Wedding Crasher

“If I ever see you anywhere near my girl again...”

Jaime had walked into the bathroom and swung Joshua, by the shoulders, against the wall. He stood inches away from his face. His arm forcefully pressed against Joshua's neck as he spoke through his teeth. “I swear to fucking God I will murder you.”

I covered my mouth as I watched. I knew Jaime could give anyone a good scare, but I'd never seen him filled with such rage. Joshua's body began slouching down as Jaime let go of him to walk away.

“Are you okay?” He asked as he soothingly ran his hands up and down my arms.

I nodded my head. “I'm fine.”

“He didn't hurt you did he?” Jaime lifted my chin up with his finger and stared intently into my eyes.

“No, but I'm glad you knew to come” I gave Jaime a hug. I looked over his shoulder at Joshua, who was slowly starting to pick his drunken body up.

“Come on, we better go before someone comes in here” Jaime tried to lighten the mood by smiling.

By the time we'd made it to the bathroom door Joshua was practically standing up. Before walking out, Jaime pushed him hard enough to make him stumble and fall back down. “Fucking Francy.” Jamie whispered, “This dude's a joke.”

We rounded the corner of the restaurant and walked back into the private dinning hall. The waiters had already placed dinner on the table. Kadie stood up as she saw me approaching.

“Lynn, what's going on? Where were you? Where's Joshua?” She whispered.

“What'd you do to him you bitch? Where is he?” Francy shouted as she stood up from her seat. She'd overhead Kadie. Everyone stopped their conversations and looked up at her.

“Calm your tits, whore. You're still gonna get paid for the night.” Jaime held up his hand and made a disgusted face. There was a low gasp followed by quiet giggles from everyone at the table.

I turned back towards Kadie and whispered into her ear. “Don't worry, Jaime took care of it. I'll fill you in later.”

Kadie widened her eyes and I did the same to ensure her everything was okay. Francy grabbed her purse and proceeded to the door "Josh was right about you..." 

She tried to continue before Jaime cut her off, “Bye, Francy!” he called out. Which only made her angrier as she stormed out.

There was an awkward silence in the room before Jaime, Kadie, and I sat down. Slowly the air was filled back up with conversation and clinking of utensils.

After dinner was over, Woody invited everyone over to his place for a late night bonfire. It was something we'd always done when we were younger after any occasion. Football games, spring formals, winter galas, etc. The night would always end with all of us cuddled around a bonfire eating s'mores, in Woody's back yard.

One by one everyone slowly found out about the run in between Jaime and Joshua. By the time we made it to the bonfire, it was the topic of conversation. A few of the guys high fived Jaime while the girl's cheered him on.

“I'm so glad someone put that boy in his place!” Eric called out.

“You know he was just doing that because you came here with that hot piece of ass” Lori pointed to Jaime. He began to blush.

“Hey!” Tom, Lori's boyfriend, nudged her. “I thought I was the only hot piece of ass here?”

“You were...before we started dating!” Lori laughed and high fived the girls around her.

“Honestly though, Josh has changed. This is the first time we're all seeing him in a while. I don't even know why he was invited to the wedding.” Rebecca shot a look at Lacey and Mark.

Lacey sighed, “I'm sorry Lynn. I had to invite all the old neighborhood kids.” That's what we'd refer to ourselves as. We all grew up in the same area, and no matter how much distance grew between us, we'd always come back together. “Even if I didn't my parents would've still invited his family anyway.”

“It's fine, I understand. No hard feelings” I reached into a cooler and grabbed a few beers for everyone around us.

“So what's y'all's deal?” Lori made googly eyes towards Jaime.

We both looked at each other and laughed. “We're just friends” We locked our arms and leaned back against a wood pile.

“Just here for moral support.” Jaime smiled as he glaced over at me.

I looked around the bonfire and noticed that everyone there, except Jaime and I, were a couple. It was around this bonfire that we'd sit and dream about who our future partners would be. It almost made me sad to realize how fast we were all growing up.

“Jaime, you got yourself some big ol balls the way you talked to Francy tonight” Woody shouted across the fire as he tossed in more coal.

Travis walked around the make shift stone bench and sat down. “She's a class A bitch!”

Renee, Travis' girlfriend, sat next to him and wrapped a blanket around the both of them. “Oh Jesus, don't get me started on that girl!”

“Oh, please spill!” Jaime sat upright and put his bottle of beer down to give his full attention. Everyone began laughing at his antics.

“Not a single one of us gets along with her”, Renee looked around the bonfire to confirm what she'd just said. “She fights with just about anyone. And I'm talking, dirty, on the floor bashing people's face in type of fights. She's been arrested a few times. She's as trashy as it gets.”

Lori added, “What do you expect from a girl that works at a whore house?”

“What!” Jaime gasped with disbelief.

I giggled at his confusion. “We call restaurants where the girls dress super skanky, whore houses”

“I don't understand though. Why is Joshua with her?” Kadie chimed in.

“His mama found out about everything he'd done.” Everyone quieted down as Woody began to speak. “So her and his daddy signed the inheritance over to his brother. That land's got oil you know. If he chose to drill he could make a pretty penny. They said they want someone responsible taking over it.”

I felt a pit in my stomach.

Woody continued, “He got depressed, started drinking and hanging around the whore house. That's where he met Francy.”

“Fucking Francy” Jaime added.

Everyone laughed and repeated after him, “Fucking Francy!”

I sat quietly tucked away in a throw blanket, lost in my thoughts. Rebecca noticed my sudden withdrawal from the conversation and tried to comfort me. “It was a good thing you left Josh when you did, Lynn. You were just the tip of the iceberg, he was doing a lot more fucked up things. It was only a matter of time before he was gonna implode. This is all his doing, not yours.”

“Yeah! Don't let no one tell you other wise. Joshua's been steering off the railway since before you two even broke up. I don't know about y'all but I'm glad she left that son of a bitch!” Woody proclaimed.

“Yeah!” Everyone cheered and raised their bottles of beer.

It made me feel slightly better to see everyone cheering for me. I have to admit, I was a little afraid coming back home, not knowing if I would be the blame for everything that had happened. But, my friends stuck by my side and were able to realize the truth behind the situation. And nothing felt better than that.

The next afternoon, Jaime and I dressed up in our Sunday's best and headed over to the venue. It was a small farm, mainly set up to hold wedding events. As we pulled up we both stood in awe. There was an arch way spilling with fresh flowers and a tent made of string lights and chandlers. It was beautiful.

Jaime and I waited for Kadie and Adam before we went inside a tiny little barn, where the ceremony was being held, and took a seat. Most of our friends were in the wedding party. The ones who weren't were out of towners like Kadie and I. We mingled with everyone around us as we waited for the ceremony to begin.

Our section grew quiet as Joshua and Francy walked in. I turned over to see Jaime making a disgusted face. He smiled then grabbed my hand to make me feel better. I smiled back and knew that if I had him, everything would be okay.

Joshua and Francy sat in the empty row behind us. I looked over my shoulder as I turned towards Jaime. Francy had caught my glace. “Boo, you whore” She hissed.

My jaw dropped open in shock that she'd been so blunt. Jaime, who's always ready to attack, fired back. “Who the hell are you calling a whore, you two dollar sleaze!”

Just as Francy was about to retaliate an elderly couple began hushing them. The music began playing as Mark made his entrance. Jaime gave Francy a brutal stare down before he turned back towards the front.

