"So, in your mind, does 'donate' mean throw every piece of clothing I own in a corner in the back of the closet until you forget that you're really just a home wrecker and backstabbing bitch?"
Layla's eyes went as wide as saucers and it wasn't until Lucas was shoving half my wardrobe into my suitcases did I realize she was still holding that damn spatula in her hand.
It wasn't even the right utensil to use for spaghetti as it was decorative and actually had a cute logo for our wedding and the year of our wedding inscribed on the silicone side.
"You can't talk to me like that! And you're breaking and entering, I could call the cops and have you arrested for stealing!"
I laughed without humor.
"Please. I dare you to call the cops. They'd laugh you out of the house. Everything in here is mine, I get mail to this address, you don't matter. I could say you're the intruder and they'd haul your ass to jail. What do you think about that, Layla? Or should I say again, home wrecker?"
Reed's snorting laughter filled the uncomfortable silence but he quickly disguised it with a cough and a smirk tugged at my mouth.
"Now get out of our way or we're really going to have a problem."
She huffed and went to go tend to her spaghetti which I knew for a fact Nate absolutely despised even when it was made at five star restaurants so I figured how well his 'favorite' dish would go over later.
"Nate's going to be here soon and he is not going to be happy. I'm calling him right now!"
"Go ahead and call him, I don't care."
And I honestly didn't. The only things I felt for him in that moment were pure unbridled uninterest and disdain.
Searching the room for one of my most prized possession that I'd forgotten in my madness, panic began rising in my stomach.
I began frantically pulling out all the drawers in the room, going down on my knees to search under the bed.
Layla's emotionless laughter filled the air and dread filled the space in my torso that had been previously taken up with pain and sorrow.
"Looking for something, bitch? I already read it, and to be honest it was quite terrible. I've never read such shitty poetry."
I was positive my eyes turned red and glowed with the fury of the emotions boiling the blood coursing through my veins.
Lucas jumped up and had to stop me from physically assaulting her.
"What did you do with it?"
"That was one of the things that we really did trash. Nate read it and all the shit you wrote about him, plus some really fucked up stories and if they're true I'd really recommend a therapist. He laughed at it all, said he was glad you would never show him your writings before, they weren't worth the wait."
I lunged at her once more but Lucas wasn't ready for me that time. My arms raked her body and she jumped out of the way right before I made contact with her face again.
"You're insane! Now I'm really calling Nate!"
"Come on, let's just grab everything important right now and get out of here. I don't really want to see a cat fight tonight, especially not one featuring my little sister."
Layla thankfully escaped the room in a huff on her phone ranting and raving but if I knew Nate I knew he'd be on his third bourbon at the bar by his work, hanging with his buddies from high school.
It would take him at least thirty minutes to get back to the apartment, and we could be long gone by then.
I packed up my entire wardrobe, all of my old collectibles and keepsakes, my writing tools and all of my extra, devastatingly blank journals.
The stinging pain that flared up when I was reminded of the fact that my almost entire life's work of poetry was wasted sitting in the garbage.
I even checked the trashcans in the bathrooms and the kitchen just in case they threw it out recently but I was out of luck.
Lucas grabbed my arm while I was packing.
"Hey, that stuff she said about what you wrote. Was some of it about what happened with..."
He trailed off because even he couldn't talk about it.
"Yes. And if they didn't throw it away like they said they did and show it to anyone, we're all going to be screwed."
He gave me a knowing, harrowing look filled with dread.
"I'll check the dumpster on the way out, then."
I nodded at him, determination set in my eyes as I started skimming my hands between the box spring and the mattress- Nate's favorite hiding place for any valuables.
"You can take all your stuff, but I still got Nate."
Layla just wouldn't shut her damn mouth, would she?
"That's fine. You'll realize soon enough, when he starts telling you what to wear, what to do and controlling every aspect of your life. I was blinded and trapped by the life we made together and felt like I couldn't leave until you gave me the perfect excuse to escape. You'll be begging for him to give you a reason to leave, then he'll fuck you over just like he did to me."
I stalked towards her slowly, only stopping until I was directly in her face, the freckles dotting her nose visible even underneath the makeup she always caked on in an effort to hide the small dots because I knew Nate hated freckles as I had done the exact same thing with mine...I hadn't worn makeup since I left him.
"You can't change a man like Nate, and I'm more than thankful that this happened because now I'm free to do as I please. I don't have someone tying me down making me do things I never wanted, making me their housewife while he could fuck a sidepiece whenever he wanted while I got two seconds in the bedroom and was never satisfied. Have fun with him never reciprocating the sexual favors and always being selfish during sex, if he hasn't already. Sure, it'll be fun at first but then the psychological shit's gonna start, and then you'll see I'm right.
"Have fun with my ex, and remember who's lips were on his first, remember who fucked him in every inch of this apartment. Remember your ex best friend, who will never feel a shred of sympathy for you when he starts breaking you down slowly, tearing you down and gradually making you lose yourself in the process of making your whole life revolve around him. Have fun, Layla, because I sure as hell am right now watching you make the biggest mistake of your life."
