8. Something’s Fishy
Natalie already has a variety of plates and a jug of mimosas spread on the table by the time I make it to our weekly brunch. She pushes her sunglasses to the top of her head, giving me a pointed stare.
I settle into the chair across from her and immediately pour a drink, taking a large gulp.
“Thirsty?” my best friend drawls, leaning back as she nibbles on some bacon. Her squinted eyes roam over my body, trying to access what’s going on.
Licking the sweet orange juice off my lips, I set the glass down and load up my plate and then smile at her. “Jared stopped by my office yesterday.”
“That fucking twatface,” she snarls.
Someone at a nearby table gasps, and I pop a few grapes in my mouth to stop from laughing. Natalie waves at them, wiggling her fingers with a condescending smile.
When her attention moves back to me, the amusement lessens. I swallow before shrugging. “I’m sure you can guess how it went.”
A snort rings out, and she shakes her head, mimicking Jared in a horrendous deep voice. “Please, Jenica. I only got my dick wet when you weren’t home. Why can’t you be grateful for that?”
Scrunching my nose, I spread some cream cheese on a bagel before taking a large bite. I stare at her while I chew, and her shoulders fall when she sees the sadness in my eyes.
“What did he say, Jen?” she asks.
“Told him I slept with someone else. He trashed my office and called me a whore,” I tell her, my stomach turning. I’m still hungry, but I lose some of my appetite at the memory of the scene.
Natalie cracks her knuckles, moving to refill her drink. “Did he touch you?”
I shake my head. “Security showed up, but honestly, I was scared he might have.”
She nods. “Did you show him the video?”
“Nope. I was concerned about what he might have done to Keegan if I had.”
Natalie laughs softly. “Keegan could have handled himself. I don’t think you realize your ex-fiancé is not well liked, even by his so-called friends.”
A chair pulling out to my side startles me, and I jump away with my hand clutching at my chest. My brother drops into it with a smirk. “Ladies, thanks for the invite.”
“You weren’t invited,” Natalie says with a curled lip.
Nick steals a strawberry off my plate. “I know. You didn’t hear the fuck you between the lines?”
I roll my eyes, leaning forward and kissing his cheek. “What are you doing? How’d you find us?”
He nods toward my best friend. “She posted. I knew she wouldn’t eat alone.”
“I can eat alone,” Natalie spits out, crossing her arms.
I tilt my head. “Babe, I don’t think you’ve ever eaten out by yourself once. It’s not a bad thing. I wouldn’t want to do it. Let’s talk about how Nick just assumed it was me.”
He laughs. “As if the two of you have other friends you can tolerate long enough.”
Natalie and I exchange an amused glance, but we don’t acknowledge it out loud.
“Plus, I was in the neighborhood and figured I would warn you to dodge Mother’s calls for a few days,” my brother says, looking at me with concern.
I sigh. “I’m already not taking her calls. Let me guess. It’s about a certain son-in-law visiting my office.”
He nods, his eyebrows flickering. “What happened?”
I fill him in, getting irritated the longer I talk about it, and down another mimosa. Nick looks pissed when he hears how trashed my office was. I shrug because I already cleaned it up yesterday.
“We should list his phone number on Craigslist, saying he’s looking for a third. Post that one photo from Halloween,” Natalie says.
“People still use Craigslist?” I ask at the same time Nick asks, “What photo?”
Her eyes widen and she cackles. “Have you never seen thee photo, Nicky boy?”
“No,” I say, glaring at her before turning to my brother. “I’m sorry but you have a big mouth.”
Instead of being offended, he nods. “I do. My men love it.”
I scrunch my nose. “Please don’t.”
He smirks. “What photo?”
Pulling out my phone, I look through my notes app till I find the one I buried; the photo that Jared forced me to delete. I push it over to Nick. “One year, we all got hammered. Somehow we convinced him into a sexy bee costume, tights and heels too.”
Displayed on my screen is Jared spread eagle on a bed, his pale ass and balls on display through the thin tights.
Nick grimaces. “Well, there goes breakfast.”
