Write Me A Letter

18 | last

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN | L A S T

         THE LAST PERSON SHE EXPECTED TO SEE was the first person they bumped into at the foot of the stairs. Xander looked equally surprised. His hair was longer now, short-trimmed at the sides and parted sloppily somewhere between the middle and the side like Leonardo DiCaprio in the nineties. Funny how many things Brie failed to notice in the two months that she avoided him.

His dark brown eyes widened when he saw her, then he looked at Ollie and his lips pursed. Both boys gave each other a nod of acknowledgment, and she just stood there hugging herself.

"Brie," Xander called. He gave her a small smile, just small enough to make his eyes crinkle the way she always loved. That was one of the things she loved about him, he always smiled with his eyes.

As they stood at the foot of the stairs, three teenagers divided by loyalty and emotions, she realized that there were so many things she wanted to say. A box of anger, accusations, and frustration that was adorned with a thick, dark red ribbon. The words shook inside the imaginary box like a raged animal in the cartoons—it wanted to latch onto Xander's skin and leave a mark of their own, but Ollie's voice snapped her out of it.

"What's up, man? You got chips?" Ollie nodded at the plastic bags.  "Did you get Lays?"

He sounded oblivious to the tension between her and Xander, but Brie wasn't fooled. This was Ollie: casual, careless, but highly intuitive and observant.

"Yeah." Xander raised a bag. "Sour cream just like you asked."

She slowly inched away from them. The last thing she wanted was to get stuck between these two boys while they conversed about chips. Just as she was about to turn, Ollie's arm over her shoulders kept her in place. She looked up at him with a raised brow but he wasn't looking at her.

"Thanks, man. Where's Izzy?"

A glance her way was Xander's first response. The action was quick and subtle, but it didn't go by missing to Brie. Xander looked at her as if she was a porcelain doll that would break at the sound of his girlfriend's name, and its implication stung.

Yes, she should've handled things differently before; yes, he still mattered to her; and yes, she was still trying to move on. But she wasn't weak nor was she made of glass and she wanted him to know that. So with a brave face, she raised her chin and looked him straight in the eyes.

I will be okay. I will get over you.

Xander stared long enough at her before he cleared his throat. She hoped that the silent message came clear and strong, but she could be wrong. Lately, she always was.

"She's in the kitchen with Mikayla. They're refilling the fridge with more soda and beer."

Silence. A pregnant pause that was too long for three friends.

It hurt. The fact that they couldn't longer be in the same room without things falling apart was heartbreaking for Brie. They were no longer the same people, and at times like this, she'd often question herself if it was her fault that things ended up this way.

Maybe it was her feelings that got in the way.

"Ah. Well, talk to you later, man."

"I need to go," she suddenly said. Eyes trained on her purple high tops.

"But the party hasn't even started yet," was Ollie's protest. But she wanted to leave—to get as far away from them as much as possible. "We can go to where Paula is. Simon said you guys came together."

Paula. Even more reason for her to leave.

"I really need to go." This time she said it louder.

"Fine," Ollie said with a sigh. His hand slid off from her shoulder to rest on her lower back. "I'll drive you."

"Yeah, I'm just gonna go and bring the bath bombs upstairs."

Both of them turned to Xander but he was already walking up the stairs.

Ollie glanced down at her. "Well, that was awkward."

-

"Is it okay that you left the party?"

Brie watched Ollie's brows furrow at her question. He took a smooth turn to the left and let his wrist rest on the wheel before he gave her a glance. "Why wouldn't it be okay?"

She hated how her words would sound, but she needed to make sure she wouldn't get another pretty girlfriend mad. A tiring battle over a man was exhausting. "Yuki might look for you at Wes's house and you won't be there."

"Yuki?" He sounded confused.

"Yeah. Yuki."

"I still don't get it."

Did she really need to spell it out loud? She thought Ollie was intuitive. "You arrived together at the party. So, of course, it's expected that you guys would stay and leave together as well."

A snort went past his lips. "Are you implying that Yuki will be mad if I'm not there with her because I'm with you?"

Yes. "No. I'm just saying that she's gonna look for you so you didn't have to drive me."

"Brie, we're already three minutes away from your house," he said that as they took another left that led them to her street. "Isn't that a little too late for now? Besides, why would she be mad?"

"Aren't they all mad at me because they think I'm trying to steal their friend's boyfriend?" She didn't want to sound bitter, but her tone came out exactly like that: bitter, angry, sad and hurt. "She'll probably get mad too that I'm with you. She'd think that because I can't have Xander, I'd go after you."

Ollie's light laughter filled the car. It blended well with the scent of his ocean car-freshener. Breezy, cool, serene. Brie found herself relaxing in her seat despite what she said.

"What? Is this some kind of a high school romance on Netflix?"

"I'm just saying—"

"I heard you." He parked at the front of Brie's family bungalow. The grass had overgrown and her mom's sedan was parked in the driveway. Then, he leaned in close to her. So close that she had to press herself against the door and dig her nails to the passenger seat. Her heart started to accelerate. What the fuck was happening?

"And no, you're not stealing anyone's boyfriend." He pressed a button to release her seatbelt and the sound of it being pulled back until it hit the side of the window clicked and echoed inside the car along with her gasp. Then he grinned, stepped out of the vehicle as if nothing happened while she sat there feeling like her heart betrayed her again.