Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 133655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 535(@250wpm)___ 446(@300wpm)
I look past Drew, my eyes drawn to wherever Ace is.
He’s on the dance floor. There’s a circle of girls around him. Sorority girls. Double C girls. I don’t even know. They’re all dressed in some version of sexy and supernatural. A vampire. A witch. A fairy. Scarlett’s back too—looking like she was poured into her devil costume and like she knows exactly what to do with it.
Ace isn’t dancing with any of them, not really. He’s just there. Laughing. Smirking. Moving in rhythm while they orbit him like he’s the fucking sun.
My stomach clenches. My chest aches. My fingers curl into fists at my sides.
Drew’s voice cuts through the fog again. “Wanna dance?”
And it’s all too much. The reality is too glaring. “I can’t do this anymore, Drew.”
He frowns. “What?”
“This. Us.” I confess the truth, and his brow furrows in confusion.
“What are you talking about?”
“I can’t be with you anymore.”
“Julia?” He takes a step back. “Are you drunk?”
“Yes,” I admit without hesitation. “But I’m also right.”
The music is pounding, and there are people everywhere—laughing, shouting, dancing—and suddenly, I can’t breathe.
I grab Drew’s hand and tug him with me, weaving through the crowd until we find a quiet alcove off to the side. It’s dark and half hidden behind one of the giant velvet curtains.
“I’m sorry, Drew. I know this feels like it’s coming out of left field, but I can’t be with you anymore. It’s not fair to you,” I say, and tears well in my eyes when I realize how badly I’ve strung him along. It doesn’t matter if Ace is moving on; the fact remains that I’m in love with him. I have been in love with him since before I even knew what love was. And I can’t, in good conscience, be in a relationship with someone when my heart wants someone else.
“What do you mean, it’s not fair to me?” He tugs his hand away. “I don’t understand.”
“You were right,” I say. “You were right about Ace having feelings for me. But you weren’t aware that I have feelings for Ace too. The night you asked me to be your girlfriend, he came over to my apartment and told me he was in love with me. He kissed me and I kissed him back, and I’m so sorry I did that. I know it was wrong, and I should’ve been honest with you, but that’s what happened.”
“You fucking kissed him? While we were together?”
“I’m sorry, Drew. I’m so, so sorry.”
“And you decided now, in the middle of a fucking party, is the right time to tell me all of this? The right time to break up with me?”
“I’m so, so sorry,” I say again, my voice barely audible. “I didn’t plan this. I didn’t want it to go like this with us, but I feel like I’m lying to myself. And I’m lying to you. And I don’t want to keep doing that.”
“So, this is it?” His face hardens. “You’re literally breaking up with me?”
My eyes sting. “You’re great, Drew. You’re kind. You’ve been patient with me, and I’ve been trying so hard to be the girl who deserves that. Be the girl who you deserve. But I’m not that girl for you.”
I look down at my bandaged hand, the reminder of everything that’s happened in the past twenty-four hours pressing down like a weight on my chest. “I don’t want to hurt you,” I say. “But I think staying with you would hurt you more.”
He stares at me like he’s trying to find the version of me he thought he knew somewhere inside this mess.
And then he simply…shakes his head. He doesn’t say anything else. Doesn’t yell. Doesn’t argue. Doesn’t call me a bitch for kissing another guy while we were together.
He just walks away.
And leaves me standing there alone.
Tears slip from my eyes almost immediately. I blink them back, trying not to let them fall, but it’s impossible. Everything feels like a disaster. A slow-motion, heart-wrecking disaster of my own making, and I am definitely the bitch for breaking the heart of an actual good guy.
I step out of the alcove and glance toward the dance floor again.
Ace.
He’s still surrounded by other girls. Scarlett’s with him again, all long legs and fake horns and devilish confidence. She leans in close, wraps an arm around his shoulders, and whispers something in his ear.
And then he looks up. Right at me.
Our eyes lock—for just a second.
But it’s enough to make my chest cave in on itself.
I look away first, and I don’t wait around. Don’t stop to explain or fix anything.
I hightail it to the nearest exit and leave.
Saturday, November 1st
Ace
My head’s still pounding, and I swear there’s glitter in my ear canal.
I’ve showered twice, but somehow, I still feel like I smell like fog machine and stale beer.