A Beautiful Instrument

35: An Awful Human Being

"I thought you took most of your closet with you already." Alexis teases me.

"Yes, but this calls for something special." I stress.

Alexis catches on. "Oh I get it. In case Krystal sees you and Jeremy together."

"Yep. Plus, I think we need to travel together. Jeremy is paranoid." I comment.

"Alright, I'll see you around five. We can get dressed together and gossip a bit." She suggests.

"Sounds good. See you soon."

"That sounds promising." Jeremy responds when I hang up.

"Yep, dinner and a show. You need to come pick us up with Manny." I tell him.

"Wouldn't it make more sense for them to drive here to get us?" He asks, furrowing his brow at the logistics.

"I'm going home to change." I announce.

"Okay..."

"Trust me, you'll like this." I convince him.

It's 5 o'clock and I'm enjoying a glass of wine, lounging on the couch after a shower. Alexis comes in the front door, looking frazzled. She looks at me enviously. "You look relaxed."

"I'm happy and I'm ready to make Krystal eat it." I retort.

"Let's work it, Leigh! I'm gonna hop in the shower real quick. Pour me a glass." She requests.

I change into my dress and set to work on my hair, twirling it up off my neck. Alecis walks out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. Her mouth drops open. "Holy hell, Leigh! I'm gonna need to replan my whole outfit just to ensure Manny keeps his eyes off you."

The black dress that I am wearing is cut literally down to my navel with a short flirty skirt. "I'm sorry. This is serious business."

Alexis eyes me. "Was it Jeremy's idea to go to the show?"

"Nope. Mine." I respond as I apply lip gloss.

"Why?" It's a simple question.

"I'm curious." I give a simple answer.

"About?" Alexis prodes.

"Whether she has any hold over him anymore." I admit.

Alexis gives me a sympathetic look. "Girl, how are you this insecure? He loves you."

"You should see her. She could be a model." I say with disdain, thinking about her Barbie-shaped figure and long legs.

"I do know her. She's an awful human being regardless of how beautiful she is." Alexis reveals.

"You know her?"

"Believe it or not, I knew her when she was looking for work here. She sabotaged herself. She never wanted to stay in this city. I didn't know Jeremy was her fiancé, though." She mentions.

"Wait, what?"

Alexis is getting ready while she talks. "I saw her audition twice. She's good. She was offered the first spot. She stuck her nose up at it. The second audition was for a better company, more money, prestige, and she purposefully screwed up to avoid getting it. She made some comment about how she needed to break the news to her fiancé and see if he would follow her where she could actually make it big."

"She could have stayed? They would be married. And..." I am reeling from this news.

"I told you she's an awful human being. There's other things, but I think you hate her enough already." Alexis teases.