3. Amara
Chapter three
Amara
“ Y ou see? Even Mark Darcy broke Bridget’s heart,” I mutter dramatically, wiping my nose on the sleeve of my sweater. Pumpkin stretches lazily on my lap, her eyes fluttering shut. She doesn’t care about my emotional breakdown. Of course she doesn’t. She’s a cat. Her priorities begin and end with food, naps, and plotting my demise when I forget to give her a treat.
“There’s no hope for me if they can’t make it work,” I sniff, sinking further into my couch of despair. Pumpkin purrs in reply, or maybe she’s just mocking me. It’s hard to tell.
But then a knock at the door jolts me out of my pity spiral, and my heart leaps into my throat. I glance at the thin, useless curtains covering the window. The faint glow of the streetlights filters through, confirming that, yep, it’s late. And dark. And definitely not the time for unannounced visitors.
My first thought? Serial killer . My second? Do I have time to grab a weapon ?
I don’t have time to do anything but stay frozen in place, staring at the door in panic.
When the knocking doesn’t stop, I groan and drag myself off the squeaky couch-bed hybrid. The cold floorboards send a shiver up my spine, but I shuffle toward the door, wondering if I’m about to be murdered with pizza crumbs on my clothes.
I reach for the door handle, mentally cursing the builder who decided a peephole wasn’t needed. Seriously, who designed this?
But when I finally twist the handle and crack the door open, it’s not a random stranger or a serial killer. It’s Jade and Sophie. Standing in my hallway.
Sophie crosses her arms over her chest, scanning the interior of my apartment, and the hallway, like someone would a crime scene—with mild horror.
Jade, on the other hand, breezes past me, scrunching her nose and arching an eyebrow. “You don’t even have space to breathe in here.” Her arms fling out wide, only to crash into my fridge and the wall.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand. I just wanted to watch a cheesy movie, drown in ice cream, and cry into Pumpkin’s fuzzy paws until I passed out.
Sophie kicks the door shut with her foot and Jade spins around, her brows raising as she assesses my pink, strawberry print pajamas, a smirk curling up her lips. “Nice pajamas,” she teases.
I cross my arms over my chest, giving her a look. “They’re comfortable,” I shoot back, shaking my head when the realization of them both being in my apartment—which I didn’t tell anyone about—hits me.
“How did you guys find me?” I ask them, glancing between them. Jade’s heels click on the floors as she walks over to the coffee table, picking up the empty carton of Ice cream toppled on its side.
Sophie—whose eyes are still darting around the small, cramped space, from the mismatched furniture to the dishes piled up in the sink, to the laundry half-folded on the tiny pull-out couch—folds her arms, standing by the door like she’s afraid to get too close. “We went to your place, looking for you. Liam told us you moved out?” Her head tilts slightly. “He tracked your phone and told us where you were.”
I blink, my pulse quickening. I don’t know how I feel about my ex still having access to my location.
“I told you guys we broke up,” I say with a shrug.
Jade places her hand on her hip, glaring at me. “Yes, but you never told us you were the one who moved out.” Her voice drops a notch. “And to this place, no less,” she adds, shaking her head. “You could’ve come to us, Amara. I would’ve let you crash at my place without a second thought.”
I get it. I know they’re frustrated, and honestly, I’m frustrated too. I should’ve told them. But…
I cross my arms tighter around myself. “I didn’t want to tell anyone,” I admit, glancing down at the worn rug beneath my feet. “I just… I felt embarrassed. And I couldn’t stay there another second,” I confess. “Not when—” I pause, swallowing hard as the memory rushes back. “Not when he slept with someone else on our bed while I was at work.”
The silence that follows is thick. I can feel Jade’s anger building as she inhales sharply. Her eyes widen in disbelief. “He did what ?” she asks, her voice cracking with fury. Her fists clench at her sides. “I’m going back there right now and kicking his ass.”
“Jade, stop,” I say, stepping in front of her before she can do something crazy. We both know there’s no stopping her once she’s set on something.
Jade’s eyes narrow as she glares at me. “I’m not letting him get away with this. We need to do something about it.”
Sophie clears her throat, unwrapping her arms and placing a hand on Jade’s shoulder. “I don’t think getting arrested for assault is going to help Amara.”
“I look good in orange,” Jade adds with a grin, flicking her straight brown hair behind her shoulder. “Now, are you going to help me, or am I going to have to take him down myself?”
