My Future Husband

Chapter 49

“Ah, bellissima, I did not think you would be home.” What the fuck is Elba talking about? She knew I’d be here, I told her yesterday I’d help her move over to Brie’s. “Look who I ran into.” She wraps her arm around Hope’s waist, the red blush creeping up her neck at the touch, even though she still looks ready to kill. “She agreed to help me move my things to Brianna’s home. This is much like a reunion, no? The three of us together once more.”

Elba might be good at a lot of things; she can kill you before you see her, I’ve never met anyone that can rock a neck tattoo like she does, and she can drink like a fish, but setups are definitely not her forte. Hope rolls her eyes hard when she realises what’s happening at the same moment I do.

“I’m not doing this. I’ll wait for you downstairs.”

“No!” I shout without meaning to, Elba grabbing Hope’s wrist to pull her back.

“I’m not staying in here with her.” She can't even look at me, I thought after what happened the other day maybe there’d be some semblance of the girl I knew back in her, but she still just wishes I was dead.

“Bella-”

“Elba, it’s fine, I’ll go down and set stuff up for tomorrow, you stay and pack together.” She’s not ready for this, and I won’t force her to be.

“Bellissima, must you run off so quickly? I have spent no time with the two of you together, I shall be leaving soon, can you not grant me the mercy of a few moments of peace between you?” I’d love to babe, but I think I’ve done enough damage to this girl for one lifetime, the least I can do now is stay out of her way.

“I’m sorry.” I just can’t stand her looking at me like this. “I’m already running behind. You two stay, get what you need, there's no rush.” I try to head for the door, but Elba immediately blocks my path.

“I understand...” She looks back over her shoulder at Hope. “I appear to be quite scattered this morning, I have left my bag with my bike! I shall retrieve it quickly, please stay until my return.” She speaks so fast I’m not even sure Hope got it all, sprinting from the room and slamming the door shut behind her.

Does she think I’m fucking stupid? She doesn’t even have her bike here!

“There’s no bike, is there?”

“Nope.”

Okay, well this is fucking awkward.

Hope doesn’t know where to look either, eyes darting all around the apartment, before finally they land on the photos stuck to my fridge. They’re mostly of Teal, a few of Heather, but it's the one in the top corner that makes her chest stop pumping.

It was taken at her birthday party, Aniston found it years ago and gave it to Brie. I think it’s the first photo of me and Hope taken together, sitting on a park bench with birthday cake frosting all over our faces. You can just see Craig in the background, he was a moody little shit even then, grumpy we got more cake and he didn’t. Sometimes I forget how fat he was, puberty really did a number on that kid.

“It feels like that was a lifetime ago.” I chuckle, but she doesn't even smile.

“Yeah... it doesn't even feel like it was my life anymore. That girl was so fucking stupid.”

“Don't say that.” She watches my hands but doesn’t respond. I hate this, I hate that one moment in her life, one soul destroying moment because of me, has ruined every memory of us that she once held so fucking dear. “You're not stupid, you were never stupid. That girl in that photograph, she saved my life.”

“More fool her.”

This isn’t Hope, not my Hope. The girl I love is still in their, I saw it the moment she laid her eyes on Teal, but she's boxed in so tight that no-one can hear her no matter how much she screams.