AMBY AWARDS TOP PICK 2023 ❤️
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"You think I can't act like I'm into you?" He asks in a whisper. He reaches out, and strokes a finger down my cheek, and I feel myself shiver at the touch.
"You think I can't convince everyone that I have f...
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"Don't you dare reply to him!"
Lou slams her hand down on my Samsung Galaxy S-Whatever, as it lights up with yet another text message from Declan. I wince, checking for damage to my phone screen, as well as to the table underneath.
I squint at the message on the screen. "But he says he misses me," I protest. "And he's probably worried about me - he hasn't heard from me since I left his flat last night."
My best friend Kim shakes her head, as she has a quick peer at the text too. "He misses you 'a wee bit'," she corrects me. "That seems lukewarm at best."
Ouch. Kim spots my hurt expression and looks contrite. "Sorry, but you need tough love here," she says. "Otherwise you're going to just keep waiting around for him like a lost puppy."
"You can't even pretend this is just a break anymore, Abs," Lou chimes in. "Last night confirmed that."
"Then why does he keep messaging me?" I know I'm being annoying. I can't help myself. His behaviour is making no sense to me.
Kim sighs. "My best guess is that Declan doesn't want to be seen as the bad guy in this situation. He's probably feeling a bit guilty for stringing you along for the last two months, and he's trying to make himself feel better."
"Or . . ." Lou dramatically snaps her fingers together, her red lips curling up in a sneer. "He's being a classic narcissist. He just wants to live rent-free in your head."
"Which would be pretty ironic since he didn't want to live with me at all," I sigh. My head is fucked. These past 24 hours have wrecked my already frazzled brain completely. I don't know what to think anymore.
I phoned my boss first thing this morning and asked for a last-minute day off. The thought of trying to even pretend to work was more than I was even capable of. And then I called Lou and Kim, and arranged to go out, rather than do my usual wallowing. I knew I needed to keep myself busy, especially as the texts continued to roll in from my now-ex.
Lou suddenly snorts, breaking the briefest of sympathetic silences following my last words. "Honestly, the mental image of Dec handcuffed naked to the bed, panicking, has kept me going all day," she says, bursting into laughter. "Why the hell didn't you get a photo of it?"
"Er . . . Because I was an emotional wreck?" I say sarcastically. "Not to mention I'm not some sort of kinky voyeur like you, sister dearest."
"We could have posted it all over the Internet," she sniggers, ignoring me. "Made billboards with warnings about him. Please avoid this man; he is completely riddled with STDs!"
"Stop it, Lou!" I can feel my upset returning. "He's always practiced safe sex, I'll have you know." I put my head in my hands. "God, now I'm picturing him having sex with other people," I wail.
