Out
A knock at the door has me tip-toeing over Alex, who is passed out on my bedroom floor. I creep through the house so not to wake Mum and open it. A bright eyed, blond and bubbly girl stands before me. He bubble-gum pink lips and baby-blue eyes have me thinking really mean things.
‘Hi,’ she squeaks cheerfully.
‘Hello,’ I say.
She smiles, showing shining-white, perfectly straight teeth.
‘And, you are?’ I ask.
‘Miranda,’ she giggles.
She smiles again.
‘Right, Miranda,’ who is this girl? ‘can I help you?’
‘Oh, yes, I’m looking for Alex. Charlene said he’d be here.’
‘He’s asleep. Can I pass on a message?’ what does she want with Alex?
‘Yes, tell him I’m sorry about his dad.’
‘Will do,’ I go to shut the door but quickly look up again, ‘how do you know Alex?’ I ask.
‘Oh, we dated,’ she giggles again.
Could this be the girl from summer?
‘You dated?’ I frown.
‘Yes, at the beginning of the year. I did this competition thing with him. But one day he just stopped returning my calls. It took me forever to find his address.’
‘You dated earlier this year?’
‘Yes, around the summer-autumn mark.’
My jaw drops. I slam the door in the girls face and run to my room. I push open the door. Alex sits up quickly and stares at me.
‘You alright?’ he asks sleepily.
‘Am I alright?’ I yell, ‘who is Miranda?’
His face pales. Slowly and carefully, he stands, straightens his shirt and looks me up and down.
‘No one,’ he mumbles.
‘No one?’ I say through gritted teeth, ‘want to try that again?’
He hesitates.
‘She’s just this girl I know.’
‘Just a girl you know?’ I take a step forward.
He backs away, running into my dresser.
‘Yeah,’ he huffs.
‘Try again, last chance.’
‘We dated.’
‘When exactly?’
‘Summer?’
‘Why are you asking me?’
‘It was a statement.’
‘Bull!’ I scream.
A muffled voice float from my mother’s room but I ignore it.
‘How could you?’ I whisper.
Tears sting my eyes but I don’t let them fall. I ball up the hem of my shirt in my fists.
‘I trusted you, and you dated some floosy slut behind my back,’ I choke on the lump that has formed in my throat.
‘It didn’t mean anything,’ he stammers.
He reaches out for my hand but I step away.
‘Do I mean anything?’ I ask.
I glare up at him. He ignores the question and reaches out to me again. This time, I hit him away and run out into the living room. He follows.
‘Of course you mean everything to me,’ he says.
‘Obviously not!’ I yell.
‘She was just a backup. I really wanted to win this competition and there was nothing in the rules that said I couldn’t enter with two girls.’
‘So this is all about winning some stupid contest, is it?’
‘It was, but now it’s not.’
‘Then what is it!’
‘I love you, Sav.’
‘Don’t!’ I yell, ‘don’t you pull that crap with me. You were dating another girl at the same time you were dating me. And a girl like that, of all girls.’
‘What?’
‘Cheating on me with a dumb, skanky bimbo is the lowest of the low. It makes me seem like a frigid bitch. But I guess that’s what I am seeing as I won’t do it with you.’
‘You’re taking this out of context.’
‘What? Was she your play thing that you could use and have fun with until you could get me into bed?’
‘No.’
‘Or was she the girl you wanted to show off while you kept me hidden.’
‘Never.’
‘At least now I get why you didn’t want to tell anyone about me. You didn’t want her finding out you were dating someone else and blow it for you, wanted to keep the two of us apart as long as possible to maximise your chances with at least one of us.’
‘Sav, listen.’
‘No, I will not listen to some cheating, lying, backstabbing scum,’ I stamp my foot and point at the door, ‘get out! Get out of my house!’
Mum walks into the living room at that point. Tears stream down my face. Alex’s face is going from deathly-pale to tomato-red.
‘What’s going on in here?’ she asks, standing beside me and putting her hand on my arm.
‘She’s not listening,’ Alex starts but I cut him off.
‘He cheated on me with some blonde bimbo and now expects me to reason with him,’ I don’t take my eyes from him.
‘Get out of my house,’ Mum whispers to Alex.
His shoulders slump in defeat but he shakes his head.
‘Out!’ she yells.
She steps forward, holding her hand high. He heads quickly for the door. We both follow him.
He runs out, almost knocking over Miranda in the process.
‘You get out of here too, you little slut,’ Mum says to her softly before slamming the door in her face again.
I lean against the wall and slide down. Mum sits beside me and wraps her arms around my shoulders.
YOU ARE READING
The 20 Dates Challenge
Romance(a Love Games novel) Going around the grade eleven and twelve boys is a list. The aim: complete the list with the same girl and win bragging rights. When Savannah's best friend, Alex, decides he wants her to be his partner, the two discover what it...
