Alex is the first to be dropped off. He gets out of the car and blows us kisses as he walks backwards to his house, which, in a corny fashion, we return. Kal is next and he's nowhere near as cheerful as Alex. Olivia asks me what might be wrong with him and I fake ignorance, which only makes me wonder how I'll react when Alex tells me about the text Sofia sent him.
"Liv, wait, Kal forgot his earbuds here."
She hits the brake and the car stops abruptly. "Oh, go give them to him. He needs them to shut Christopher out."
I nod, get out of the car and take big steps to his door. When I knock, his mum opens for me and I almost laugh at the surprised look on her face.
I show her the earbuds. "Kal left them in the car."
She nods. "Did something happen? He stormed to his room and didn't say anything," she says, looking in my eyes as if the answer is written there.
"We're all tired is all," I tell her. "Can I give them to him?"
She steps to the side. "Of course, go ahead, sweetie."
I knock at Kal's door and all I hear is a "leave me alone". I try again, and I shout at him that I have his earbuds with me. I hear shuffling before he opens up.
My first instinct when I see him is to hug him, which I don't. His eyes are wet and his lips are already trembling. I take his hand in mine and out the earbuds in his palm, and then I cover them with his fingers.
"Thank you," he mumbles.
I feel like my chest is going to burst, either from my own guilt or Kal's dread.
"Kal...I can stay with you. You know...Until Alex..."
He shakes his head. "No, you already did more than enough." He gulps. "And I-I can't thank you enough for that. I d-don't know what I would have done if I was alone in this."
I punch his shoulder lightly, a gesture that conveys I'm much calmer than how I really feel. "You're going to be friends again in no time. Until then, know you can talk to me about anything."
Before I can turn on my heel and leave, Kal wraps his arms around me and collapses on me, holding on as if he's scared he'll fall on the floor if he doesn't. My nostrils are filled with the familiar cucumber-coconut scent as I try supporting his tall frame, patting his back. I don't push him right away, instead, I hold him a little closer and let him hold me, too. I give him a small smile as I leave, which he half-heartedly returns.
I get back in Olivia's car and she asks me what took me so long, and so I blame Kal's mum for chatting me up. Two minutes later I'm in my house, sitting at the steps and playing with Lucky as my parents keep on asking me about the concert, even though they saw the little clip I posted on Instagram.
Yeah, I let my parents follow me. It wasn't my choice, though. They bribed me, and when it didn't work they threatened me.
It is kind of sweet how they listen when I tell them everything about the previous night, even though I'm pretty sure they don't even know which band I'm talking about or who Patrick is. My attention isn't fully on them, however. My eyes keep shifting at my phone because I know Alex will call in a few minutes, asking me to come over.
Should I be transparent with him and tell him I knew already? Is being cheated on, your friend kissing your girlfriend and your other friend lying to you about it too much? Do I really believe Alex needs me or is it a cheap excuse for me to take the easy route?
I don't have enough time to make up my mind as I see Alex's name on my screen, and I pick up immediately.
"Hey, Alex. Long time no see," I say in a joking manner, cringing at my lame attempt of ignorance.
"Hey, could you maybe come by my place? Now? Please?" he asks and his voice is shaking.
"Yeah, I'll be there in five."
"Thank you so much," he mutters before hanging up.
"What happened?" Mum asks, her eyebrows furrowed. "He sounded like he had been crying."
Let the lies begin
"I have no idea, but I have to go," I say as I stand up and pocket my phone.
"Of course. Stay overnight if he needs you to," dad says and I nod as I get on my skateboard.
Mrs. Mary opens the door before I can even knock. "Thank God you're here. He was fine when he got back and five minutes later he was crying like he hurt his toe at the corner of a sofa."
The tone in her voice matches the one Kal's mum had.
"Is he in his room?"
"Go ahead," she says with a sigh. "I'll be next door if you need anything." She takes a step towards the door, then turns back to me. "Please try to cheer him up."
I nod and walk to Alex's door. It's slightly ajar, so I push it open. He is under his Spider-Man sheets, curled up in a ball. I approach carefully and lift them a little. Two light brown eyes pooling with tears look back at me. Extending his hand out, Alex pulls me under the covers too. I kick out my shoes and throw the sheet over us. His arms snake around me while he hides his face in the crook of my neck and sobs quietly. I'm holding him as tight as I can, constantly playing with his hair, knowing it calms him down. Not this time, though. His crying is non-stop and I feel guiltier with every passing second.
When his sobs turn to sniffles, I push away the sheets and sit up against the headboard, pulling Alex along.
"I broke up with Sofia," he mutters, staring at the sheets. "She texted me earlier but I was stupid enough to have a dead phone. Turns out she prefers smart guys."
