Chapter 39
KYLIE
Islammed into my apartment, ran straight past Lily and her guest into my room.
Her shocked expression turned to compassion as she remembered the significance of tonight.
She stood to follow me into my room, and I shook my head, needing to be alone.
I didn’t want to talk to Lily about this yet; I could hear her warnings in my head, and she had been right.
The short walk back to my apartment hadn’t been enough time for me to process what had happened. The coldness and resolution in Luc’s expression were evident, as his warm brown eyes had turned dark. I hadn’t recognized him.
Me: Please tell me I misunderstood.
I watched my text screen for confirmation that it had been delivered or read. After ten minutes with no change in status, it could only mean he’d blocked me.
Curling into a ball on my bed, I sobbed.
What had happened between last night and this afternoon? My entire body ached, my eyes swelled, and my nose burned from crying.
Shit. I had to cancel dinner with my parents.
Me to Mom and Dad: Hey, not going to make it. Caught at work late.
Dad: Okay. Try again next week?
Me: Ok.
In less than three minutes, Kendra checked in on me.
Kendra: What happened?
Me: I don’t know.
Kendra: I can come right now…
Me: After dinner. I don’t want anyone to know something is wrong.
Kendra: Give me an hour. I’ll tell them it’s work.
An hour later, I sat on my bed with my knees pulled into my chest as Kendra and Lily waited patiently for me to explain. The words were barely understandable through the sobs that continued to burst out of me.
When I hyperventilated for the third time, Kendra wrapped me in her arms and reminded me to breathe. After what felt like an hour, my body was so exhausted from crying that I settled into irregular, hiccuping breaths as I tried to regulate my breathing.
Lily passed me a cup of hot tea. She’d found my reserve of lemon loaf flavor, my favorite comfort drink. I sipped it, waiting for it to work.
“Did he hurt you?” Kendra asked as her hands shook.
“No, not like that.”
Emotionally, I was in more pain than I’d ever imagined. But I didn’t think that was what Kendra was asking. If I were in a good place emotionally, I might explore why she had asked that question.
Lily had taken out her phone and scrolled through Instagram.
“Oh.”
“What?” Kendra asked, and Lily passed her the phone.
My eyes drifted back and forth between the two of them as they stared at their phones. Kendra sighed heavily before passing me her phone.
Skylar’s Instagram post was a pregnancy announcement. I scanned the posts. The main picture was of her and Grant, his arms wrapped around her, and their fingers pressed together in the shape of a heart with the caption “Coming Soon.”
Stunned, I read the post and looked through the photos. Would this have set him over the edge if Luc didn’t want kids? Was this why they split up?
“The fucker isn’t over his ex,” Lily said. Her anger turned her tone icy. “He never should have gotten involved with you if he was still pining for his ex-wife.”
“Oh, come on, Lily. Don’t tell me you’ve never had a rebound relationship.” Kendra said.
“No. I had a rebound one-night stand. But you don’t get someone else’s emotions involved if you’re not emotionally available.”
I rolled back onto my side and stared at the wall as my sister and best friend argued about Luc. Something deep inside me wasn’t angry, but worried that he was hurt. The suddenness of the ending made it very difficult for me to explain to my heart that Luc was no longer a safe place for me.
I couldn’t hate him as immediately or powerfully as my sister and my best friend. My heart was a little slow to catch up with what my head knew was true.
Handing Lily my phone, I pointed to my last text to him.
“Do you think he blocked me?”
Lily’s face fell, and she looked at Kendra for support.
She nodded. “Yeah. I’m sorry, Ky.”
“I was finally going to introduce him to my parents—”
The words were not even out of my mouth before a fresh wave of sobs wracked my body. They stayed with me long after I had cried myself to sleep.