I looked over at Adam and Kadie, who were both (like me), biting their lip to keep from laughing out loud.

Once Mark walked in, Lacey and her bridesmaids came in shortly after. The ceremony was a sweet, but lengthy one. We were all just glad to step back outside. We waved the couple off as they headed back into the farm house to get ready for the reception. The area had cleared except for a man walking in the distance. Everyone's attention was set on him and trying to figure who it was.

“Ooh, who is that hunk of man?” I heard Francy say out loud. I looked over and couldn't believe what I was seeing. I turned over to Jaime, who had a wide grin on his face, which only confirmed my suspicion.

“Connor?” I called out.

“She knows him?” I heard Joshua whisper in disbelief to Francy.

I ran over to Connor and wrapped my arms around him. I didn't know why he was here, but I was just so happy to see him.

“Lynn!” He picked me up in his arm and swung me around.

“What are you doing here?” we stood with our arms still wrapped around each other.

“I came by to see you the other day. I ran into Jaime instead and he told me you'd be here.” I looked over at Jaime to see him holding two thumbs up. “I wanted to show you that I'm serious. I'm not in it for the short run. I'll take it as slow as you want.”

I felt my grin grow from ear to ear. I grabbed Connor's face and pulled it down to kiss him.

Everyone in the background began cheering.

**Make sure you stop by on Friday to enjoy a weekend post! Just a small gesture to show how much I truly appreciate y'all! :) **

Hoedown

“I'm fine”

I shot a look at, who I was assuming was, Joshua's girlfriend. A sudden burst of confidence came over me when I realized I was freshly dolled up and looked nothing like the piece of trash she did. I glaced over at Joshua, who was still dumbfounded, and walked into the store.

Fuck! Why did I have to bump into him when I was alone? Where was Kadie when I needed her? I pulled out my phone and sent her a text.

911! Ran into Josh and his new skank friend at Rusty's!

Kadie almost immediately responded.

Shit! Are you still there? Is he still there? What happened?!

As I finished reading her text I looked up to see Joshua coming back into the store, alone.

I'm still here, he's coming back towards me! SEND FOR HELP!

I looked up again to see Joshua peeking through the aisles. We caught each others glances. His face light up as if he found what he was looking for. I quickly walked into an aisle trying to ignore him. As I turned the corner I looked down at the new message from Kadie.

If you die before I get there, can I have your Tory Burch boots?

I'll admit it made me laugh, but she didn't need to know that

KADIE!

Just as Joshua walked into the aisle I saw  Kadie's  last message

I'm coming! I'm coming!

“Lynn Lee!” He called out. I picked up a box of hair dye and pretended like I was interested in it. “Lynn Lee!” He kept calling out until he was close enough to have a conversation. “Are you ignoring me?”

Yes, you fucking idiot, I am. “Oh!” I jumped back acting as if I were startled. “I didn't see you there.”

He laughed as if he didn't believe me and then continued, “How have you been?”

“I'm fantastic” My eyes were still skimming through the directions on the dye box. Joshua stood there silently waiting for me to ask him the same. 5 Mississippi's later he broke the silence.

“You didn't tell me you were coming back.” He slipped his hands into his pocket as he spoke.

I turned towards Joshua and examined him. He looked weak and skinny compared to his normal fit physique. There was no longer muscle definition in his arms or chest. It almost made me sad to see. I looked up at his face and realized his usually tanned skin was now pale. I couldn't help but think if all of this was because of me.

“Joshua, I haven't talked to you since I left. Why would I tell you if I was planning on coming back?” I furrowed my brows and crossed my arms.

I could tell my attitude sparked a sudden rage in Joshua. He squinted his eyes at me to let me know he was holding it back. “I forgot, you don't know anything about decency.”

I gasped out loud at Joshua's words. “Decency? You want to talk about decency? You mean how you were using me to get what you wanted? That you were planning on divorcing me before you even proposed? Yeah, you're right Joshua, I'm the one who doesn't know about decency.”

“I guess the city did enhance some of your qualities.” Joshua smirked as he turned his body. He added, just before walking away, “You're an even bigger bitch than before.”

Oh, hail naw!

Something came over me. Something I'm not proud of, but in that moment felt right. I took the box of hair dye, that was in my hand, and chucked it at Joshua's head. Just as the box landed on the floor Kadie walked into the aisle. Joshua's hand cradled his new injury.

“Oh my God.” She sounded confused by what had just happened. My chest rose and fell with every angry breath. Kadie grabbed Joshua's arm, “You really need to get out of here unless you want a matching bruise” She pulled him through the aisle. He eventually shook free of her grip and stormed off.

Kadie picked up the box of hair dye from the floor and walked back towards me. “So, something tells me that didn't go well?” My eyes were still fixed on the spot where Joshua had been standing. I felt a burning sensation until Kadie came and put her hand on my shoulders. She gently shook me back to consciousness. “Lynn?” She moved her face into my field of vision. “What happened?”

I cleared my throat “Nothing.”

Kadie made a face before she continued “That didn't look like nothing to me”

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and relived the last few minutes of my life as I told Kadie what had happened. “You can't do things like that, Lynn. He's trying to egg you on. By retaliating, you're just letting him know you haven't moved on.”

I looked down at my phone. “I gotta go. Jaime's flight is about to land.” I grabbed what I needed and left. I thanked Kadie for being there and gave her a hug before we split off to our cars.

I kept batting my lashes the entire car ride to stop myself from welling up with tears. I felt stupid for falling into Joshua's trap of angering me. I was unprepared to handle the situation which only made me more upset to think about. I pulled up to the curb outside of the airport. A few minutes later Jaime walked outside. I jumped out the car to wave him down. As he came closer he slowed down his pace. “Oh, please don't tell me I missed something!”

“You missed an epic one” I rolled my eyes. “I threw a box of hair dye at his head.”

“Oh, God!” Jaime cringed. “Why do I always miss the good stuff?” I slightly curled my lip up into a smile. Jaime's dramatic personality always did the trick.

I filled him in on everything as we drove back to my house. Jaime didn't know where to put his attention. His eyes kept shooting between me and the scenery outside. He “ooh-ed” and “ahh-ed” all the way home.

My parents were pleasantly surprised to see Jaime. He'd met them a few times when both our parents were in New York for the doctor's convention. My dad whisked him away as if he were an old friend. I took his luggage upstairs to the guest bedroom. It was across the hall from mine. I walked out and shut the door behind me. I was startled to see my mom standing in the hall.

“Jaime, huh?” She stood with a smirk on her face and her arms crossed. “I knew it would work out between you two!”

“Ew, mom, no!” I walked past her into my room. She followed after me. “We're just friends.”

“Good friends?” her smile grew from ear to ear. She just wanted to hear that she'd been the one to “hook us up”.

“Great friends!” I smiled back. It quickly vanished as I continued, “But not in the way you're thinking.”

“Okay” She sang as she walked out of my room. “What ever you say”.

If only she knew.

I looked down at my nails realizing how dull they looked. I pulled out my box of nail polishes and rummaged through them for the perfect color. Once I picked out a navy blue, Jaime waltzed into my room.

“Anna gave me the weirdest look as I was coming up the stairs” Jaime whispered.

“Ignore my mom. She thinks we're together.” Jaime and I both laughed at the thought of it.

The rehearsal dinner was only a couple hours away. Jaime went into his room to clean up and get dressed. I finished putting on my nail polish and found some jewelry to throw on.

