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Soundtrack
I'm Not Calling You A Liar – Florence + The Machine
I'm not calling you a ghost
So stop haunting me
And I love you so much
I'm gonna let you kill me
***
I take a step back to fully absorb the scene that I'm walking into.
Standing in the doorway in one of Avery's t-shirts, hair piled in a messy bun atop her head, is the last person I thought I'd ever see again.
"Who is it, Tess?"
Avery's voice is as gentle as I've ever heard it. His genuine care for the girl standing in front of me is apparent in just those four words, and I feel a knot in the pit of my stomach. Shocked by the feeling, I quickly blame it on this sudden reintroduction and my sheer exhaustion.
Tessa turns towards him, her face flushed with shock that's quickly brewing into anger.
"Why is she here?" she asks, her voice laced with venom.
Avery looks at her for a moment before his eyes turn to me and widen in recognition. His expression quickly changes from shocked to almost smug, his eyes finding their way to mine and never leaving.
"I didn't know you were coming tonight," he says.
"It was a last minute thing."
Tessa crosses her arms defensively over her chest, obviously affected by the tension in the air. She looks for a second as if she might say something but decides against it, biting her lip so that I won't notice it trembling.
I look between the two of them and find myself fighting back laughter despite the situation.
"How is this my life," I say out loud, mostly to myself. I take one last look at Avery before adding, "I'm too tired for this and I want to see my boyfriend. Goodnight you two."
With that I push past the two of them and high tail it towards Tyler's room.
As I'm walking away I hear Tessa's voice.
"Boyfriend?"
"My roommate," Avery answers as I'm closing the door behind me.
I pause for a moment before locking it for good measure.
You know, just in case Tessa decides she wants to murder me while I'm sleeping.
"Grace? What are you doing here? It's 2 in the morning," Tyler says, climbing out of bed to come greet me. "Not that I'm not happy to see you."
I catapult myself into his arm, catching him off guard with my fervor.
"What was that for," he chuckles, placing a light kiss on my temple.
"I just missed you," I sigh, snaking my arms tighter around his waist. "Oh, and the universe really does hate me."
He pulls away just enough so that he can see my face, pursing his lips in a frown.
"What does that mean?"
I open my mouth to answer him, but the increasingly loud voices in the next room do my job for me.
"How could you not tell me that she was here?" Tessa shouts.
"I didn't think that it mattered."
"Bullshit," she accuses, her voice shaking. "You were in love with her; of course it mattered."
Tyler takes a step back from me, his wide eyes begging an explanation.
"That's Tessa," I say quietly.
"Yeah, I know. She's been here almost every night this week," he replies. "How does she know you?"
I sigh deeply, running my hands through my messy hair.
"I- god, Tyler it's been such a long night. I'm so exhausted. All I wanted was to see you and it got so messy so fast-"
My voice breaks. Within seconds Tyler is at my side, wrapping me up tightly in his embrace. I melt into his chest, clutching him like a lifeline.
Avery and Tessa have fallen quiet in the next room, emphasizing the stillness in the air between Tyler and I.
The silence is absolutely deafening.
"It's okay, Grace," Tyler whispers. "We don't have to do this tonight."
"Thank you," I sigh, reluctant to let him go. "I promise I'll explain everything tomorrow."
After I've changed out of my party dress I climb into bed with Tyler and snuggle up under his arm, relieved just to be near him.
My relief is short lived.
"Stop pretending, Avery!" Tessa cries out. "You've had every opportunity to tell me and you didn't! That wasn't an accident."
Tyler's arms tense around me, and I know that we're both thinking the same thing.
Neither of us want to hear this very private argument, but the paper thin walls don't do much to muffle the shouting. Somehow, we're stuck in silence listening to my ex and his girlfriend argue about my being here. It's a nightmare that I can't wake up from.
"Tess, I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react like this," Avery assures. "I was trying to protect you."
"You were trying to protect yourself!" she accuses. "You didn't tell me because you didn't want to admit to yourself that you still care about her."
"I don't care about her," he promises. He raises his voice to ensure that the weight of his next statement is felt. "She means nothing to me, Tessa."
My nostrils flare in a sharp intake of breath. I can't help it. It almost feels as if his words were meant for me and not Tessa and, given the tightening of arms around me, it seems that Tyler has the same train of thought.
"Don't," Tessa growls. "Don't lie to me, Avery. Don't forget how well I know you. If she wasn't important to you, you wouldn't have-"
"What do you want from me?"
Avery's voice reverberates through the walls. Bitter silence follows.
When Tessa speaks again, her voice is stony.
"I want you to admit it."
"Admit what?"
"Admit that you've spent every day of the last year pining after her. That I was just a consolation prize," she says, defeated. "That she's the reason you've been in such a good mood all week. That it's killing you that she's in there with her boyfriend right now. God Avery, I want you to admit that you're still in love with her. After everything."
Her words hang in the air for what feels like an eternity and I find myself just as anxious as Tessa to hear his answer.
"I refuse to admit to any of that because every single word you said isn't true. You were never my consolation prize. You know I'd go crazy without you, Tess," he says softly. "And I'm not in love with Grace."
"Promise me, Avery," she pleads.
He doesn't say anything in response. Even through the walls, I know why the pair has fallen silent. With Avery, a kiss is worth a thousand words.
I roll over to face Tyler, whose eyes are wide awake after what we've just witnessed.
"I'm so sorry," I whisper, "for dragging you into my mess again."
"This isn't your mess, Grace," he replies softly. "It's theirs."
Oh, what I'd give for him to be right.
A/N
Ten points to me for a relatively quick update!!!
Congrats to everyone who guessed Tessa! You're all very intuitive.
Thoughts on this chapter? Sorry it's a little short, but I wanted to get it out ASAP!
Random Quote: She wears strength and darkness equally well; the girl has always been half goddess, half hell
Hope you all have a great week!
Goodnight My Lovelies!