by Anna Albo
“So what? I went once.”
“I’m not even invited to parties anymore. You know why? Because of you!”
“What parties? I don’t go to them.”
“You don’t have to. King Zach proclaimed me untouchable, like I’m some fucking leper. Enjoy it while it lasts because eventually he’ll get bored of you. At least until some hot rich girl comes along.”
She stormed off. For a second I stood there dumbfounded, but then I sprang into action, running down the path after her. “What are you talking about? Zach doesn’t go to these parties. Why would he care if you were there?”
She kept walking, picking up her pace but I kept up with her. I wanted her to stop, to finish this conversation, but she refused. Finally, I grabbed onto her arm, whirling her around. Her face was now blotchy, her eyes full with tears threatening to fall. This girl, who’d tormented me for half a year, who humiliated me in front of my coworkers, who’d beaten me up and cracked my ribs, who’d never shown an emotion other than revulsion, was now teary-eyed and ready to sob. I took a step back from her, overcome by this fissure in her Iron Curtain.
“I didn’t mean to upset you,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
“Everything about you upsets me.” She spat it out, but her venom was waning.
“What’s going on? If Zach is doing something, I want to know.”
She wiped her eyes and let out a cackle. “Sure you do. Next thing I know, the two of you will have cooked up more shit to hit me with.”
“No, we won’t. Tell me what Zach did?”
“You mean already did! Are you that dense? He’s told everyone to stay away from me. Not invite me to parties, to get me thrown out of my sorority. I’ve lost most of my friends, all because of you. You must be some firecracker in bed, because no chick has ever had Zach so firmly by the balls.”
“He wouldn’t do this,” I said, shaking my head. “He promised me this was over.”
She grunted. “Zach threatened me. Did he tell you that?”
I searched her face, trying to find something of the old Bianca, something I could latch on to, but there was nothing. I wanted to hate her, but her words had a ring of some kind of truth to them, and they were scaring the shit out of me. “When did he do this and why?”
“After you were beaten up. He showed up after one of my classes . . .” Bianca stopped. “You may think you know Zach Walker. Right now he’s showing you his good side, but he can’t hide it forever. If I were you, I’d dump his sorry ass. And do me a favor. Don’t even tell him we talked. I don’t need him to ruin what’s left of my life.”
“Wait, I have more questions,” I said as she started walking.
“I’ve got class. Besides, we’ve got nothing more to say. I’ll stay away from you and you stay away from me.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Emma
The whole afternoon my stomach gurgled with unease. Anxiety had set in. I needed to talk to Zach, to find out what, if anything, Bianca had said was true. Part of me was scared of the answer. I sat through my afternoon classes without taking any kind of comprehensible notes. My conversation with Bianca kept running through my head like an old movie reel.
I got back to the apartment and found Zach at our dining room table, papers all around him. He looked up and smiled as I grabbed a soda from the fridge. I sat across from him, my hands shaking a bit.
“How was school?” he asked.
“Fine.”
“I turned on the slow cooker when I got home. It’s been on about three hours,” he said.
I stared at him, well, the top of his head, as he leafed through papers. He had a highlighter in hand and a pensive expression on his face. I sipped my soda.
“I ran into Bianca today.”
His stopped marking up a paper and looked at me. “What did she want?” he asked in a monotone.
“Nothing from me, but I had a lot of questions for her.”
He set down his highlighter and his eyes locked on mine. “Em, don’t bother with her.”
I bit my lip and shuffled a bit. Nerves were eating at me. “You said you weren’t, but are you making her life difficult?”
“Why would I bother?”
“I don’t know. But she claims you are.”
“What did she say?”
“You can’t answer my question with a question. No deflecting.”
He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “No, I am not making her life difficult.”
“Did you have her thrown out of her sorority?”
His eyes narrowed. “No. Why would I do—” he stopped, realizing he was about to ask a question. “No, I didn’t. That’s just weird.”
“Did you ask people to unfriend her?”
His body tensed. I could see anger brewing. “Is she for real? She told you all this?”
So much for him not asking questions. He couldn’t help himself. A lawyer already in training. “Did you do this?”
“No, I didn’t do any of this. She must be really desperate,” he said, his voice rising.
“You went to her. After she and her friends put me in the hospital?”
His expression changed in an instant, like a child caught holding the last coveted piece of chocolate cake. He let out a long breath and looked down at his hands. “Yes. I wanted to know once and for all that she was going to leave you alone. I was worried that the second you got out of the hospital, she’d start her shit up all over again.”
I felt a jab to my heart, like it was done with a dull, rusty knife. “I told you to leave her alone. You said you would.”
“Emma, you don’t know her.”
“Funny, she said the same thing about you.”
The comment stung him. He took a second to recover. “Em, the only way I could ensure that this would stop was to go to her. If anything, I negotiated a truce. As for all this other shit, I didn’t do it. If her sorority kicked her out it’s because she deserved it. If her friends abandoned her, it’s because they saw her for who she truly is. I had nothing to do with it. I promise you that.”