Her green eyes grew three sizes and I could tell that I'd struck a chord in her with the truth of her new situation and was satisfied that I'd made her realize her mistake but only after she'd made it.
I turned on my heel and left the apartment that I'd called my home for so long, ready to finally say goodbye to the past that had held me down for far too long.
The roaring crowd, shining stadium lights and raw, hot adrenaline continued to course through my memories of the amazing game that I'd just had.
Each play was better than the next and my hamstring had only acted up once when I had to sprint for a few yards but an entire tube of numbing cream and it was almost like the injury wasn't even there.
I was still in awe of the voicemail on my phone when I returned to the locker room after shaking hands with the other team after their staggering loss against our team.
"Mr. Scott, this is Roy Rickman here with the Patriots. Awesome playing out there on the field tonight. I'd love to have a conversation with you about your future in football, call me first thing Monday morning. Go celebrate, you deserve it!"
I couldn't have imagined a better voicemail if I tried.
Roy Rickman was one of the head scouts for the Patriots and the man I'd invited to watch the game, so the fact that he'd actually showed up and wanted to continue staying in contact with me spoke volumes considering the fact that he usually walked out of games in the first quarter to catch other players at their games if he wasn't impressed with the current guy he was scouting.
Throwing my sweaty gym bag in the back of my truck, I was ready to head out to the bars to drink and drape myself around some hot nameless women when a familiar gorgeous, albeit sad face flashed in my mind.
I groaned, knowing that my mind would force my body to drive back to the house just to see her and make sure she was okay.
I didn't know when it happened, maybe it was the first day we'd ever met, but something about me was inextricably drawn to that girl, and I wondered if it was wise of me to follow my instincts about her so soon after her breakup with her fiancé.
The drive was normal until I got stuck behind a drunk driver. They kept weaving in and out of traffic, driving at speeds that was obviously over the limit but I kept up with them to grab their plate number and call them in to the police but they took a hard right into a familiar neighborhood and was heading towards the rent house so I stayed hot on their tail.
When the car pulled into my driveway, the alarms were going off to call the guys or even the police.
A somewhat familiar looking guy stumbled out of the car with a beer can in his hand. His clothes were rumpled on his dark skin and his head was almost cleanly shaven, just black stubble crawling across it.
It was obvious the guy was jacked, and had I not just played my absolute heart out I could've taken him. Maybe I'd still be able to with any residual adrenaline left over from the game.
I got out of my truck and began stalking towards the guy, glad that I had at least a foot over him in terms of height.
I suddenly remembered where I knew him from as soon as he started banging on our front door.
"Lydia! Let me in, I know you're in there!"
"Hey man, get lost! She doesn't want you here."
Nate whipped his head to me and I could see the confused wheels turning in his head.
"Wait, Emmett Scott? I just watched you on tv, great game man! Wait, what are you doing here?"
"I said. She doesn't want you here. Leave Lydia alone."
He sneered as his face morphed into something instantly recognizable. The memories of my father's slurred and sharp words connected with my psyche in that moment and all I wanted to do was return to my eight year old self running to his room for cover.
"What do you know about what Lydia wants?"
"I know enough to say that she wouldn't want you here."
"You don't know anything!"
He went back to banging his fists on the door yelling out rambling nonsense and then she was there at the door, an angry glare on her beautiful face. How anyone could let her go let alone cheat on her was beyond me.
If I had her, I would treat her like a queen, like she deserved.
"Look at you, running away stealing my shit! You are crazy if you think I'll let you take what was mine!"
"I bought everything in that apartment with my own money! I can't talk to you in this state, nor do I want to talk to you ever, at all! Go! No one wants you here."
"You want me here. You know no one could ever love you the way that I love you. No one ever will."
"That's where you're wrong."
Reed, Lucas, Lydia, Nate. All their heads swung my way. Even some nosy neighbors pretending they were doing housework at midnight.
"What are you talking about?"
I didn't even know who asked that but suddenly I was there by her side, the glorious scent of her perfume wafting up to my nose as I wrapped my arm around her shoulder.
"You're wrong. I'm with Lydia now, and you're wrong."
Nate faltered in his argument and it seemed like he lost all of his angry steam. Lydia looked up at me questioningly but I kept my gaze trained on Nate because I knew I would crumble with her blue eyes staring up at me like I knew they were.
"Now leave. Like my lady said, no one wants you here."
He threw a half hearted punch but lost his footing and almost fell to the ground. He must have finally realized his drunken state and went to get in his car.
"Wait, are you guys really going to let him drive drunk and possibly hurt someone innocent?"
Reed was always the Good Samaritan.
"Well who's gonna drive him home? Sure as hell won't be me."
Lydia's retort wasn't lost on Reed and I noticed that we were all grateful when he stepped forward and pushed Nate in the passenger seat of his car, subsequently backing out of the driveway to take him home without endangering innocents in the process.
And then I was still there, Lydia's body underneath my arm and I had absolutely no idea what to say next-thankfully I didn't have to as Lydia carefully extracted herself from my body and I was quick to note how much I missed the feel of her on me.
"So...who wants ice cream?"