I called out for Jaime as it was getting closer to time. “I'm ready, I'm ready!” He walked out of his room. He was wearing gray slacks with a black Burberry button down shirt. His dark hair was made into a perfect mess. And his face was glowing after he'd shaved.

“Well, you cleaned up nicely” I stood in my door way as I examined him.

“Let's get this show on the road!” Jaime winked as he held out his arm for me to grab on to.

We picked Kadie and Adam up before we headed over to the dinner. It was a small restaurant just outside of town. We parked the car and made our way inside.

“Lynn? Kadie? Oh my God!!” I heard a shrieking call as we walked in. Lacey ran from across the room and gave us both a hug. Kadie and I both introduced Jaime and Adam to Mark and Lacey. They took us around to a private room filled with our old friends. As we walked in everyone stood up to hug us. We made our way around. I leaned over to Jaime's ear and pointed out Joshua. He was the only one sitting down, with his trailer trash girlfriend next to him. Jaime grabbed my hand and held it. I smiled back at him.

Of course, it was just my luck. The only four seats left were the ones across from Joshua. Kadie and Adam sat directly in front of him so I wouldn't have to. It worked out because it would gave Joshua the perfect view of Jaime and I every time he looked towards the front of the room. Jaime wrapped his arm around my shoulder and held me close.

“So, Kadie, is this your new boyfriend?” Joshua's voice sounded rehearsed.

“Oh, yeah, this is Adam. Adam, this is Joshua.” Kadie said awkwardly as she introduced the two.

“And what about him?” Joshua pointed to Jaime.

Jaime and I both turned towards Joshua and gave him a look. Kadie, not knowing what to say, kept quiet.

“Start giggling” Jaime whispered in my ear. I looked over at Joshua and giggled while Jaime kept his mouth close to my ear. I watched as his eyes grew angry. Just then Lacey and Mark stood up to get everyone's attention. Saved by the bell.

After a couple of speeches, everyone stood up to mingle before dinner was served. I introduced Jaime to a few of my friends. Joshua walked over with his girlfriend once Jaime and I were alone.

“What is it, Josh?” I avoided looking at him.

“I just wanted to introduce you to my girlfriend, Francy.” She held out her hand. Jaime was in mid-sip of his wine when he snorted it back. I patted his back as we both laughed.

“What's wrong with them?” Francy loudly whispered to Joshua.

“Is that really your fucking name?” Jaime snorted again.

She didn't seem to understand Jaime's humor, “Yes, why would I make it up? It's short for Francesca.” She held out her hand again.

“Oh, honey, It's a shame either way.” Jaime shook her hand and mumbled under his breath, “I better not catch anything” I couldn't help but smile. “I'm Jaime” He said.

“Joshua” He responded in monotone.

“Ohh, what happened there? Looks like someone was trying to set you in place” Jaime pointed at Joshua's head. There was a lump that was starting to bruise just under his hairline behind his ear.

Joshua snared at Jaime.

“Come on, babe” Jaime laughed again as he held my hand and walked away.

“What the hell was that?” I whispered to Jaime once we were alone again. “Did you see how he was acting like nothing happened earlier today?”

“He's just trying to throw his new girl in front of you” Jaime whispered back “You obviously won though” He said while smiling and fixing his collar.

“Dinner is about to be served. Can everyone please take a seat?” Lacey announced to the room.

We all went back to our chairs. I always keep a mini bottle of anti-bacterial with me. But I'd forgotten to bring it tonight. I decided to go to the restroom to wash my hands before dinner. When I went inside I was startled by the sound of the door opening and closing behind me since it was a single room. I turned around to see Joshua standing behind me.

“What are you doing here” I said as I backed away from him.

“Look, Lynn, I just wanted to apologize for what I said earlier. I'm sorry.” He hung his head as he spoke.

“Uh, okay. But what the hell are you doing here?”

He walked slowly towards me. The closer he got the more I could smell alcohol on his breath. I walked backwards until I was against the wall. He placed his hands on either side of the wall and held himself a few inches away from me. “I said I'm sorry.”

“Okay, Joshua, but I really need you to back the hell off of me.”

“Lynn Lee” He whispered as he brought his face to my ear. “Let's just forget about everything for tonight. You can come back with me.” His lips slowly traced down my neck.

I felt paralyzed. The smell and touch of Joshua made me fall into a state of nostalgia. I hadn't realized what was going on until Jaime barged into the bathroom.

I pushed Joshua off of me.

“What the fuck is going on here?” Jaime yelled as he grabbed Joshua.

Home Coming

“Is that everything?”

Adam asked as he loaded the last of our luggage into his car. It was Friday morning and Adam, Kadie, and I were on our way to Texas for Lacey and Mark's wedding. Jaime had a 12 hour over night shift that he'd have to complete before he could fly out. So, I'd be picking him up from the airport before the rehearsal dinner.

Kadie stood on the sidewalk outside her apartment going through a mental checklist. “I think so”

“Are you sure? I don't want to get to the airport and find out you forgot something.” Adam stood next to his open car door staring at Kadie.

I laughed and whispered, “Y'all are like a real married couple.” Kadie slapped my shoulder and giggled.

We sat in the car and headed towards the airport. It was still too early in the morning for me to function. The streets lights had just turned off as the sun peaked over the horizon. I stared out the window as we drove. It was the first time I'd be leaving the city since my arrival. It was my first time going home. I was emotionless, not knowing what to feel.

Adam dropped Kadie and I off, with the luggage, at the airport's door. We hoisted our bags onto a trolly while we waited for him to park the car. Thankfully Kadie had done all of our ticketing beforehand so we just had to make our way through security.

We still had half an hour to spare before boarding, so we sat in the waiting area outside our gate. I was sitting across from Kadie and Adam. The two of them snuggled with their eyes closed. It was a sweet sight that got me thinking about my own situation. A position I'd put myself in. I knew I had to be without someone to value their presence. But, at the same time I wanted nothing more than to have that feeling of someone's warm love engulfing me.

My mind was racing with a million thoughts. I decided to take a walk around the terminal to ease some of my stress. I came across a Starbucks and went inside. The weather in the airport was just as chilly as outside. So, I grabbed a White Chocolate Mocha, and continued to walk. I ended up at a gift shop. There were shelves upon shelves of New York City snow globes. I was admiring them when I saw Kadie approaching me in the globe's reflection.

“Hey” She spoke gently as her hand rubbed my back. “Are you okay?”

“I'm fine.” I continued to peruse through the trinkets. The truth was, I wasn't okay. Kadie grabbed my arm and turned me around.

“Lynn, I know this is going to be hard for you. But, just remember, I'm always here for you. And Adam and Jaime are here for you too, okay?” She looked at me reassuringly with her soft blue eyes.

“I know, Kadie. I'm just nervous.” I folded my arms and set my eyes on the floor. “It's just going to be weird. What if Joshua tries to talk to me? What if I'm stupid enough to fall for it, again? What if I think I'm okay, but when I see him I find out I'm really not?”

“Hey, hey, hey” Kadie interrupted my thoughts. “Stop thinking 'what if'. Seriously Lynn, it's going to be okay. It won't be a big deal unless you make it one.” She placed both her hands on my shoulders and nudged me, “Okay?!”

“Okay” I softly responded.

“Good! Now, is that Mocha I smell?” Kadie took the Starbucks cup from my hand and began drinking it. We walked around the gift shop and decided to buy a few, very overpriced, key chains for some of our friends.