I sigh, rubbing my temples. “Jade, you need to calm down. He’s not worth it.” Jade’s fierce. She’d die for her friends, no questions asked. But Sophie and I both know we have to keep her in check because, let’s be real, she’d also kill for us without a second thought.
“Amara’s right,” Sophie adds. “That asshole doesn’t deserve a single tear or a single drop of sweat, from you or anyone else.”
“He cheated on you.” Jade frowns. “I might be allergic to the idea of relationships, but cheating? That’s a hard no in my book.”
Sophie chuckles, tilting her head at Jade. “Who would’ve known?”
Jade smirks, clearly relaxing a bit more with each passing second. “I’m a woman of many talents,” she says with a shrug.
“Back to your cheating ex,” Sophie interjects. “Why the hell did he get to stay in the apartment anyway? Why were you the one who left?”
I press my lips together, the question hitting me like a punch in the gut. Because I couldn’t stand to look at our room anymore. I couldn’t bear to think about all the times we’d been together, wondering if she had been in our bed those days. I couldn’t stay there, not with him, not with the memories haunting me. So, I packed up, grabbed Pumpkin, and left.
I press my palms to my face, fighting back the emotions. “I really don’t want to talk about this,” I murmur, sinking onto the pull-out couch, which creaks under my weight.
“Good.” Jade plops down beside me. “Because we’re not talking.” I lift my head, giving her a confused frown. “We’re getting drunk.”
I blink. “Excuse me?”
She tilts her head. “Staying in isn’t doing you any favors, babe. You need to get your ass in a sexy dress, the shorter, the better, and come out with Sophie and me and get shit-faced drunk.”
Sophie lets out a breath, running a hand through her blonde hair. “We all have work tomorrow, Jade. Maybe getting drunk isn’t the best idea, considering it’s a Monday.”
Jade shoots Sophie a glare, tilting her head in challenge. It makes me laugh, because no one can say no to Jade. Not even Sophie, apparently, as she lets out a sigh. “Okay, maybe a few drinks won’t hurt.”
Jade grins and lets out a whoop. “See? Even Virgin Sophie is on board. Come on, Amara. Say yes.”
“Excuse me.” Sophie frowns. “Do I need to remind you I’m in a relationship? I get constant sex.”
Jade scoffs, raising an eyebrow. “I’m sure,” she drawls. “Missionary position and all.”
“I like that position,” Sophie replies, her voice quiet, brows knitted together.
Jade tilts her head, pressing her lips into a smirk. “Sure you do, hun,” she says, before turning back to me with a glint in her eye. “So, what do you say?”
I laugh, shaking my head. “You guys are ridiculous.”
Jade’s grin widens as she nudges my shoulder with hers. “You love us anyway.”
And I do. I thought keeping everything to myself was the best option, but I should’ve known that telling them would make me feel better. Just having them here, bickering and joking, is already helping me forget what happened with Liam… almost .
“It’s your choice, Amara,” Jade adds, her smile settling. “If you want to sit in this dusty, crusty, musty apartment and cry at cheesy rom-coms,” she gestures toward the TV, where Bridget Jones is still playing in the background, “just say the word and I’ll run—well, not run, because… ew , I don’t run—I will strut downstairs, head to the nearest grocery store and pick up every single flavor of ice cream I can find.”
God, that sounds depressing. All I’d need is All by Myself playing in the background, and I’d be starring in my own rom-com. Except it wouldn’t actually be funny. Or romantic.
I chew on my bottom lip, glancing between the girls, who are both waiting for my answer. I love them for being the kind of friends who would sit with me while I cried into a pint of ice cream without hesitation. But that’s not what I want.
“Okay,” I say, taking a deep breath. “I’ll go.”
“Fuck yes!” Jade claps, jumping up with a grin. “That’s my girl.”
Sophie pulls out her phone, shifting as she starts typing. “How long are we staying out?” she asks. “I need to let Sebastian know when we’ll be home.”
Jade rolls her eyes dramatically. “You want to invite him and handcuff him to your wrist all night too?” She shakes her head, laughing. “Just tell him you’ll be home late. Don’t worry, I’ll bring you back unharmed and untouched,” she teases.
Her eyes meet mine, glinting with mischief. “Now, let’s find the hottest, skankiest dress you own.” I don’t even have a chance to protest as she pulls me toward the pile of crumpled clothes in the corner.
I groan, letting out a long exhale. What the hell did I just agree to?