“Relationships are about more than sex, Simon.”
What the fuck? “Of course they are. Which is why we talk and hang out and I beg like a dog for the merest scraps of conversation from you.” I’m not gonna lie, I’m getting a little pissed now. “And I’m not going to apologize for great sex. I’m not going to apologize for worshipping your gorgeous body at every opportunity. Because that would be a lie. I love every part of you, Elaine. I love—”
“No, please. Don’t.” She physically steps back from me and the last remaining pieces of my heart shatter on the sidewalk. It’s deja-fucking-vu. Just a few weeks ago, she tried to end things between us on a cold, dreary day outside the diner. And now, we’re re-playing that scene in my parents’ driveway. But the ending has surely changed. She’s slipping away from me. I can feel it.
“Elaine—”
“Simon. We both knew this couldn’t last long.”
“Did we?” I ask. “Because I thought it would. I thought—” I reach out to touch her face, her hair, but she leans back, just out of reach. Which is fitting, I guess.
“Simon,” her voice breaks, and it fucking kills me. “You never told them about me, and that matters. Your words are so pretty, but your actions broke my heart. All my life, people have been saying one thing and doing another—my mom, Logan. I got so used to it. I just never thought you’d be one of those people.”
Her words are like a punch to the gut. They steal my breath and my resolve. No matter how much it kills me, I can’t be the source of her unhappiness.
“So, what happens now?” The words sound hollow to my ears.
“We’ll go back to work, back to...life. I’m heading to Philly for a conference on Wednesday, so you can stop by that night to get your stuff.” The words are stilted and emotionless. And I don’t fucking get how she can be so matter-of-fact about this.
“And we can magically go back to being friends and pretend our relationship never happened? Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s not how this works.”
“Simon…” she says in frustration.
“Elaine…” I repeat back.
We stand there staring at each other for what feels like an hour, but must be only a minute or so. She looks away first and turns to go. I step gently in front of her. “Ok, I’m not a dick. If you don’t want this, it doesn’t happen. But I’m driving you home.”
“Oh, no, Simon, that’s silly. And awkward.”
“Lucky for us, I specialize in both silly and awkward.” I smile, but it’s forced. “Seriously, like I said, I’m not a dick. I’m not leaving you here to wait for an Uber.”
“You make that sound much more dangerous than I know it to be.”
“Perhaps I also specialize in worst-case scenarios and dramatic paranoia. C’mon, let’s go.” I motion down the street, but let’s be real: I’m kind of hoping she takes my hand. She doesn’t.
“You’re the least dramatic person I know. I supply all the drama in our relationship,” she quips.
“According to you, there is no relationship.” And, yea, there’s a bit of an edge to my words, but it’s an edge I’m surely entitled to.
We walk silently down the street and get into my car just as quietly. A cold politeness has descended, and it lingers during the ten-minute drive back to her house. I pull in the drive, and I swear she darts out before I put my car in Park. She’s up the stairs and through the door in a matter of seconds. I palm my phone and dial Dunc, who, thankfully, picks up right away. “Is Nick there yet?”
“Yea, we’re all here. Where the hell are you and Elaine?”
“There is no me and Elaine.” Fuck. I cringe at my grammatical error. Our relationship has only been dead for ten minutes, but already she’s haunting me.
“What the hell? I just saw her, like, a half hour ago.”
“I know. I just...look…”
“Say no more. Drive to my house. You have a key. Nick and Bets and I will meet you there.”
“Thanks, Dunc. And bring all the beers. I’m getting shitfaced.”