“Oh, you wouldn’t fuck that?” I tease.
He gives me a pointed stare. “Not if we were the last people on earth and immaculate conception was guaranteed.”
Natalie snickers and grabs my phone. “I’m just saying I think it would go viral.”
My brother sighs. “And incriminate Jen. She’s the only one he knows has possession of the photo. Might as well hang a giant flashing arrow at yourself as you distribute half-nudes on the internet without someone’s permission.”
She tosses my phone as she flips him off. “Whatever.”
I glance around and lean toward her. “I was thinking about going back to the house and grabbing some of the stuff I left behind before my sister throws it out. I saw something on the internet about putting food coloring in his shampoo.”
Her eyes gleam with excitement. “Yes, green or blue is probably the worst. His blondish hair won’t stand a chance.”
“Did you ever install the cameras I suggested?” Nick asks abruptly, and I shake my head.
He grins. “Then we’ll stop by the store and grab some fish to stuff in the vents.”
My mouth drops open, and Natalie barks out a laugh.
“I feel like that’s more diabolical than a bee costume on the internet. Your morals are fucked up,” she teases.
It certainly is in a league of its own, but either way, my heart warms at two of the most important people in my life not blinking twice at doing petty things to get back at my ex.
“We could take all the cords off the chargers,” I giggle.
Natalie snaps her fingers. “Yes, and take all his forks!”
The thing they don’t tell you about getting revenge is it’s incredibly satisfying while in the moment, but after you’re left with a ‘what’s next’ void that is almost crippling. Nick dropped us back off at the restaurant, then Natalie and I went our separate ways for the rest of the day. It wasn’t anything new, but I wasn’t used to coming home to an empty house.
I stand in the foyer of the small bungalow that I was lucky enough to grab for rent and the silence is deafening. I’ve never experienced such loneliness. It’s different than being home alone, but knowing your partner will be there in a few hours. No one is coming, no one will eat any leftovers if I make extra food, there’s no one to hear the recap of my day as we get ready for bed.
Swiping my fingers under my eyes to catch a single tear, I sigh and head to my bedroom. I don’t have the energy to sit on my couch and tell myself over and over why I’m better off. I have to get out of this house and out of my mental funk. Plus, it’s time to actually start to live in my new place, and stop treating it like a hotel. I need to grab a few things from the grocery store since take-out is getting old fast.
When I turn away from my neighborhood to head to the main plaza, a large gathering at the corner of the park catches my eye. The parking lot is nearly full when I pull in and watch the crowds of people walking around with bags and food. I’m not familiar with a lot of the events that happen in this town because Jared was never interested in going to them. He preferred to attend private events in the homes of people with a certain social status.
I’m not sure what compels me to get out and explore, but I’m past questioning it. There’s time to waste, and this seems to be a perfect opportunity to get lost. When I notice a familiar face in the crowd, I stop short and nearly knock over the person walking behind me. I debate making a run for it just as Jared’s little brother notices me.
“Hey,” Oliver smiles, waving me over. He’s directing people to walk down a pathway lined with pop-up tents.
The rows of tables are littered with random objects, each tagged with prices and my eyebrows knit in confusion. “What is all this?”
He laughs, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looks over the small crowd. “It’s our annual fair. The boys come up with things to sell for the season, mostly handmade. It’s usually more successful than selling chocolates.”
I glance back, realizing sitting behind each table is a range of boys from the high school that Oliver coaches baseball at. A smile lifts my lips as I walk over to the closest one and pick a knitted square. It isn’t a perfect square and some stitches aren’t tight, but it’s obvious what it is.
“You made this?” I ask.
The boy”s cheeks flush, and he nods. “My grammie helps me set up the needles and pattern, but she makes me do the work. They’re coasters.” An older adult sits further behind him, a proud smile stretched on her face.
Oliver stands next to me, looking over the selection. “You’re getting really good, Jacob. Next thing you know people will be asking for custom orders.”
Jacob scratches at the back of his neck. “I don’t know.”
I grab four coasters, all varying shades of green. “I just moved, and this is exactly what I need for my new home. I would love these,” I say, holding them out for him to bag.