There was an announcement made for our flight. We grabbed our things and scrambled towards our gate. We stood in line as the lady at her desk checked everyone's tickets. One by one we began making our way onto the plane. Adam made us check in our carry on luggage which ended up being a smart idea. It made for a slightly more relaxed trip knowing I didn't need to fight with someone to claim an overhead compartment.

Shortly after everyone settled in, the plane took off. I leaned my head back, closed my eyes, and began focusing on my breathing.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

“Lynn! Lynn!” I felt my body rocking back and forth. I woke up to see Adam and Kadie staring at me. “Wake up! We're about to land!” I shook my head and realized I'd slept through the entire duration of the flight. That was a first.

Kadie and I pulled out our purses from under our seats and dug around for our makeup bag. We waited for the jerky landing before we began applying our concealer and mascara. Adam watched in amazement at our synchronized routine.

There was a loud ding before a peppy air hostess spoke through the intercom,“Ladies and Gentlemen, we'd like to be the first to welcome you to Dallas!”

Kadie, Adam, and I began cheering. The younger crowd on the plane joined in, while the older businessmen on the flight looked around, annoyed.

We shuffled through the aisles and made our way to baggage claim. It was still early in the afternoon on Friday. Everyone was at work or getting ready for the rehearsal dinner. Except our friend, Woody. He had a truck and never really did much of anything, so he was always the designated chauffeur.

“WOODY!” Kadie and I yelled as we saw our friend.

“Come 'mer!” Woody yelled back with his hands in the air. We ran towards him and gave him a big hug. He swung us around in his arms. His grip grew tighter the more we laughed. “I gotta get that Yankee stench offa y'all!” He pretended to rub his hands over us.

When we'd finally loosened his grip Adam approached us. “Woody, this is my boyfriend Adam.” Woody stood up straighter as Adam came closer. He always had a territorial thing, and it was obvious. It wasn't until Adam smiled and stuck out his hand that Woody's chest deflated. “Adam, this is our old childhood friend, Corey Wood, but we just call him Woody.” Kadie introduced the two.

Woody crossed his arms over his chest and questioned Adam. “So, you're Kadie's new squeeze, huh? What do you do for a living, Adam?” He said in a mocking tone.

“I'm an entertainment lawyer.” Adam's voice sounded much smoother and professional compared to Woody. “How about yourself?”

“You ain't gotta worry bout me. I get things done!” Woody grabbed our bags and proceeded towards his truck. As soon as he did Adam shot Kadie a look which made the both of us giggle.

“Don't mind him! He's sweeter than cherry pie once you get to know him.” Kadie whispered to Adam.

Our first stop was my house. Woody dropped me off, with my bags, and went on his way to get Adam and Kadie to her place. I rang the door bell hoping someone was home. There was a sound of things shuffling inside before the front door opened. It was Marisol, our cleaning lady. (who would do some occasional cooking, and baby sitting, and pretty much anything my parents would ask her to do.)

“Ay mami!” She dropped the Swiffer mop stick that was in her hand and wrapped her arms around me. “Mija! You've gotten so big!” She stepped back to look at me.

“Oh Marisol!” I flicked my wrist, “Don't be silly, I stopped growing in high school.” We always loved hearing Marisol's version of stories because they were much more dramatic and exaggerated than reality.

I picked up my suitcase and she followed behind me with my carry on. “Hello?” I called out to the empty house. “Where is everyone?” I turned to look at Marisol.

“Oh, your mama and papa are at work. And the kids are at school.” Marisol had been working with our family since I was a toddler. Every year that past, her accent only grew thicker.

“Of course” I whispered to myself. For a moment I'd forgotten it was a work day. “Well, I'm just going to clean up.” I marched up the stairs to my old bedroom. Marisol trailed behind with my bags.

I pulled out a white lace dress from my suitcase and went into the shower. I had to make sure I looked my best tonight. So, I lathered up a conditioning mask for my hair and exfoliated my skin for a nice glow. After a very long and relaxing steam shower, I jumped out and changed into my dress. I dried my hair and turned on my curling iron. While I waited for it to heat up I dug through my closet to find my favorite cowboy boots.

Two hours lather I was finally ready. Just then I heard my parents walk in through the front door.

“Lynn Lee?” I heard my mom call out.

“Momma! Daddy!” I ran down the stairs and gave them a hug. As annoying as they can be, I really missed them.

“Oh sweetie, are you not getting anything to eat?” She grabbed my face and examined it.

“Mom” I smiled at her, knowing what she was trying to do.

Marisol had just finished making her famous chicken fajitas and called us to sit down. After we'd finished our late lunch I headed on my way back to the airport. There was still a couple of hours before Jaime's flight would arrive. But, I wanted to go down to the local drug store to grab a few things.

I drove into our city's center and pulled up to Rusty's General Store. After living in New York for almost a year, I couldn't help but laugh at what we called down town. There wasn't a building higher than 5 stories. They were lined up one next to the other in a single street. Beyond that was nothing but open fields. Every building looked as though it were slowly deteriorating, but it only added to it's charm.

Just as I opened the door for Rusty's I ran into a customer leaving at the same time. We'd bumped into each other. I looked up to apologize, but was so shocked I bit my tongue instead. I winced at the pain, unable to speak.

“Lynn Lee?” Joshua gave me a quizzical look.

“Is she okay?” I heard a rude girl's voice come from behind Joshua. She looked like a certifiable party whore. She had platinum blonde hair and dark brown under layers. Her hair was a mess of choppy layers and teased so high, even Theresa Caputo would've told her to stop. Her tan looked like it came from a bottle and her clothes, if they could even qualify as that, were barely there.

What was even more disgusting was when I looked down to see the two of them holding hands.

Wedding Mates And Dinner Dates

I flung my door open to find Jaime standing outside.

Immediately after my outing with Connor I'd sent Jaime a 911 text. Fast forward to an hour later and here he was. Oh Jaime, if only you weren't gay!

“I need an IV of gossip, STAT!” Jaime slapped two fingers on his forearm as he walked inside. He dropped his over-night bag on the floor and jumped onto the couch. He'd spent the weekend with his parents and came straight over to my place after I'd sent him the text. “Seriously, Linda and Tom have sucked me dry of all things fun. I need something, now!”

“Whoa! Hold your briches, it's not that juicy!” I plopped down next to Jaime and handed him a can of Dr. Pepper. “I just needed your help figuring something out.”

Jaime hesitantly opened his can of soda, “Well, what is it?”

I went on to tell him everything that happened between last night up until an hour ago. “I just don't know what to do. A part of me is saying I should give myself some time, and the other is curious to know more about Connor.”

We sat in silence for a moment while we thought to ourselves. Jaime opened his mouth as if to say something, but then stopped. He did it again. And then finally spoke on the third attempt. “This is hard.”

“You're telling me!” I threw my hand in the air and leaned my head onto the couch pillow.

“Do you even like Connor?” Jaime asked curiously.

“I don't know,” I stared down at my can and ran my finger around the edges. “I thought he was cute when I first met him. Then, I thought he was such a douche bag because of everything that happened afterward. And now that I'm learning more about him, he's turning out to be a decent guy.”

“Good luck figuring it out” Jaime got up from his seat and walked into the kitchen.

“Jaime!” I called after him.

