing their children into the daycare next door.

I also should've never put myself in the situation, anyway. Moses was already in a relationship when he and I met and he was still in one while we dated. I also had a relationship, so we couldn't hate on him too much. There was equal hate to go around.

All of the signs were there. The first sign was in August -when she walked into Pip's Ice Cream Parlor on the Nautical Mile. Moses and I were sitting inside when she walked in. I saw her when she first walked into the store and immediately sat back. Moses looked up at me with a questioning look.

"Isn't that your girlfriend's friend? Isn't that Jenna?" I jutted my chin out towards her.

Moses turned around. A blond wearing short shorts and a tank top that appeared to be a size too small was standing next to Jenna, partly obscuring our view. The blonde's hair was pulled back into a sloppy bun with wisps falling. She had on a pair of heeled sandals. Jenna, on the other hand, was wearing a pair of shorts and a faded black hooded sweatshirt with what looked like a faded crown on the back. The sleeves were pulled down, covering her hands a little. The blond turned and looked in our direction for a moment before turning back to Jenna. Jenna was looking up at the menu board. She reached down and pulled the collar of her sweatshirt and gently bit on it as she studied the menu. Hmm. That something I was known to do.

"Yeah... it is. One second," Moses got up and walked over to the two.

Moses walked over to them. Jenna looked up at him and her mouth formed an "O" as he looked up at him. As they spoke Jenna tugged on her sleeve and bit on her lip. The blond took her ice cream cone and walked out of the store. Jenna and Moses stood in the front and continued talking. I couldn't hear anything that they were saying, they were talking so softly. But the moment that I should've known was when Moses reached over and placed his hand on Jenna's neck. I sat up, ready to go over and stop whatever was happening, but I saw her face. She closed her eyes as she raised her right hand and hooked it onto his arm. She opened her eyes after a moment and said something to him before turning to the server and taking the two ice cream cones and walking out the door. Moses stood in his spot and watched her walk away.

Feeling that our stolen moments were gone, I got our things together and went up to him.

"You ready?" I placed my hand on his back and smiled up at him.

Moses turned and looked at me. He smiled as he nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. Let me walk you back to your car."

I nodded my head and we turned and walked out of Pip's. As we stepped out into the blazing heat, he looked down in the direction that Jenna had walked away. He cleared his throat before turning in the other direction and walking with me.

"You okay?" I looked up at him.

"Yeah," Moses nodded his head as he turned and looked back over his shoulder. He turned back around as we walked. "Did I ever tell you that Jenn and I went to school together?"

"No," I looked up at him, awaiting for him to tell me about that.

"Yeah," he nodded. "High school."

I waited for him to say more, but he didn't.

"It's really hot today and she had on a sweatshirt," I pointed out. I wasn't sure why I pointed that out, but I did. I think I wanted to keep talking about her and find out if they were friends in high school.

"Yeah," he removed his keys and chirped his alarm as we neared our cars. He waited until I got into my car, which was parked next to his, before he finished his sentence. "It's mine. I gave it to her in high school."

His words swirled in my head for the next few weeks. Whenever we saw each other, I wanted to ask him more and to know more, but the opportunity never came up. Jenna never came up, so I called Yasmine - my best friend. She was dating Moses' best friend, Cristian. They had been off and on for years. She had to have known about Jenna. I went over to her house to get more information.

"Yeah, they knew each other," she shrugged her shoulders as she shifted through the bag of popcorn she was eating. "They call this Chicago Style. Do you really think Chicago mixes cheddar and caramel like this?" She looked up at me.

"Yas, I'm asking about Moses and Jenna and you're talking about popcorn?" I looked at her in disbelief.

She lowered the bag as she looked at me. "This popcorn is banging, Tal. We should take a girl's trip to Chicago."

"For popcorn?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I heard the pizza and hotdogs are banging, too" she turned back to her popcorn. "They knew each other, Tal. King has know Jenn for years."

"Were they close?" I asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't remember. I wasn't fucking either one."

"Yasmine," I rolled my eyes.

She smiled at me. "You'll have to ask him. I was with Moreno. I didn't pay attention to King. I was amped when I had my boyfriend to myself."

I frowned. It felt uncomfortable. It felt like something was there with them. Something big.

"Talia," Yasmine lowered her bag of popcorn as she looked at me. "He's with you. This has been going on for months- you and King- and he's all about you. Who cares if he knew his girlfriend's best friend in high school. It was high school!"

"I just want to be sure," I exhaled. "It looked like more. I felt... something."

She shook her head before leaning her head back and before emptying the contents of her popcorn into her mouth.

"You felt one moment in time where the man mentioned another girl. Usually he's all about you."

"Usually he calls her the stripper and doesn't seem to like her."

"I'm sure he doesn't," Yasmine placed her empty bag on the table before wiping all of the crumbs off of herself. "Tal - the man is with you."

"Yeah... but technically I'm borrowing him. He's still with Nyla and he and I are a secret. Except you and Moreno know."

"Yeah, but don't go and tell Moreno I know." She looked up at me wide eyed. "He'll be pissed."

I didn't say anything else. Maybe Yasmine was right. Moses still adored me. So he knew Jenna in high school. Big deal. He gave her a sweatshirt... that she still kept. I frowned. That may be nothing. Perhaps he had been friendly fans gave her the shirt. Maybe she had a crush on him and held onto it for all these years.