Eight years in vain
After my parents died, my dad’s best friend, Mr.
Walker, took me in. His son, Jake Walker,
became the center of my world.
On my 16th birthday, Jake, a little drunk, kissed
me and told me I was only allowed to like him. At 18, he coaxed me into losing my virginity, promising we’d be entangled forever.
By 24, I was ready to get married. But he said
he’d never marry.
After a month of icy silence, our friends organized a get–together, hoping we’d patch things up. That’s when Jake showed up with another girl, barely out of high school. Her shy
smile reminded me so much of myself at
eighteen.
My friend, Ashley, spoke up, furious, “Jake,
what the hell do you think Emily is to you?”
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Jake scoffed, “Why are you guys so worked up?
Emily’s like a little sister. Just because she’s
lived with us doesn’t mean I have to marry her,
does it?”
He leaned down and kissed the girl’s hair, then
looked around at everyone. “And don’t you go
spreading rumors about me and Emily. I don’t
want my girlfriend getting the wrong idea. She’s
young, you know, easy to upset.”
Across the table, Ben clenched his jaw. “Jake,
are you fucking kidding me?”
We’d all grown up together. He was sticking up
for me. Everyone knew what was going on
between Jake and me.
Jake glanced at him, lit a cigarette, and said
coldly, “Ben, since when are you and Emily so
close? Why are you sticking up for her?” His
eyes flicked to me, then back to his girlfriend. “Honey, wait for me outside. It’s too loud in
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here. I’ll take you somewhere else in a bit.”
The girl obeyed, shooting him a timid look before leaving.
Once she was gone, Jake finally looked at me. “Emily, this was all between you and me. What’s the point of getting everyone to pressure me into marriage?” He exhaled a smoke ring, a cold smile on his face. “I never said you were my
girlfriend, did I?”
I stared at the face I’d loved for eight years,
suddenly a stranger.
Ben jumped up, ready to punch him. “Jake,
you’re a piece of shit saying that!”
I grabbed him, holding him back. He gritted his
teeth, “If you wanted to break up, you could
have done it like a decent human being. What’s
the point of humiliating her like this?”
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Jake’s eyes were like ice. “Ben, are you
defending her so much because you like her? Fine, you can have her. I’m done. After all these
years, I’m sick of her.”
As soon as he said that, Chris, who’d been sitting quietly in the corner, slammed his glass on the table, shattering it. Everyone turned to
look at him.
Chris was the aloof one in our group. When I
first moved in with the Walkers at twelve, he
was the one I was most intimidated by. Always
serious, always quiet. He’d never shown any
reaction to Jake and me, whether we were
affectionate or arguing. Now, he was losing his
cool, which surprised me. He glared at Jake.
“You’ve gone too far.”