He rummaged through my pantry until he found some snacks. He came back over to sit down and poured out a variety bag of candy in the space between us. “I'm only eating these because I'm a good friend and I can't let you get fat.”

I sighed and looked over at him, still waiting for an answer. Jaime rolled his eyes, “Fine, you want to know what I think?”

“Please” I mumbled, sarcastically.

Jaime shot a side eye glance before he went on. “I think you're going to do whatever it is you want. You're just looking for me to reassure you, and I'm not going to.”

“Well then” I folded my arms across my chest. Jaime and I stared at each other as I reached over for a Snickers. He slapped my hand so hard it fell from my grip. Instead he picked it up, tore off the wrapper, and ate it.

“I hope you get fat” I whispered. Jaime's eyes widened as he gasped loudly. It was so dramatic we both ended up laughing until we fell over.

“You might as well join me,” He tossed me a mini Milky Way. “Look Lynn, I saw how hurt you were that night over Jonah. I don't want the same thing happening with Connor. “ He popped the last bite of his candy into his mouth before he finished. “But, this is exactly why we established the three date rule.”

“So you think I should use those three dates to see if Connor is someone I really like or not?” I fiddled with the Milky Way in my hands.

“Exactly! Don't put yourself into anything exclusive until you know for sure.” Jaime gave me another stern look.

Suddenly remembering Lacey's wedding, I turned towards him,“Speaking of dates, what are you doing next weekend?”

“Nothing that I know of, why?” He looked concerned.

“How would you like to be my plus one for a wedding? My friend in Texas is getting married.”

“Is Joshua going to be there?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Oh, hell yeah you can count me in!” Jaime excitedly cheered. He grew quiet when he saw the look on my face. “What? You know I love drama...”

It was already past midnight when Jaime and I were done catching up. Jaime had an early morning shift at the hospital. So, he ended up staying the night in order to get to his clinical on time.

Monday morning wasn't very kind. I woke up with my eyes half opened and a throbbing headache. I pulled on a sweatshirt and jeans and did the zombie walk all the way to class.

“Oh dear God!” Sarah whispered, disgusted. “Bad weekend?”

“Late night” I tried saying before letting out a yawn. I looked around and noticed Sarah was alone. “Where's Henry?”

“He figured since all the lectures are online and we didn't have any assignments to turn in that he'd stay home with Poppy today.” Sarah spoke without breaking concentration from the front board.

I winced at the thought of Poppy.

The rest of the day dragged on. During our break Sarah and I went down the street to grab some coffee and crepes. We went back to class and then our study group shortly after. The sun had began to nestle itself between the City's tall buildings as I headed down into the subway. It was out of sight, only leaving behind orange and pink hues where it once sat by the time I'd made my way out and on to my street.

Since I was going to be out of town over the weekend I figured I'd spend a few extra hours studying every night. It was going great until Connor texted me on Thursday asking me over for dinner. I figured I had to eat anyway so a couple hours break wouldn't hurt.

After our study group I headed straight over. “What's on the menu?” I greeted him with a hug as he opened his door.

“Italian” He smiled and hugged me back.

As Connor plated the food I set the dinner table and poured out a couple of glasses of wine. I sat down and waited for him to clean up and take a seat. I rested my head on my hand as I admired Connor in the kitchen. His buttoned down shirt was still neatly tucked into his slacks. He seemed to be doing everything so effortlessly.

Once he sat down, we began eating dinner. “Oh my God, Connor.” I covered my mouth as I chewed. “This is so good!” I pointed at my plate. Connor had made baked Italian chicken and a side of pesto pasta. He smiled at my compliment.

After we were done we grabbed our glasses of wine and went into his living room. I gawked over all of his pictures he'd printed and framed around his apartment. Ice glaciers in Greenland, White sand beaches of Bora Bora, poor children in the streets of India. I was thoroughly impressed.

“Photography was a hobby I picked up in high school. I was on the school news paper.” Connor noticed my fascination with his pictures. “I stopped when I was in college, but then started again when I was traveling the world. I was always so captivated by the things I saw that I just wanted a way to bring back those memories with me.”

“That’s so sweet” I whispered as my finger lingered across a frame. Connor pulled my arm to sit down on his couch.

He sat down, only inches away from me. I was scared to look up at him, knowing that things would go differently if I did. I felt his eyes on me. They moved from my face down to my neck. I was startled as his hand tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. His hand crept around my shoulders, finally resting with his fingertips just above my chest. He felt my heart beat racing. His nose brushed up against my ear and he softly whispered, “What's wrong?” I felt my breath becoming more and more shallow as I fought the urge to look over at him.

I stammered to find the right words, “I...I...I think we should take this slow.”

“Why?” He whispered back. His mouth had moved from my ear down to my neck. My body was covered in goosebumps as his warm breath touched my skin. “I want you, and you want me. Let's just go for it, Lynn.”  he kissed my neck as he said my name.

It took every bone in my body to pull myself away. “I'm sorry Connor. But, if you want to get to know me. We can't do this.”

Connor let out an aggravated sigh and leaned away from me. “We can be exclusive and still get to know each other.”

“But first I need to know you're someone I want to be exclusive with.” Connor furrowed his brows at my words. He wasn't too happy to hear what I had to say. Catching the sudden drift I stood up and walked over to the kitchen counter to grab my purse.

“Where are you going?” Connor called

“I want to get to know you Connor, but I don't think we're on the same page. I think I should give you some space to think about it. If you really want to be with me, we have to take it slow.”

He stood up and met me by the door. As I was walking away he grabbed my wrist. I stopped and looked back at him. His eyes were begging me to stay. I had to stand up for myself and stop falling for his demands. I shook my wrist free and walked out the door.

Nerd Alert

“That night was devastating, but it was all okay cause the food was bomb!” Connor laughed as he took a seat next to me. “I have to admit, I've been pretty addicted to it ever since.”

“I'm sorry, Connor.” The smile on my face slowly faded.

“Hey, I thought we were past that.” His hand sympathetically caressed my back. “What are you doing here by yourself anyway?”

“Just grabbing dinner for one.” I pointed to myself.

“No plans tonight?” He looked over his shoulder at me.

“Not tonight. What about you Mr. Hot Shot Doctor? What brings you here?” I spun my bar stool until my legs were facing Connor.

“I'm here with a few friends.” He pointed behind us to a table of young looking professionals. “I saw you so I thought I'd come over and say hi. It's been a while.” I smiled at him and he did the same.

Our moment was interrupted by the hostess handing my meal over. I was embarrassed that I'd told Connor I was eating dinner alone. The amount of food I had in my bag said otherwise.

We both stood up and gave each other a hug before saying goodbye. As I proceeded to the door I heard Connor call out. I turned around to see him walking back towards me.

“There's a new exhibit of Monet's paintings at the Met. He's one of your favorites, isn't he? Anyway, I thought I'd tell you.” Connor nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

It was cute to see a bashful side of Connor. I couldn't help but let out a laugh. “Oh, okay. Thanks for the heads up. I'll make sure to check it out.” I smiled again before continuing out of the restaurant.

“Wait, Lynn.” Connor called after me again. “Would you be free tomorrow? Maybe we could go together?”

I stopped walking and looked towards him. I thought about it for a second before answering. “Pick me up around noon?”

Connor nodded his head and simpered before he returned to his friends.

Once I was home I stuffed my face with Thai food, caught up on Suits, and laid in bed listening to Bastille's Bad Blood album while contemplating major life decisions. You know, just a typical Saturday night, alone.

