Forever

chapter 21

Oh

It hit Julia in that moment

Lyle really did have a girlfriend

She felt her heart sink as the realization that Lyle didn't care about her set in. And of course he'd be dating someone like that girl. Not to say she wasn't pretty, but saying she was basic, was an understatement. Blonde hair, blue eyes, short, and reeked of desperation for male validation. Anyone could tell she was a pick-me-girl from how she talked and introduced herself.

Julia suddenly felt a protective arm go around her waist and saw Erik give her a small smile as she recollected her thoughts. She also saw Lyle give them a small glare that she dismissed.

"Chloe! It's so nice to meet you!" Julia noticed Mrs. Menendez voice had gone up an octave or two. Chloe?! She thought to herself. Why Chloe. She was pretty sure that was the most basic name out there. A slight tap on her hip from Erik brought her back from her thoughts once again.

"Juls- Julia" Lyle caught himself "Are you okay?" She internally scoffed at his words

"I'm doing great! Thank you for asking!" She wasn't going to let him know how she really felt

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Erik could feel his eyes darting between Julia and Lyle constantly

The tension in this room is palpable. I gotta help Juls out

Was he mad at his brother? Not really. Was he jealous that Lyle had been with her? Yes. Was he going to do everything in his power to help her tonight? Absolutely.

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"I think we have a salad ready if we all want to sit down now" Erik gave Julia a side eye that she read as this is the most awkward thing ever and he was correct. Julia and Chloe had been eyeing eachother up and down since their introductions

"Yes! Let's sit!" Mrs. Menendez cheered

Juls sat down next to Erik, but Lyle took the seat directly across from her. She was hoping maybe Barbie or one of the adults would've taken it, but no cigar there.

"Chloe, i've heard you're a quite... avid tennis player, no?" Julia wondered why Mr. Menendez wasn't interrogating Chloe as he did with her

"I am indeed!" Her voice almost made Julia gag and Juls caught Erik trying to subdue a laugh. This caused Julia to start laughing and then Erik to laugh harder. Julia's hand flew to her mouth in an attempt to stop her laughter before it became obvious but her efforts were futile. They received a glare from both Chloe and Mr. Menendez, and it seemed like Lyle was trying to glare are them, but at the same time trying not to laugh. Chloe scoffed and then her bright smug appeared again

"Jillian is it? Sorry, I'm normally pretty good with remembering names, but you're just the help and i guess it slipped my mind"

Julia blinked hard I know damn well barbie isn't acting like this

"Julia, actually. Sometimes too complex for even the simplest people to comprehend." She heard Erik let out a small laugh and a smile grew on her face

"Well, Julia, i've heard youve tried to play tennis. I'm sure I could beat you" Chloe laughed but this time it was Lyle who interjected

"Actually Julia is pretty good, she might beat you" Chloes smile dropped and Julia herself was slightly shocked. She saw Chloe slightly elbow Lyle under the table and he started again "But i'm sure it'd be extremely close?" He gave Julia a tight lipped smile and even after everything, it still made her heart flutter.

"So" Mrs. Menendez broke the silence "I hope Lyle has been treating you well!" Back to talking about Barbie

"He has! He took me to this beautiful mountain that overlooked the sea! It was amazing!" She sent Julia a smug smile

"Oh how wonderful!"

Julia almost choked on her salad

She felt Erik squeeze her hand under the table trying to silently ask her if she was okay

"Excuse me. I'll be right back." She said before rising from her seat and heading towards the bathroom

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"-He took me to this beautiful mountain that overlooked the sea!" Lyle froze, the rest of Chloes sentence drowned out as he looked up at Julia

Fuck

Lyle knew he messed up. He hadn't thought about it when he took Chloe to that spot, but he should've

Shit

"-Ill be right back" Lyle snapped back into the mess he had made. Erik gave him a glare and he silently cursed his brother for being so judgmental. A few moments later Lyle got up and excused himself too, hurriedly following after Julia. He found himself quietly knocking on the bathroom door begging for Juls to let him in

"Come on Juls we need to talk" Lyle knew he had royally fucked up but was actually suprised when she opened the door

"Fine. Let's talk. You're dating Barbie and I don't give two shits" Julia tried to walk away but Lyle lightly grabbed her arm

"That doesn't look like 'not giving two shits'" She scoffed

"So are you gonna tell her?" He swore he heard her voice quiver just a bit

"Tell her what"

"You know what. Or do you just take all your hook ups to that spot" She turned to walk away again but Lyle pulled her back

"One. Chloe isnt just a hook up. Two. That isn't even a big deal."

"Exactly, not a big deal. Go back to your fucking barbie and let me enjoy dinner" He was on the edge of boiling over, even though Lyle still cared so much about Julia, she shouldn't talk about Chloe like that

"Whatever. It's not like I want my brothers sloppy seconds"

What the fuck was he saying??? Of course he still wanted Julia. God, half of this was a plot to try and get her back, but he had fucked it up again. He saw some of the color drain from Julia's face

"But apparently you want that barbie that has half a brain cell" At this point Lyle wasn't even mad at what Julia was saying. He was mad at himself for letting her go, and at Erik for what it seemed like replacing him

"Fuck. You." He said as he let go of her hand and took a step back towards the dining room.

"That's cute. Your brother already did."

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A/N: BITCHES IM FINALLY WRITING AGAIN OK