He beams and wraps them for me, then I hand over the cash for the items. Turning back to Oliver, I realize he’s been watching with a goofy expression on his face.
“What?”
Oliver shrugs. “I figured you and Jared never came before because it was a little too mundane for your tastes.”
My smile falters. “I honestly didn’t know you hosted this, Oliver. I think it”s an incredible and inventive way for the kids to raise money.”
He nods, his body slumping with sorrow. “I heard what happened. I wanted to reach out, but I wasn’t sure.”
I face away, strolling through the variety of tables, and he walks with me. “I wouldn’t have minded. I know you’re not your brother. Plus, I’ve known you since you were a lanky and awkward fourteen-year-old boy.”
A laugh booms out, and Oliver pushes at my shoulder. “That was one summer, and I grew up pretty fast.”
“Yeah, you did. And the girls were flocking to you. How’s Brittany?” I ask, smiling.
His face drops, and he looks away. “Fine.”
“Just fine?”
Oliver shakes his head. “Girls weren’t flocking to me in high school.”
The abrupt subject change back gives me pause, but it’s not my place to pry.
I roll my eyes. “Please. You and your brother had nearly every girl at our school desperate for your attention. I couldn’t believe he had chosen me.”
He stops walking, glancing at me in disbelief. “Jen, you were the prom queen. Believe me, Jared was lucky that you chose him. Because there were plenty of other guys vying for a chance with you.”
My cheeks flush and I scrunch my nose, walking ahead of him to focus back on the fair. I don’t want to continue down what could have been a decade ago.
It is hard to refrain from buying an item from every table on principle, but I thought about the boxes already thrown about in my trunk that I still needed to sort through. Oliver kept me company, telling me about each of the boys we passed and how he thought this year they had a good chance of going to championships. It was the longest conversation I had with Jared’s little brother in years. Usually, he and his wife kept to one corner while Jared and I were in the other.
I never realized how differently Oliver lives in comparison to his brother. Jared wanted to have a life of comfort and luxury, even if at times I felt uncomfortable spending that kind of money. My parents are well off, but always expressed that it is their money, not family money. That I have to earn my way in life, but my father will help provide whatever I need to succeed.
“Do your parents not come to your games or anything?” I ask, interrupting his tale about some grass issue on the field.
Oliver’s face tightens. “Not really. You know how they are, how Jared is. When I injured my shoulder my senior year, I think they expected me to go to college and get a degree to help with my father’s business. But my old coach offered me an assistant position and in my heart, I knew this is what I wanted to do.” He lets out a laugh, lacking amusement. “It’s beneath them, you know? Being a high school coach, but I love it. I love teaching them and shaping them for their future.”
My nose wrinkles and something in my chest twists, almost a stab of jealousy. There’s a part of me that wishes I had told my mother to fuck off when I was in college. I love my job, but it’s mostly the people I work with rather than the job itself. My job put us in an excellent networking position for Jared to profit from the events he attended with me.
“Would you care if I attended a game?” I ask, looking up at him. “I kind of separated myself from that circle, and it’s been a little disheartening to realize I never really fit in.”
Oliver grins. “Of course not. Anyone is welcome,” he says, then a flush creeps up his neck. “But I do have a favor to ask.”
I tighten my lips, nerves pulling from the inside. “Okay.”
He glances back at the tables we passed and then at me. “Your company has some of the biggest athletes at the moment. Any way you can get them to sign some rookie cards we can auction off?”
Blinking at the relief that courses through me, I clutch the bags of goodies closer to my chest and nod. “That’s easy. I’ll text you when I get them, okay?”
I don’t know why I had expected him to say something else, something related to his brother. I’m glad it wasn’t because I’ve known Oliver as long as I’ve known Jared. We all grew apart after high school, but it’s still a long time to know someone.
“Thanks, Jen. I really appreciate it. I hope to see you around more often,” he says, leaning over and hugging me before he jogs back to the tables.
My mood feels lighter, and I decide to skip the grocery store for another day, no longer running from the place I want to call home.