It was already 11:30 AM by the time I woke up. I scrambled for a quick shower and threw on a cotton dress with leggings and a cardigan. There was a knock at my door as I stumbled through my apartment to find my flats. I hopped on one foot at a time while I tried to put them on. Once I was completely presentable I opened the door.

“Hey” Connor stood in my door way. He was dressed casually, but even his “casual” looked dressed up.

“Perfect timing!” I cheered as I grabbed my purse and walked out of my apartment. We headed down towards the subway and made our way to the Met.

Once we were inside we checked in our coats and began walking towards the exhibits. Connor wandered through an atrium of Roman sculptures. “Ah, my man Octavius.” He stood in front of an art piece.

I walked up behind Connor and stood next to him. “Founder of the Roman Empire” I whispered just under my breath. I folded my arms as I admired the intricate details on the ancient sculptures.

From the corner of my eye I saw Connor, wide eye, turn towards me with his head slightly cocked. “How'd you know that?”

Instead of answering, I smiled and continued walking around the exhibit. Connor trailed after me. We stood in front of another sculpture before he asked me again. I walked around him until we were face to face. “Promise you won't make fun of me?”

Connor laughed at the request. I gave him a look and he tried to hold it back. “I took Latin all through out high school. I was even president of the club.”

His reaction wasn't what I was expecting. His brows furrowed and his face grew serious. “Wow, you're such a nerd!”

I playfully punched Connor's arm. “Hey!”

He faintly pushed his shoulder away to block my punch. Instead he grabbed my arm. “I took Latin, too” The grin on his face grew with each word.

“So then who are you calling a nerd? Nerd.” I squinted my eyes at him.

“I said I took Latin. I didn't say I was president of the club. You take the cake for that one.” He began laughing and I couldn't help but join in. We walked through the rest of the Roman exhibit competing with who had the better facts.

The next wing of the museum was a fashion exhibit. It displayed dresses from 1800's Europe. It wasn't anything we were interested in, but it was on our way to Monet's artwork. We decided to make the exhibit worth our time and began posing with the mannequins as crowds of people walked by. It slowly became a contest of who could hold their pose the longest without breaking character.

After we were done publicly humiliating ourselves we made our way to the paintings. We quietly strolled through admiring each piece.

“What is it you like about Monet?” Connor whispered in my ear as we stared at San Giorgio Maggiore at Dusk.

“He does such an unbelievable job of conveying the mood and atmosphere of the time and place. It's as if I can smell the sea and feel the breeze just looking at his paintings.” I pointed around the gallery, “Every one of his pieces are so beautiful, calm, and dreamy.”

Connor nodded his head in agreement as we moved on to the next painting.

“Are you an art buff too?” I whispered to Connor. His concentration stayed focused on Garden at Sainte-Adresse.

“Yeah, mainly my mom's doing.” The corner of his mouth curved into a smile. “She would always take us to art galleries and museums when we were younger. She wanted us to be cultured.” He continued to smile at the memory.

We headed back to the main lobby to grab our coats and made our way outside. There was a street vendor selling food. The smell was so irresistible we had to stop. Connor bought a pretzel for me and a hotdog for himself. We were just outside of Central Park, so we decided to take a leisurely saunter.

As we entered the center of the park we decided to take a seat at an empty bench. We had a beautiful view of a quiet little pond surrounded by greenery. Tall buildings peaked through the trees reminding us we were still in the city. We watched as dog walkers and joggers pounded the pavements.

“You really impressed me today, Lynn.” Connor looked over at me with a grin.

“I don't know if I should be offended or not.” I picked at my pretzel.

“You shouldn't be. It's just nice to know there's more to you then what I thought.” Connor tried to rebuttal.

As bad as it sounded, I knew Connor didn't mean it offensively. “Well, maybe if you didn't have the “no personal talk” rule, you'd know more about me.” I looked over at him as I tore off a piece of my pretzel.

Connor began mumbling under his breath, “I was afraid I would fall for you.”

I chose to ignore what he'd said. Instead we sat quietly and stared into the distance. I finally built up the courage to ask what was going on. “Connor, why'd you have a sudden change of heart?”

He waited a while before he responded. “I missed you.” He pulled his arm behind the bench and turned towards me. “I went to go see Colleen a couple of weeks ago.” I turned my head towards him, but my eyes were focused on the ground. “After you and I had our talk, I knew I needed closure from her. And in all honesty, I feel like I can move on. It's like this tension I've had building up inside of me has just been wiped away. I don't want to rush into anything, but I want to get to know you better, Lynn.”

My heart skipped a beat as Connor's words lingered. 

Old Money

**Readers, I'll have a bonus post up this Friday. Make sure to come back and check it out! :)**

“Can't you just leave tomorrow?”

I pleaded as I held onto Kadie's legs. We were both sitting on the floor of her now empty room. It was Saturday morning and Kadie was planning on taking her last few boxes to her new apartment.

“Lynn” Kadie whispered in an apologetic tone. “You know I can't.”

“Why not? Who leaves on a Saturday anyway?” Kadie wasn't moving far, in fact it was a short train ride over. I just didn't want to let her go.

“Adam wants to spend at least one weekend day together at our apartment. He has work to do on Sunday, so today would be our only day.”

“Fine” I sighed loudly and laid my head on Kadie's shoulder. “I'm going to miss this.”

Kadie rested her head on mine and squeezed my hand, “You know you're always going to be at my place.”

We both looked up at each other and smiled, “True”

Just then, there was a knock at the door. “That's Adam!” Kadie jumped up and ran.

I walked into the living room and greeted him. The three of us sat down for a cup of coffee and one last breakfast together. Once we were finished Adam grabbed Kadie's boxes and a few teary eyed sessions later, they were gone.

I jumped into the corner of my L-shaped sofa with a blanket and snuggled between the pillows. This was the first Saturday since Kadie moved to New York that we hadn't spent together. It felt weird. Almost like I didn't know what to do with myself.

I felt myself drifting off into a slumber when the vibrations from my phone jolted me back to life. It was Sarah. I answered the phone with a groggy voice.

“Lynn? Are you sleeping? You know it's noon, right?” Sarah was an early bird. It never made sense to her how anyone could sleep past 9am.

“This is a normal time for normal people to wake up on a Saturday, S. Plus I was up all morning helping Kadie pack up to leave.” I threw my blanket off of myself and began stretching. I guess Sarah had a point. I couldn't waste my day sleeping.

“Oh dear, she left didn't she? Poppy, Henry, and I are about to go shopping. You should join in. It'll make you feel better.”

I sat quietly for a moment. I hadn't seen Poppy or Henry since the incident at the restaurant. As much as I didn't agree with Poppy's lifestyle and influences, I wasn't going to spend my day cooped up in my apartment.

“Sure, why not”

“Great! Poppy's still getting ready. She always takes forever. Why don't you just come here?”

As soon as we'd hung up the phone I realized I'd never been to Sarah's place before. I knew she lived with her parents. And that Henry's family lived in the same building. But I'd never known more than that.

I rolled off the sofa and into the shower. After getting dressed I quickly Google mapped Sarah's address and headed over.

I found myself once again on the fancy streets of the Upper East Side. What seemed like an entire block of apartments was actually Sarah's residence. The building was laid with massive cream colored bricks and smaller black bricks framing every window and door way. There was an intricate black iron gate surrounding the building. The architecture was stunningly beautiful and very European. I walked around the building looking for a way inside. I was startled by a loud buzzing noise. I turned around to see a gate opening. I looked in my surroundings to make sure this was real life.

