Looking up, I make eye contact with Maria in the mirror. I’ve already told her the entire story, so she’s up to date with my life. I first met Maria at the gym, and she has been there since the start. She’s seen our relationship develop from a crush into a relationship. She’s witnessing it falling apart now, too.
“That was Logan. He just met my roommate.”
Maria just nods and hums. She continues to wrap my hair in foil before meeting my eyes in the mirror.
“I need to tell you something.” Her serious tone makes me sit up straighter in her chair.
“What? What is it?” My heart is pounding in anticipation of her words.
“Logan called me on New Year’s.” She speaks slowly, giving me time to process what she said.
“He called you? Why?” Since we all became friends at the same time, their conversations weren't an unusual occurrence.
“He told me that he broke up with you and wanted me to know so that I could help you…” Her voice trails off, and she raises a brow at me.
“Help me? Help me with what?” My voice comes out louder than I intended, echoing through the otherwise empty studio.
“He wanted to see if I could help you move out of his place.”
“Are you kidding me?”
“No, and let me tell you, I was not happy with how he handled things. And I let him know.”
The thought of Maria chewing Logan out made me cringe, but it was comforting to have an ally. I guess that means I got Maria in the divorce.
“Logan is a douchebag,” Maria says with finality.
“Yeah, he fucking sucks.”
I agree as I slump back into my chair. I’m reeling from Logan’s betrayal. Before I could tell our friends, he’d already started figuring out how to get rid of me.
I know Maria has an opinion about my new living arrangements, but she’s keeping those thoughts to herself for now. She doesn’t know Ben, but she seemed genuinely shocked when I told her I was moving in with a boy.
I’m out of the salon in a couple of hours. My hair is lighter and brighter. I feel better already.
Getting in my car, I see a missed call from Logan and a text from Ben on my phone. I open up Ben’s message first.
“Hey, don’t know if you already have plans for dinner, but I’m gonna order a pizza for delivery in case you’re hungry.”
Well, that was thoughtful of him.
“I love pizza. Thank you, I appreciate it!” I type out the response and send it to him.
I turn on the car and call Logan back, though I regret it instantly. The dial tone rings loudly through the Bluetooth connection in my car. A sickening dread grips me as I hope he won’t answer. Unfortunately, the phone call’s loud connection rings filled my car.
“Emily, seriously. What the fuck? You’re living with a guy? You don’t even know him!”
I’m taken aback by the aggressive tone since he’s never been this angry when we were together.
“It’s not like I had much of a choice…” I say before he cuts me off.
“Are you kidding me right now? You should have told me you couldn’t find a roommate. I would have given you more time if I had known you needed it! You never told me anything! You didn’t need to move in with a stranger!” he yells.
I’m speechless and not sure how to respond to him. How was I supposed to tell him when he shut me out and was practically kicking me out the door? But now, because he finds out my roommate is a guy, he suddenly cares about me?
“Are you… Are you serious right now, Logan? Did you forget you tried to kick me out not even twenty-four hours after you broke up with me?”
“I did not kick you out…” Logan groans, and I can picture him rubbing the back of his neck in agitation.