“You already promised me that you hadn’t talked to her. I don’t know anymore . . .” My voice trailed off.
He got up and clasped his hands into mine. “I didn’t tell you because there wasn’t anything to tell. I ran into her at school and we talked. I told her to back off. I certainly didn’t waste time on her after that. That’s all there is. Nothing more. I would never jeopardize us for her.”
I looked into his brown eyes but I couldn’t read them. “I want to believe you.”
He grimaced. “Emma, you can. I’m done with Bianca Smythe.”
I had to believe him. I had no other choice.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Zach
I got home from school to an empty apartment. I had a lot on my mind. Since our return from New York I’d been thinking about too many things. My conversation with Emma had been occupying all my thoughts and not in a good way. Like dark clouds rolling in, I felt a storm coming.
Fucking Bianca.
I grabbed a beer to take the edge off then hit my books, or what I could get myself to study. Genie interrupted me an hour later. She threw off her shoes and headed to her room.
“Emma home yet?”
“She’ll be home any second.”
“Good. I’m starved.”
“You know she doesn’t just whip up food in seconds.”
“Whatever,” she called from her bedroom.
I got up and wandered to her room. I stood in the doorway, watching her rummage through her purse. She looked up at me and my face must have said it all.
“Do we need to talk about something?”
I nodded. “In private.”
“Well, then come in.”
I looked over my shoulder then slipped into her room. It’s not like Emma was home yet. I shut the door and sat on the foot of the bed, the only spot not covered in clothes.
“I need advice,” I said.
>
“That’s why you come to me. What did you screw up now?” she asked as she hung up some of the clothes.
A lump formed in my throat. I couldn’t expect Genie to understand but she was the only person in the world I could trust with honest advice. “What I’m about to tell you is between me and you. No spilling your guts to anyone. I mean it, Genie. No slipping up.”
“Sounds ominous,” she said.
I tugged at a stray thread on my jeans. “I think I might have gotten myself in some trouble with Emma,” I said, keeping my voice low. I’d heard the front door open. Emma was home and we’d have to talk quick.
“Now what did you do?”
I sucked back a deep breath. “Emma ran into Bianca and the two of them had some kind of heart to heart. Bianca threw me under the bus, blaming me for all the shit that’s going on in her life.”
“Are you responsible for any of it?” Genie had a serious face on. All joking and sarcasm was put aside.
“Not directly. I did talk to Bianca and convinced her that it was in her best interest to leave Emma alone. For good. But in no way did I tell people to stop talking to her, and I certainly didn’t get her thrown out of her sorority.”
“Where’s the but?”
“Emma thinks I did and she’s pissed that I even went to see Bianca in the first place. I came clean with her, but she doesn’t trust me. She’s been cool to me all week.”
“If you did nothing wrong, why are you worrying about it?”
I slowly exhaled. “If she keeps digging, she’ll want to know more about the video. What if she wants to see it?”
“What’s on it?”
“You don’t want to know.”
“That bad?”
“Totally and completely.”
“Destroy it.”
I shook my head. “I destroy it, then I have nothing on that bitch.”
“Then tell Emma what’s on it.”
I started wringing my hands together. “Genie, I took the video.”
Her brown eyes grew wide. “Are you in the video?”
“Sort of.”
Her momentary relief was replaced by dread. “Tell me nothing illegal is going on.”
“Lots of drinking is going on along with some drug activity, but that’s off camera. The thing is, Bianca has a starring role. No underage shit, though.”
“Are you crazy?” Genie whisper-screamed. “Destroy it! What if it gets into the wrong hands? It can ruin you as much as it ruins Bianca.”
“I’m doing nothing illegal in it.”
“But you’re still in the damn video. I presume you’re doing something you shouldn’t be doing. Who else has a copy?”
“I’m the only one. I’ve never shared it with anyone.”
“Where is it now?”
“In a safety deposit box.”
“Go Monday morning, pick it up and destroy it.”
“It leaves Emma vulnerable.”
She was vibrating with anger. “No, the only person who’s vulnerable right now is sitting in front of me.”
“What if I get rid of it? Won’t Emma think I’m hiding something? And if I show it to her, she’ll know what a piece of shit I used to be.”
“Who cares who you were before? What matters is who you are now. If I were you, I’d suck it up and show it to her. Then make it disappear. Then you have a clean slate.”
Emma knocked on the door. “Dinner is ready. Is Zach in there with you?”
“Not a word,” I whispered. I stood and left. Emma was standing there, her green eyes showing their confusion. I gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“What were you guys doing?” she asked.
“She was telling me something about my parents’ fundraiser,” I said, ushering her away. My story satisfied her and she headed for the kitchen.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Emma
Saturday morning, I left Zach sleeping and made some coffee. I sat at our dining room table and looked through my emails. A few from Dad, mostly cute animal videos and other silly photos. Then another from Meredith.