Once I made my way up the steps to the front door a butler greeted me. “Welcome to the Wintrop residence. Please follow me” He turned around and began to wobble down the hallway.

Wintrop? As in... I whispered to myself. My thoughts were distracted by life size oil paintings of different men that ran down the entire length of the hallway. The butler abruptly stopped and gestured for me to take a seat in an open formal living area.

“Miss Sarah will be with you shortly.” He turned back around and wobbled out of the room.

Sarah is a Wintrop? How did I not know this? I always assumed Sarah's last name was Darlington because of her mother. Wintrop was the family name behind the number one health care and pharmaceutical company worldwide.

It was obvious from the first day I met Sarah that her family came from money. But, it wasn't evident from her humble personality. Rather from her obnoxious cousin, Henry, and because she'd let it slip that she'd never known who her father was (metaphorically speaking) until she was older. It seemed like Sarah didn't want to talk too much about her family so I never really asked. Instead, I just pretended she was like the rest of us.

I closely examined everything in the living room before Sarah came prancing down a dark wooden stair case that spiraled around the perimeter of the room.

I stood silently. I had no idea what to say. I couldn't believe I was standing in front of the heiress to some of Europe's oldest money.

Sarah caught my drift and dropped her shoulders down. She looked at me disappointed. “I don't invite many of my friends over because they treat me the same way. My forefathers are the rich ones. Not me.”

I felt embarrassed for the way I acted and quickly apologized. “Sarah, I don't mean to be like this, the last name was just a bit of a shock that's all. You're still the same Sarah.” I told her while trying to act like it wasn't a big deal that my hand was resting on a mantle that may or may not have been lined in 24 carat gold.

“You thought it was Darlington, didn't you?” She smirked.

I nodded my head “Well, yeah...”

“It's my mother's maiden name. She already established her company before she married my father.” Sarah took my hand and lead me to a maroon and mahogany Victorian love seat. We both sat down as she continued talking. “You know, that's why Poppy is so popular. Everyone knew her as an heiress. She was always a ham for the camera. When my mum's company went global she started riding on her coattails until” She side smiled and sprawled out her hands.

“But you, you're not like that.” I was fascinated at how modest Sarah was.

“No, I'm not. I didn't even know how much money we had until I was a teen. When I joined my private school here in the City, my teacher was so excited to have Henry and I in her class, which we thought was weird. Those kids would always tell us how rich we were. We had no idea!” She laughed. “We thought everyone lived like this” Sarah pointed around the room and my eyes followed. “I guess coming from old money and talking about it is taboo. So we just go along like everyone else. I guess, I can't say that for Henry though, he can be quiet a show off.” Sarah winked and we both continued to laugh.

“Hello, Lynn. So nice to see you again.” I heard a voice calling from above. It was Poppy. She was gracefully carrying her tiny body down the staircase. She took her round Chanel sunglasses off her head and wore them. “Henry, are you coming dear?” She called out as she looked over her shoulder.

As Poppy made her way down Sarah and I stood up, ready to leave. A few minutes past before Henry came running down the stairs. He looked to be in a much cheerful attitude than usual. I wasn't sure if it was because his favorite cousin was in town or because he was drugged up. I was hoping it wasn't the latter.

As soon as the four of us jumped into the black SUV parked out front, Poppy told the driver to take us to Alexander McQueen. “I'm in dire need of new clothes!” She cried. I felt a pit in my stomach. There was no way I would be able to buy anything on this shopping trip. So much for retail therapy!

Once we got into the boutique the sales team flooded towards Poppy. They whisked her away to a back fitting room where they'd already pulled out outfits for her. Sarah and I browsed around the front of the store as we waited.

“What do you think of this?” Henry pulled up a shirt to himself.

“I love it!” Sarah cheered.

“I don't know, should I get it in blue or black? Oh whatever, I'll just get both.” He handed it to a sales associate who took the shirts and stowed them away at the register.

Sarah continued to peruse through the clothes when I found a moment to myself. I turned around to find Henry on the opposite side of the store and made my way over to him.

“Henry!” I loudly whispered as I pulled his arm.

“Lynn, haven't you found anything?” He seemed surprised when he saw me empty handed.

“This place is insanely out of my price range.” I shook my head.

“Oh, don't bother. Just put it on my tab.” He went back to pulling through a rack of shirts.

“You have a tab here?” I furrowed my brows at the thought and continued before Henry could answer. “Never mind that. I saw you with Poppy on Thursday night.”

Henry let out a slight laugh and looked at me questioningly “Yeah, I know. I saw you too.”

“No, I saw you two...” I covered one nostril with my finger and inhaled through the other. I suddenly had Henry's full attention. He stared at me with his arms folded across his chest.

“Did you tell anyone?” He seemed more bothered by this than the fact that I'd seen him.

“Of course not. You know why? Because I think you're better than that. And I really want to give you the benefit of the doubt.”

“Lynn, you don't know me” He rolled his eyes as he walked away.

“Bullshit, Henry. I know you perfectly well.” I pulled his arm back towards me. “I know that you're an intelligent asshole who actually cares about people. You can't let your cousin ruin your future.” Henry was amongst the few people who'd received an academic scholarship to our school. Even Sarah, being as smart as she is, hadn't received it.

“Don't bring Poppy into this!” Henry angrily whispered back.

“Is everything okay?” Henry and I both turned around to see Sarah standing behind us.

“Yeah, we just can't decide which one looks better.” I pulled two random shirts off the rack and in front of Henry.

“Oh, that one's nice!” Sarah pointed. “I'm gonna go try these on” She lifted up a pile of clothes in her hand and proceed to the fitting rooms.

As soon as she was gone Henry pulled me in close. “No body can know about this. I can lose my inheritance over it.”

“If that's the case then why do you do it?” I was curious as to what lame excuse Henry was using to justify his actions.

“It's a thrill you wouldn't understand.” I cocked my head to the side and squinted my eyes at him. Henry sighed and covered his face with his hands. “I only do it when Poppy's around. It's not like I'm addicted, okay. So you can stop looking at me like that. I want the lifestyle she has, I just do it to keep up with her.”

I sarcastically laughed in Henry's face. “That has got to be the worst possible excuse ever. I don't care how much you're in love with her. She's a bad influence. You can't go into a field of helping others if you fall victim to your own actions.”

“Fine!” Henry angrily agreed. “I won't let Poppy control me.”

I waited a minute while Henry cooled off before I gave him a hug. “Did you really mean that intelligent thing?” He smiled from the corner of his mouth.

“Of course not” I playfully punched his arm. We walked over to the fitting room to watch Poppy and Sarah model their outfits.

We store hopped from one expensive place to the next for the rest of the afternoon. The only thing I walked away with was a cup of frozen yogurt, and I was okay with that.

Sarah, Henry, and Poppy had to go to a family dinner so I decided to make my way back home. I was exhausted from my day, but I knew I still needed company. Something to keep me distracted from my empty apartment. I called up Jaime to hang out. Turns out he was in New Jersey visiting his parents. I guess it was just going to be me and reruns of Modern Family tonight.

Crushed, I headed to my favorite Thai restaurant to order a meal to go. I went inside and waited at the bar. The restaurant was busy with people as it usually is on Saturday nights. I quietly sat in the corner and fiddled with my phone.

