Entangled (Phoenix 1)

CHAPTER 22

"You could have come to me. I would have listened to you." Justin said.

"Would you have really listened?" Fiona raised her eyebrows.

Justin was very well aware of what she was insinuating.

"Yes, Fiona. I would have. Even though it might have looked like I was not approachable at that time, my door has always been open for you."

"I didn't know that. It was not written in the manual of our marriage. But then nothing is written on it." Fiona told him.

"You don't get to do that, Fi. You don't get to shut me out just because we started opening up to one another." He couldn't let her run away from him just when she began to open up.

"I am tired. Let me get you a blanket." Fiona didn't want to discuss it further, so she went towards her cabinet and grabbed two blankets, one of which she handed to Justin.

"Thanks. I will take the floor." Justin told her.

"Don't be nuts. We can share the bed." She stated. Even though she is pissed, she won't let him sleep an entire night on the floor.

This made Justin's eyes widen. "Are you sure? I don't want to overstep my boundaries."

"I am not going to let you sleep on the floor. If you have some unsaid commitment to some girl, you are free to take the floor." With that, Fiona lay on the left side of her bed.

Justin shook his head, but nonetheless, he took the right side of the bed and lay down. "I thought you believed me when I told you before that I don't have any other girl in my life besides you."

"I do believe you. But one can never be too sure." Fiona told him.

She flipped off the light switch, which was beside her bed, and shifted her position so that her back was to Justin.

After a few minutes, Justin asked her. "Do you miss Annabella?"

"To be honest, I miss the time we spent together on occasions. But now everything between us is over. Plus, she is still with Noah."

"That might still sting," Justin stated.

"Not really. The border she crossed was the part that stung the most. It is not about stealing my boyfriend. I would have gotten over it with time if they both had come forward with their feelings. But lots of things were said throughout the confrontation, and sometimes I think that more than me, it was Emily who was hurt. Where things would have been sorted out in a neat way, it ended up messy. That day, friendships were broken, which could never be fixed."

"What happened?" He asked her inquisitively.

"Justin, why do I think that you are far too eager to know what happened?" Fiona asked him, but she had a small smile on her face.

It felt nice to have him show a little interest in her.

"Because I am. Plus, I like this. You know, us... Talking to each other." Justin told her honestly.

"You are weird, Justin, but be glad that I am in a good mood," Fiona told him.

"I am more than glad. Much more than you can imagine. So what exactly happened?" Justin genuinely wanted to know Fiona's story. So he shifted his body and turned to face her.

"Well, you already know that Emily, Annabella, and I all went to the same university. We met Mason and Noah there. After a lot of struggles, Mason managed to get into Emily's good graces, as I previously stated. But somehow, Emily never trusted Noah. She always had these lingering feelings, which she never shied away from telling me until the day I started dating him. That was the last day when she told me just to be careful. I didn't give much of a thought because she is always weary of guys."

"Emily is a tough cookie to crack." Based on his observations, Justin stated.

"She is, but she is the best. I had known Noah for one and a half years before he asked me out. I wasn't sure if I wanted to take that step because he was a good friend, but at the same time, I did like him. I was perplexed at first, but Annabella encouraged me. Back then, I didn't know that she liked him. However, she eventually confessed that she had a crush on him and assured me it was meaningless. After a lot of thinking and persistence from her side, I told him yes. What Noah and I had was good. At least that's what I thought. He was thoughtful, sweet, and considerate, and we were going strong. But two months before my exams, Emily caught Noah and Annabella red-handed. She punched him there and then. Noah begged her not to tell me anything."

"Is it safe to say Emily didn't listen to him?" Justin somehow knew the answer.

"Lord, yes! She stormed into our room, barging in and telling me what she had seen. After a few minutes, Noah followed and told me not to believe her. Mason was also present with me there. Even though we had different courses, we occasionally studied together." While glancing up at the ceiling, she replied.

"And you believe her. You didn't even doubt Emily, did you?" Justin asked her.

"No. Emily is difficult to deal with, but she does have a golden heart. She may appear cruel to some, but she is actually very pure. If she believes in the right thing, she will keep her differences aside and support what she considers to be right. Emily values the trust tremendously." Fiona added.

"That is admirable." He meant it.

Emily is a bizarre woman, but she isn't a fake. That is something he has personally witnessed and admires about her.

"Yes, it is. That is why things escalated that evening. Annabella arrived just as Noah was pleading for a second chance. She looked astounded because she believed Noah would want to be with her now that their secret was out. However, after a few minutes, when the realization hit her, she concluded that she had lost some illusionary battle that she had with Emily and me. So, she exploded on us. She exposed all the hidden insecurities that Emily and I had in the open in the worst possible way. There was one line she crossed by sleeping with my boyfriend for two months, and there was another line that she crossed by abusing our friendship. Emily was enraged. I was heartbroken after losing two people at the same time—Annabella more than Noah. But Emily was burning with rage. She slapped Anna right across her face. When Noah tried to come to her aid, she punched him again. It was Mason who drew her back and threw both Anna and Noah out of the room. He made sure that neither of them bothered us ever again. That day, there was a new found respect that Emily had for Mason. Noah and Anna were kind of in spite, so they asked Mason to choose. Noah was one of his close friends, but Mason didn't want to do anything with him. There is one thing about cheating on your girlfriend, and there is another about making your friends choose. Since that day, Mason has been a guardian angel to us."

"Even after what Noah did, Anna continued to be with him? He asked you for a second chance in front of Anna." Justin commented.

"I guess Anna was a different kind of messed up than the rest of us." Fiona looked at him with a smile.

"Are you in a good place now? Even after the encounter with Noah?" He carefully chose his words when he asked her.

"Yes, Justin, I am. What Noah and I had is long gone. While leaving college, he asked for my forgiveness, and I let go of it because I knew that he wasn't my future and there was nothing left between us. And, as far as Annabella is concerned, years of friendship shattered in this way do leave a scar. But, hey! That's life."

"You are something else, Fi," Justin added.

"You are not the first one to say this. But now story-time is over. Good night, Justin." Fiona said while closing her eyes.

"It is a good night, Fi." Justin, too, closed his eyes and fell asleep peacefully.