I rub his arm. "Alex, you're not stupid."
"No, you don't understand." He takes a breath. "The text said Sofia kissed Kal in March. Isn't she the best? She was honest with me. Took her one hundred and forty-one days, but who's counting. And Kal? He's the bestest friend I could ever ever ask for. He only did it once. I might as well act like he didn't ever do it."
His voice is dripping with sarcasm, and that's the first time this happens.
I take his hands in mine. "Alex, I don't know what to say."
"Me neither," he says, brushing his knuckles against his eyes. "We must do something. I don't want to think about these two."
"Sure," I say nodding. "Do you want me to call Olivia?"
Alex pouts his lips. "I already did, but she said something's up and she can't come over now."
I frown. "It's not anything serious, right?"
"No, I think she said she has to stay with the twins so maybe her parents had to go to a fancy dinner or something." Alex shrugs. "Do you want to watch Thor: Ragnarok?"
"Sure, let me get the laptop."
And that's how we lay on his bed without moving an inch for two and a half hours. On the outside, nothing seems wrong. It's just another day we're bored out of our minds and trying to kill time. This time, though, we don't talk. Or rather, I do all the talking, commenting on Chris Hemsworth's adaptation of Thor and the preciousness of Loki. The only way I know Alex is listening to me is the occasional nod or the ghost of a smile on his lips.
"Am I late?"
Turning to the door, I see Olivia walking in, slipping out of her shoes, and sitting cross-legged at the edge of the bed.
"Not as late as Sofia was for telling me she cheated on me with my best friend."
Olivia's jaw drops. "What?"
Alex proceeds to narrate everything that happened in the last few hours, from the moment he turned on his phone, without any sarcasm this time. His eyes are glossy and it's clear he's trying to keep himself from crying again, at which he's not very successful. I wrap an arm around his shoulders and he rests his head against mine as he explains everything. Olivia's jaw keeps clenching and unclenching as long as Alex is speaking.
I hear the story from Alex's perspective for the first time. It's funny how I know why it happened and how bad Kal feels about it or how much Sofia wanted to come clean way earlier, even though I'm not as close to them as I am to Alex.
So close that I'm lying to his face.
"So you haven't spoken with Kal yet?" Olivia asks, her fists clenching. "You're not going to let him get away with it, are you? Don't you want to yell at him? Break every bone in his body? Because I do. Say the word and it's done."
Alex shakes his head. "Of course not." Olivia is about to protest but the boy stops her. "I don't want to hurt him. Do you actually want to hit him?"
Olivia's shoulders slump down. "No, not really. But...But why would he do that? Didn't Sofia say who started it?"
Alex nods. "She said Kal did. But...could that be right? Did he like her and never told me?" The boy shakes his head. "I really need to talk with him. Just...not today. I don't have the energy for it."
"Okay, I respect that," Olivia says, "But if you want anyone to beat him, Summer and I will do it. Especially Summer."
I let out a fake giggle. "Yeah, I will kick his ass."
Alex glances between us. "Alright, I don't think I'll take advantage of your offer but thank you. Can we have a sleepover now? No rom-coms though, for obvious reasons. And I think I'm going to need a lot of ice cream."
"I'm going to go get some," I say, lifting my hand in the air. "Neapolitan, right?"
"Don't we always take that?" Olivia asks with a smile. "Be quick, we're going to set up the living room."
Nodding, I head outside. The sky is almost pitch black now and a light breeze is filling my arms with goosebumps. I force myself to walk to the nearest store and not back to my house and hide there forever.
It's harder than I thought. I told myself not revealing I knew anything was for the best, yet a few hours later I want to spill it all, even if it makes Alex hate me. My stomach is twisted in knots and my chest feels as if there are a hundred tons pressing it down.
When I get back with a tub of ice cream in my hands, Alex opens up the door. I don't know what Olivia did, but he's actually smiling.
I smile too, but my smile is fake, just like me. I'm a fake friend, and a coward one at that.
............
Happy 2021 everyone, may this be your year :)
I'd like to dedicate this chapter to qixing , thank you SO MUCH for reading, it means a lot :)
I haven't written a new chapter since 2020 but here's this. My goal was to finish the story before 2021 but I wasn't ready so now I figured I should finish it before my birthday (finishing the first draft of a story I'll like was on my list before turning 22 anyway) buuuut I still feel like I need more time. I'm not going to try hard because my exams won't be over until a few days before my birthday anyway. Wattpad and writing take so much time, I decided to edit some spelling mistakes and it's suddenly been an hour?
PS: Cobra Kai is the best thing ever