“Is this seat taken?” I shook my head as I turned around to see who it was.

“Connor!” I shrieked and jumped off the bar stool. “This is so awkward.” We both laughed as we remembered the last time we'd been here together was the night I left him hanging.

Poppy Leroux Fever

“What does one wear to a dinner party for a semi-famous fashion blogger?”

I drummed my fingers over my mouth and stared into my closet. Kadie stood next to me with her arms folded across her chest.

“How about” She paused as she continued to stare into the closet. “This?” She pulled out a chiffon printed jumper.

I grimaced and pushed it away. “No, that looks like I'm trying too hard.” Kadie rolled her eyes and hung it back.

“How bout this?” She pulled out a black dress with a cut-out back. It was plain and simple, yet cute. “You can dress it up with a statement necklace. It'll look perfect.”

I shrugged my shoulders and took the dress from her. “What about you?”

“I'm thinking a nice fitted top tucked into my silk harem pants. Oh, actually...” Kadie reached into my closet and pulled out a shirt, “This is exactly what I had in mind!” She smiled and jumped onto my bed.

“Kadie!” I shouted after her, “I haven't even worn that yet! You know the rules...” I walked over ready to snatch it from Kadie, but she had a tight grip on the shirt. We'd been stealing clothes from each others closets since the beginning of time. Our only rule was, you can't borrow it if it still has it's tags.

“Come on, Lynn!” She rolled her body away from me so I couldn't reach her. “As a parting gift! Please!”

I sat down on the edge of my bed and sighed. “Fine.” I turned my head around to see Kadie happily ripping the tags off of the shirt. It was a dumb rule we made up just for the sake of having rules. I couldn't care less about it. I was just too emotional about Kadie's departure.

Adam ended up buying the apartment Kadie, Sarah, and I had seen over the weekend. His lease was ending this week, so the two love birds decided to get everything moved in by the coming weekend. Kadie had slowly started moving her things there everyday after work. The only boxes left here were her clothes. Once the weekend rolled around, it would be official.

“I'm gonna go try this on!” Kadie squealed as she jumped off the bed and ran to her room.

“You owe me, Kadie” I yelled after her.

“Sure Lynn, whatever you want!” She laughed before she shut her door.

I quickly changed into my outfit and did a light touch up of makeup. Half an hour later Kadie and I were on our way.

There was a small bar and grill for New York's elite nestled away in the quaint streets of the Upper East Side. Before even meeting her, I could tell this restaurant was Poppy's suggestion.

I pulled out my phone to call Sarah before I saw a guy waving at us.

“Kadie! Lynn! Over here!” It was Jebrone calling us from across the street. Thanks to Henry's infidelity issues, it'd been months since we'd seen him.

“Jebrone! So glad to see you!” Kadie and I both threw up our arms and gave him a hug.

“Like wise” he hugged us back. “Kadie, did I not tell you Adam was a catch, or what?” He smiled and held her with both hands.

“I can't thank you guys enough for introducing him to me. Seriously!” The grin on his face grew and they hugged again.

“Alright, so Sarah, Henry, and Poppy aren't here yet, but everyone else is inside. Come on!” Both Kadie and I wrapped our arms around Jebrone and followed him in.

The place was filled with men in business suits and women too gorgeous to be real. It was a little overwhelming. I've never felt so self-conscious before. I ran my fingers through my hair and pulled at my dress. I could see Kadie readjusting herself from the corner of my eye. I turned towards her and we both exchanged the same what the hell expression.

Jebrone stopped once we approached a substantially round table in the corner of the restaurant. There was a velvet tufted wall that ran behind the table making it a semi private room.

“Lynn, you probably remember some of these faces.” Although Jebrone addressed me, it seemed like he was talking more to the people at the table.

“Right” I nodded towards him. I made quick eye contact with Maxwell and Abigail. They were Sarah and Henry's friends from London. I'd briefly met them at our school's social hour. I wasn't too fond of them since they refused to be welcoming. Henry's personality was more than enough for me to handle, so I never tried to make an effort.

“Of course! How have you been 'Lilly'?” Abigail giggled. I narrowed my eyes and sneered at her before Jebrone got the hint and moved on.

“This is Georgina, Daniel, and Alexi.” He pointed to the three unfamiliar faces at the table. “And this is Lynn and Kadie. They're friends of ours.”

After introductions, Kadie and I sat down at the table in the empty chairs next to Alexi. We chatted with her for a few minutes. She told us how she met Poppy at a run way show in LA a few years ago and they've been friends ever since. “You're going to love her. She's a real life of the party type of person” Alexi chirped. 

Our conversation was interrupted by Sarah, Henry, and Poppy walking in. There was a loud shrieking from everyone as they jumped up from their seats to hug Poppy. Kadie and I were the only ones left at the table. We stood up and slowly walked over to the crowd. I couldn't help but notice how beautiful Poppy was. She had a small heart shaped face. Her hair was light and bouncy. And it was obvious she was related to Henry and Sarah by her eyes, her narrow nose, and thin lips. There was a small shadow casted on either side of her face from her elevated cheekbones.

I stared at her as she hugged all her friends. Each one so excited to see her. She grinned as she spoke. But not a big grin. A faint, subtle, grin. One that looked like she was doing everyone a favor by blessing us with her presence. She seemed like such a bitch, but yet, a small fire of Poppy Leroux fever built inside of me.

Sarah spotted us and walked over, dragging Poppy behind her. “I want you to meet my friends! This is Lynn, she goes to school with me” We both exchanged smiles. I felt my knees weaken. Everything about her was perfect.

“It's a pleasure, Lynn.” Even her voice was soft, angelic, and mesmerizing.

“And this is Kadie. She works at Darlington with mum.” Poppy's eye's fluttered over to examine Kadie.

“Oh, dear!” She pulled her limp hand up to her cheek. “Aunt Eva has told me so much about you!”

“Really?” Kadie shrilled. She tried to play off her excitement by straightening her posture and clearing her throat.

Poppy's eyes quickly looked down and back up. "I love this blouse. So chic" She winked at Kadie. 

Kadie's cheeks grew pink and I elbowed her as Poppy walked away. "Yeah, Kadie. Chic blouse."

“Shall we?” Poppy's hand gently floated above the dinner table. Everyone made their way back to their seats. One by one, the wait staff began taking our orders.

Kadie leaned over and whispered in my ear, “I can't believe she fucking knows me!” it was apparent that she'd caught the fever too. She pulled her phone under the table and began texting away.

Every time Poppy spoke the table would grow silent. Every last ounce of attention was set on her. She told us all about her recent adventures and where she was going next in her career. She had such a charismatic personality. We hadn't even noticed the time passing. It was close to midnight and the restaurant was empty except for our table.

Poppy stood up from her seat and walked over to the bar. It looked like she had known the owner and was thanking him for the night.

Everyone began collecting their things and leaving one by one. Poppy walked back over and bid adieu to her friends.

“Oh shit!” I called after Kadie as we walked outside. She turned around to see what was wrong. “I forgot my coat at the check in.” 

"I'll get a cab for us. Hurry up!" Kadie shouted as I walked back inside.

The coat checker wasn't anywhere to be found. Instead of waiting for him I decided to go behind the desk and grab it myself. I began pulling it on when I heard whispers from behind the bar.

I walked over to see Henry and Poppy doing lines of cocaine.