Chewing on my bottom lip, I answered. “It’s his moms.”
Umaima’s eyes widened out of her sockets. She opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again. “I’m sorrywhat? The man gave you his mother’s dress and then says you shouldjustbe friends?”
From the thought of it, I cringed.
“Actually, I don’t think he was ever the one to say that.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, babes. Addie, do youseewhat he’s doing for you?” Umaima made it a point to turn me back around to face the floor length mirror. “His mom’s wedding dress is no joke, that’s like the equivalent of marrying the love of his life.”
Profusely, I shook my head. “We don’t think of each other that way.”
Umaima didn’t understand that Christian was doing this out of obligation and responsibility. I didn’t know the details about Moonshine, but he had to be as desperate as me if he was working with Starlight for money and more fame. It’d make sense why he gifted me his mother’s old wedding dress—a ruse to protect his lack of money at the moment, right?
“Did you just saywedon’t think of each other that way?”
The back of my neck prickled. “No, I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did.” Amusement trickled through her little giggles. “That was a confession, wasn’t it? You like the guy.”
No. I…No.
When you liked someone like Christian you noticed the way his nose scrunched when he was thinking too hard, how his mouth parted when you stared at him too intensely, how warm he felt when he pushed you against him, wondering why he tattooed your birthmark on his chest—right over his heart, and questioning why he flew all the way to Switzerland in a singleday to buy you a ring from the most awaited auction. Liking him was wondering what he was doing right now if he was just as nervous as me. Liking him meant thinking about this morning and questioning how his demeanor changed when I brought up our breakup. Liking him meant telling him, and me…
Well, I didn’t like him.
People had their reasons for what they did. If Christian replicated my birthmark, he had his reasons. If he fought for a ring in an auction in Switzerland, he had his reasons. Who was I to question and conclude whether or not I liked him?
If he didn’t care, neither did I.
It was that simple.
“It’s all in your head, Umaima.”
She scoffed. “Don’t gaslight me, I heard it loud and clear.”
“Maybe you should get your ears checked,” I threw back at her. All I got in return was an eye roll.
“Maybe you should just shut the fuck up and tell me the truth.” When I didn’t reply and huddled into myself, into the same thought I’d been having. Umaima wrapped herself around me. “You know I actually think this is good for you.He’sbeen good for you. You’ve stopped doing that thing you do where you block everyone out.”
I pulled back but still kept my arms around her and gave her a deadpanned look. “I still block everyone out.”
“Oh yeah for sure, but with him, you don’t. You become the bull and he became the rider and all you’re focused on is getting him the fuck off.”
“Nice.” This time when I pulled away, I sarcastically gave a thumbs up. “Every girl in her wedding dress wants tobe compared to a bull. Ten out of ten, best compliment ever received.”
“Thank you,” she whipped the hanging cloth from her hijab over her shoulder like she was proud of herself.
Despite packing the meaning of our conversation into a secret part of my brain to take out to analyse later, a sharp, relentless twinge twisted in my lower abdomen.
I doubled over in pain and grabbed tight onto Umaima’s hand.
“Adelaide,” she sounded worried. “What’s wrong?”
Another agonizing, knife-like pain.
“I think I just got my period.”
She got down to her knees and stared up with complete disbelief. “Now?” She swore under her breath. “You haven’t gotten your period in six months, and it decides to show up just when I was getting into all the nitty gritty of your relationship?Un-fucking-believable.”
