The Ex

CHAPTER TEN

Closing my apartment door behind me, I sigh with relief as I step out of my pumps. It has been a long day. After enduring a lunch filled with small talk; mostly from Sophie and Liam and a whole lot of awkwardness; entirely between myself and Ethan, I feel drained.

Turning the light on in my kitchen, I place my bag on the counter and retrieve my cell phone. Scrolling through my list of notifications, I note four missed calls from Liam and five from Sophie. Having been avoiding them all day, I begrudgingly decide to listen to my voicemail.

"Hey, I'm sorry for withholding the truth even though we thought it would have been a happy surprise. Please call me back."

I roll my eyes at Sophie's choice of words. She swore she wasn't lying but withholding the truth isn't the same thing according to her. I round the large white marble counter and retrieve a glass, filling it from the faucet as I continue to listen to my messages.

"Char, I'm sorry! We should have told you he was the best man. Please call me," Liam utters desperately.

"Charlotte Margaret Anderson. Stop avoiding me and call me now," Sophie states in her second message.

"CALL MEEEEEEE BACK," is all Sophie shouts in her final voicemail.

The uneasiness in her tone has me smiling to myself. The silent treatment has clearly had the desired effect on them. Deciding to get this inevitable conversation about today's events over with, I take a steadying breath and dial Sophie's number.

"Charlotte! FINALLY." Sophie answers instantly. 

"I was three minutes away from coming over to make sure you were alive," Liam adds.

"I'm still very much alive," I respond, realizing I'm on speakerphone. 

"We've been calling all day! Didn't you get our messages?" Sophie asks.

"I was busy taking applications for new best friends," I say dryly.

"Char, I should have warned you about today. I'm sorry," Sophie states apologetically. 

I take a sip and contemplate her words. Nothing would have prepared me to face Ethan, not even a warning. Nevertheless, it would have been nice to be told the truth.

"We're both sorry. It was a terrible thing to do," Liam continues.

"It was pretty terrible," I agree.

"Was it weird seeing him after so long? I need details woman!" Sophie says dramatically.

Considering her words, I walk the short expanse from the kitchen to the attached living room. Taking a seat on the plush white sofa, I sigh. "Of course it was weird. I don't think there's anything more bizarre than seeing your ex after five years." I state matter-of-factly.

"After the initial surprise, seeing him wasn't that bad was it?" Liam asks optimistically.

I replay every moment of the bizarre encounter in my head, "I guess not. It was interesting, to say the least."

"He did look pretty darn good," Sophie interjects.

"He looked exactly as I remember," I respond indifferently. 

In reality, I haven't been able to stop thinking about him. I visualize his sharp jawline, full lips, and grey eyes. It's the unfamiliar details however that puzzle me; the way his smile didn't reach his eyes, the fine lines on his face, his silent contemplation. These subtle changes remind me of all the time that has passed; of all those years we've been apart.

"Charlotte, the connection is still there between you. Five years hasn't changed that." Sophie states when she recognizes she is getting nothing out of me.