The Colour of Love

Chapter 27 - Mike Rollins

Well, that date with Brittany on Friday was an absolute disaster. And my parents were pretty mad when I got home... apparently Brittany did, in fact, tell her 'daddy' all about how I dumped my sherry on her. And Brittany's father was not too impressed, to say the least. Thankfully though my parents didn't punish me. They may be selfish and arrogant, but they aren't racist, and they weren't too impressed with Brittany when I told them about what she had said. My dad was sad about losing his business deal though.

It's Sunday morning and I'm in my room scrolling through Instagram. Normally I would be hanging out with Daniel, but he told me he was at the mall with his new girlfriend. The one named Rebecca, I think. The one he met at the MacDonald's. I feel bad for Mala; I hope he didn't hurt her too much.

I notice that Daniel's posted a new picture on Instagram. Probably a selfie of him and his new girlfriend. I click on it to see what she looks like. He said she was really pretty. Boy, he wasn't lying either. Beautiful red hair, green eyes, cute freckles... wait a minute... she looks just like...

My phone drops to the floor, a loud crack ringing through the air. I'm frozen, sitting on the couch, my hand still raised. No, it couldn't be... he wouldn't...

I pick up the phone and look at it again, my hands shaking slightly. Despite the now cracked screen, I can see the picture of Daniel and his new girlfriend crystal clear. It's her. There's no doubt about it. The hair, the eyes, the face that's been haunting me for nearly two weeks. That's her. That's Cinderella. Rebecca, I guess. The name suits her. Makes her even more beautiful. But she's dating Daniel. I can't believe he did that! But did he know it was her? Maybe... maybe not...

I stand up suddenly, my broken phone falling to the couch. I have to go to the mall and find them. She may be his new girlfriend, but I have to at least know... did he date her knowing that I'm in love with her? Or did he never make the connection that she could be my Cinderella?

I run out of the room, grabbing my coat and car keys along the way.

"Honey, where are you going?" my mother calls.

"To the mall. I'll be back before dark."

"Okay, have a nice time Mike."

I storm out of the door, my heart pounding. What am I going to do? I'm in love with her, and she's dating my best friend. I can't just make Daniel break up with her though. That wouldn't be fair. But I have to sort things out, find out if he knew it was her. If he did know, oh man... I could punch through a wall just thinking about it. But I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt. We've been best friends for years, if he knew it was her he would've told me. Right?

I hop into my car and tear down the driveway, nearly swerving off the road. I pull over, taking deep breaths. I can't drive in a rage like this. I'll get myself killed, or someone else. Turning around, I pull back into the garage. I walk into the house and call for Albert, our chauffeur.

"Yes, Mike?"

"I need to go to the mall, right away."

Albert nods. "Of course. Would you like to take the new Ferrari?"

"No, just the truck."

"Alright."

The drive to the mall seems to take hours, even though it's only twenty minutes. The whole way I'm stuck between being furious with rage and completely depressed. Albert seems to notice my mood, but he doesn't say anything. We pull up at the mall's parking lot and I get out.

"Thanks Albert. I'll call you when I'm done here."

I walk up to the large building, angry still pulsing through me. When I get inside I sit down on a bench, trying to decide what exactly to do. I can't talk to Daniel like this, knowing me I'll end up having a heart attack from anger. So I decide to just sit on the bench and wait for a while until I calm down.