Chapter Three
Hannah
As lunchtime arrives, my stomach practically devours itself.
“Thank god,” I moan aloud as I change my status to “lunch” and lock my computer. Hirim is waiting for me in the elevator lobby.
I spot him among the crowd of people and we get in line for the elevators. Since Ruby works on the floor above now, we have to meet her on the ground floor. The dynamics have shifted since she became a Team Leader, but I try not to think about it too much.
“Hey Jere, where are you heading for lunch?” I roll my eyes at someone calling behind us. Even though he’s just the I.T. guy, people in this place treat him like a celebrity.
I don’t have anything against him—he’s a really nice guy—but it irritates me how everyone fawns over him. His constant friendliness doesn’t make things any easier. People who effortlessly exude natural charisma are hard for me to tolerate. Luckily, I don’t have to hear his response because the next elevator arrives and Hirim and I enter.
We meet up with Ruby in the lobby before heading to our beloved diner just around the corner from the office. Since it’s Ruby’s turn to choose, we let her pick even though we all know she craves a burger and shake—her favorite combo.
Hirim asks Ruby about her team’s reaction to the good news this morning once we’re settled at a booth and have placed our orders. Nobody in the office knew about her engagement until she arrived today, so it was great to see their reactions.
“It was great to see how nice they all were about it,” she says, blushing and staring down at her ring as if she can’t believe it’s there.
I can’t help but be captivated by her new engagement ring too. Set in white gold, the solitaire diamond is absolutely stunning. Aiden made the perfect choice, knowing Ruby’s taste and personality.
I try to push away feelings of resentment. Of course, I’m happy for Ruby—she’s my best friend and I love her. But it’s hard not to feel jealous seeing her happily engaged while I’m still single at twenty-seven, repeating the same mistakes with guys.
I zone out of the conversation as Ruby starts retelling the story of Aiden’s proposal. I already heard all of this when she called me on Saturday morning to tell me about it. But it was a pretty cute way to propose—he took her to Bernando’s, the bar where they first hooked up.
My phone loudly vibrates on the table, displaying a name for everyone to see. I feel a surge of horror as I quickly silence it.
Clae is calling.
Fuck.
“Umm,” Hirim says. “Why is that scumbag calling you?”
My heart pounds in my chest as my ex calls me for the second time, yet no one seems to notice over the vibration of my phone on the table.
I attempt to find a logical reason for his call, but can’t. I observe Hirim’s keen attention and make up my mind to confess the truth to my friends.
“Ugh, I really messed up, big time,” I tell them, biting my lower lip.
“No, seriously?” Hirim gasps, hands on his cheeks. “What on Earth did you do?”
Luckily, the waitress arrives with our food order, saving me from having to answer immediately. I stuff my mouth with onion rings as I ponder how much to reveal. Among our friendship trio, Hirim is the more judgmental one, whereas Ruby is consistently more reserved.
“As you know, I went out drinking with Sasha on Saturday night.” I grab another mouthful of food. “Clae and I crossed paths while we were out. It sort of happened by accident, one thing led to another, and I ended up sleeping with him.”
I can tell Hirim is disappointed as he rubs his face and lets out a sigh. He takes a bite of his burger, holding back his anger towards my stupidity.
“I didn’t plan for it to happen. It just…did,” I say lamely.
“Is that the reason he’s calling you, I’m guessing?” Ruby, completely focused on me, gently asks while ignoring her food.
“Yeah, I would assume that,” I say with my mouth full, stuffing more food in. “I managed to leave his house without him noticing, got an Uber home, and haven’t had any contact with him since then.” Once I say it out loud, I can’t help but cringe at how terrible it sounds.
My phone starts vibrating loudly once more, and we all fix our gaze on the screen as Clae’s name illuminates the caller ID again .
Fuck, why does he keep calling me.
“Do you plan on returning his call or speaking to him at all?” With a kind tone, Ruby’s dark eyes shine with pity. She likely figured out why I slept with Clae—given that it happened right after I’d heard her good news, it would be clear as day to her.
“No, I don’t want to speak to him. Or see him again.” I find myself picking at my food, my appetite vanishes.
“And yet, you slept with him?” scoffs Hirim.
“Clearly, I make mistakes when I drink,” I say, with a hint of anger. I struggle to keep my temper in check, feeling my chest tighten and my cheeks turn red at his accusation.
“You know it’s not that simple for her,” Ruby says, trying to calm Hirim.
“Yeah, I know,” he says, his tone softening. “I just hate him after what he did to you.”
“Same here,” I reply, inhaling deeply.
Clae’s new relationship obviously didn’t go well, considering he slept with me and is now calling me. I should feel excited that he finally wants me back, but that’s the magic of time. The radio silence for months changed my feelings and, even though we slept together again, I can’t see myself in a relationship with Clae. His trustworthiness is questionable, at best.
I recognize the need to prioritize self-improvement before entering into a new relationship. My self-worth has been completely demolished by Clae, his betrayal triggering all my previous insecurities and fears. I realize I can’t be with someone new while feeling so broken.
“You’ve got to stop chasing after losers who treat you like crap,” says Hirim. “You’ve got to find a nice guy who will treat you like the queen you are.”
“Nice guys are boring,” I grumble, waving my hand dismissively, though I secretly agree with him.