To: Paul Andrews
From: Meredith Irvine
Date: November 5th, 2015
Hi Paul,
I haven’t heard from Emma. I don’t blame her. I’m not sure I would speak to me either if the roles were reversed. Please keep me updated on all that she’s doing. I’m so proud of her for going off to college and I know you are too. If she does mention me, please let her know that the lines of communication are always open and that she’s never far from my thoughts.
Meredith
I was mad that Dad sent me this. I knew what he was up to. I checked the time. Eight in the morning was not too early to call home. Dad answered on the third ring, sounding a bit sleepy.
“Why did you send me that email?”
“Which one? The one with the cat reading the newspaper? That’s hilarious.”
“No, the one from my so-called mother trying to guilt-trip me. The person who hasn’t bothered to call in years. Who sends birthday and Christmas cards only.”
“Oh, right,” he said and yawned. “I thought you might want to be updated.”
“If I wanted to be updated, I’d call her.”
“Kiddo, she’s trying really hard to connect with you. I know she hasn’t been the perfect parent, but I think she’s regretting not having a relationship with you. I know you’re bitter, but you have to look at it from her perspective. She was fifteen when she had you, and if I can be honest, her parents aren’t the greatest people. They were the ones who influenced her heavily, and I fully blame them for Meredith not being in your life.”
Right, my other grandparents. They barely looked at me when Dad forced me to go to Meredith’s wedding all those years ago. I bet they didn’t even want me there. “Meredith had many opportunities to come around. She did turn eighteen. She could have called you.”
“Emma, if you knew her parents, you’d see the situation differently. I know you don’t want to hear this, but Meredith isn’t evil. She had domineering parents who I’m sure to this day make her life very difficult. I bet they don’t even know she’s reaching out to you. Look, you don’t have to write back, but I thought you should know she emailed me.”
I sighed. “You want me to contact her.”
“I want you to do what’s best for you.”
Zach came out of our bedroom and poured coffee. I mouthed to him that I was talking to Dad.
“I think her timing is suspicious.”
Dad said nothing for a long time. “Emma, your mom and I have been talking for years. I’ve been sending her periodic updates about your life, and I’ve been doing that for a while. I can’t tell you how many times she wanted to contact you, but she was too scared. I’m the one who suggested that now might be the right time. I probably should have pushed for her to do it when your grandma died, but a lot was going on then. I didn’t think that upheaval would be beneficial.”
The words hit me like a semi-trailer. “You’ve been talking to her all along?” A million thoughts ran through my head. I wanted to be mad, but I felt betrayed at the same time. “What have you been telling her?”
Dad took in a deep breath and exhaled. “I know you’re going to be mad, but I’ve told her everything.”
Blood pumped through my veins. I’d never been so mad at Dad before, not even the time he’d forgotten to pick me up after my second grade teacher Mrs. Jackson’s wedding ceremony. While everyone filed away from the church, I sat on the cement steps waiting. Mrs. Lewis, who lived across the street, the mom of one of my classmates, took me home after seeing me wait for nearly a half hour. I didn’t have to get mad at Dad because Mrs. Lewis did a good job of tearing Dad a new one.
“She knows about Zach and what happened with Bianca?” I asked, my voice barely audible.
“I mentioned that to her recently.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Because she’s your mom and I thought she should
know.”
“And you don’t think her interest in me has anything to do with Zach?”
“Emma, I’m trying really hard to reason with you. Meredith’s interest in you has been since day one. I remember the day she said goodbye to you and her parents made her leave Pine Falls. She was a mess. She could barely keep it together. Maybe if we’d been older, we could have gotten married, raised you together, but her parents had full control over her life. For your first twelve years, she stayed away because I don’t think she could bare not having you in her life. Is that a good excuse? Of course not. She invited us to her wedding because she wanted to see what a wonderful young lady you were becoming. She wanted to reach out.”
“Then why didn’t she?” I asked, my eyes welling up with tears. I hated Meredith more than ever.
“I suppose her damn parents are to blame,” Dad said bitterly. “Emma, I’ve known your mom since kindergarten. I had a crush the moment I set eyes on her. She was sweet and kind, just like her daughter. Consider giving her a chance. I know it’s easier to look at her as the bad guy, but she never wanted to let you go. I know that for a fact.”
I didn’t want to talk about it anymore. “Okay, I’ll think about it.”
Dad and I talked a few minutes more, about nothing really, while Zach made some scrambled eggs and bacon. He had it all done as I was ending my call with Dad.
“I was eavesdropping,” Zach said, dousing his eggs in ketchup.
“I already know what you’re going to say.”
“Then give her a chance. You don’t have to see her again after that.”
The two most important people in my life were wearing down my defenses. Meeting with Meredith? I wasn’t ready yet.
MARC’S OFFICE LOOKED like a tornado swept through after an earthquake. Papers everywhere, broken rackets littering one corner and a bucket of old tennis balls for no apparent reason. I took my seat next to Ben who had his legs crossed at the ankles and his phone out, doing something with it.
“Is Marc here?”
“He stepped out for a sec. Said he’d be right back.”