Sour Sweet Love

Chapter Seven

                I was ruthless to a lot of people but I had even more of a reason to be this way around Liam. It was justified because he had torn me apart—completely dismantled my belief in love, what I had left of it anyway. Seeing him again, all I could remember was that night: the clouded, unclear night wherein I had caught him blindsightedly with another woman. I hadn't even gotten the chance to see who she was.

"What are you doing here?" I questioned—sneered.

"I—"

"Wait," Declan interjected. "What I'm interested to know is how you two know each other."

"We used to be friends," Liam repeated. "I told you, Declan."

"Friends where? Friends how? Friends in what plane of existence?"

I bit my lip. "Tone it down a notch, Declan," I told him. "We were in boarding school together in secondary school. Liam was in with us." He was more than in, though. We had been intimate for almost a year. In hindsight, our relationship was nothing more than an intangible blur, a result of boredom at best, but I was convinced that I had been in love with him. And he had never thought to mention his brother?

Molly, beside me, shifted uncomfortably. She knew of my history with Liam; she had endured it with me. "William," she addressed with a hint of discomfort, annoyance, and perhaps intimacy.

I placed my hands on Declan's shoulder, leaning into his shaven cheeks that smelled freshly of lavender. "You know, Liam," I began, my voice just above a whisper. I let my tongue explore my lips, dampening them, and trailed my fingers across Declan's jaw. "You never told us you had such a hot brother."

Declan closed his eyes,  devouring the touch, and a faint icon of jealousy crossed Liam's eyes as I kept my fingers on his brother's skin. Despite not having seen each other in what felt like eternity, the effect remained intact; we could unravel each other with a simple breath if we tried. Too bad I wanted to destroy him.

"So you know," he said.

"There's a lot that I know," I retorted. "But you've always known more, haven't you?"

Molly chuckled nervously. "Yeah, Liam. Shit. Why are you even back?"

"A circumstantial thing," he explained.

"Like what we had," I deadpanned. Because our love had been circumstantial too.

"What happened between you and Liam?" Declan questioned uncertainly. His eyes met mine once more, this time lacking the despondency that had accompanied his previous glances. Declan was softer—more inquisitive.

"Friendship. Romance. Sex. Whatever," I retorted, rolling my eyes.

"It's just that I don't fancy being a pawn in between whatever it is you two have left going on," he mumbled lowly enough for just me to hear. 

"Love and war both begin with a simple word, wasn't it? It's beginning now, Declan. Because my word is revenge."

Declan chuckled in his silent amusement, and it was then that Joey approached us. "I came in the middle of something tense, didn't I?" she noted, catching onto the terseness in the air.

I pulled away from Declan. "Not at all."

"Just mending old ties," Liam said, leaning into her.

I took a step backwards from the four; I needed to leave.

"Where are you going?" I heard Declan shout as I began jostling towards the door.

"Don't follow me, Declan," I warned him, but who I was really warning was Liam.  "I need air."