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“So, how do you know Ben?”
“How do you know Ben?” Charlie countered with a suspicious smile.
I was amused. It only took five minutes of being around the guy to summarize his personality. He was the playful sort.
And somewhat strange.
“Well, I’m going to assume Ben already told you how he knows me,” I answered.
He gave me a quirky eyebrow. “True. But maybe someone’s gonna make something up, and then I can crack open a huge conspiracy.”
I laughed at his feigned seriousness, and then I lowered my voice and said, “You’re right, just don’t tell anybody that Ben is actually my brother.”
He gasped. “Brother?” he hissed. “Wow, that’s not what he said!”
“What did he say?” I asked with narrowed eyes.
Charlie shook his head, dramatically glancing around to make sure no one was listening. “Just that the two of you are actually married but can’t let anyone know about it.”
I snorted. “Oh, did he really open up about that?”
He nodded decisively. “Yes, but I’m not supposed to tell anyone.”
“Okay,” I whispered back. “Don’t tell anyone.”
Charlie took a drink of his soda, so I had another bite of my food. We were the only two still sat the table. Ben and Andy had gone to get another pizza, and Laurel had made a trip to the bathroom. Laurel was Andy’s girlfriend, and I really liked her. She was very easy going, and we both had similar backgrounds. Apparently, Charlie’s date was ill and had to cancel that day, which is why Ben had an extra ticket. Charlie claimed I was his date since I got that ticket, but Ben made it clear I was no one’s date, and warned him to keep his distance.
“It’s true, though,” Charlie finally said.
“What’s true?”
“Ben.”
“What about him?” I scoffed, confused by what he was talking about.
“I’m not supposed to tell.”
“Tell what? Are you talking in riddles, or what?”
“Yeah, pretty much. Because I can’t tell.”
I studied him for a few seconds before shrugging my shoulders. “Okay, don’t tell. But do tell me how you know Ben. You, Ben, and Andy all went to school together, right? I think that’s what he said.”
“Kind of,” he mumbled through a mouthful of food. He swallowed and added, “Ben and I were good friends—not as close as him and Austin—but I was more the junkie that always got Ben into trouble.”
I was not expecting that kind of response. “What do you mean?”
“I was a junkie,” he repeated with a shrug. “Ben and I were friends, but while he got caught up in the gambling world, I got hooked on heroin. He had a hard time hanging around me because of it—which was understandable—but Ben was the one who got me clean. Beat the crap out of me one night, and made me admit myself into rehab. I’d be dead by now if he hadn’t intervened.” I guess I was just staring at him because he smiled and said, “Oh, he didn’t exactly share that about me? Not surprising, I guess. Ben’s kind of a respecter of privacy.”
“Actually, I think he’s kind of nosy.”
“Oh, you mean he questions you about your life and stuff? Well, that’s different. That’s because he actually cares. I meant he keeps people’s private matters private.”
“Oh.”
“But he doesn’t have a problem speaking his mind, if that’s what you mean.”
“Yeah, I guess,” I replied, taking a sip of my water.
“It bothers you?”
I set my cup down and took a moment to think. “No, I guess not, because I like talking to him. We’ve become friends.”
Charlie eyed me while he took a bite. If I wasn’t mistaken, I could swear he was trying to hide a smile. But Ben and Andy set another pizza on the table just as Andy asked, “Laurel’s still gone?”
I guess she had been gone for a while, but I’d been busy conversing with Charlie. “You want me to go check on her?”
“Um, yeah, if you don’t mind,” he replied. “She, uh, might not be feeling well.”
“Is she sick, too?”
Andy gave me a tiny smile, seemingly embarrassed. I only glanced at Ben, who didn’t react except for a slight raise of his eyebrow to clue me in.
“I’ll go check on her,” I said, leaving for the bathroom.
Laurel did seem ill when I spotted her at the sink. She looked like she’d just thrown up, and she took a deep breath after blotting her mouth dry with a paper towel. She saw me standing near the doorway, and froze.
“You doing okay?” I asked.
“Yeah, I just...well...I’m...”
“You don’t have to talk about it. I can figure it out.”
She paused but wiped away a tear that slid down her cheek.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked.
She grabbed another paper towel and blotted around her eyes. “No, that’s okay. Maybe I do, but not here.”
“I understand.”
She hesitated again, and I was thankful the restroom was empty when she started to cry. “Andy wants to marry me,” she admitted quietly. “I know he loves me, and I know he’d be a great dad, but I don’t feel the same way.”
I leaned against the counter. “At all? Do you think you might if some time passed, or maybe after the baby is born?”
She barely shrugged. “I think it’s wrong to marry him just because I’m pregnant. I mean, this shouldn’t have happened in the first place, but it’s a little late for that.”
I smiled sympathetically.
“How can it be a good start to a marriage if it’s done out of obligation?” she asked.
“It’s a hard thing to determine because you don’t have that option right now. But at least Andy is taking responsibility. If you don’t feel good about marrying him right now, then don’t. You still have time to consider your future. And I don’t know the two of you that well, but I think Andy is willing to give you whatever it is you need. That alone says a lot about what kind of guy he is.”
“I know,” she nodded. “And he is a good guy. I just don’t like feeling pressured.”
Just hearing her say that made my stomach sink. It was just like Austin and me, only the roles were reversed.
“Can you tell him to give you some time to sort everything out?” I asked.
“I did, and he agreed. But I know it’s what he wants—marriage—and I don’t. At least not right now.”
“Okay, so—”
A woman walked into the bathroom, briefly glancing at us before entering a stall. I motioned to Laurel, and she followed me out.
“We can talk about it later if you want,” I told her.
“Okay,” she nodded. “Uh, thanks, Nova.”
“Sure, anytime.”
After quick glances from everyone at the table, we sat down and proceeded with our pre-concert meal. I watched Andy and Laurel out of the corner of my eye, though. Andy had put his arm around her when she sat next to him, and I could tell he asked if she was okay.
“Everything okay in the little girls’ room?” Ben asked as we left the restaurant.
“Yes, conversation-wise. But I think only time will tell for the other stuff.”
He nodded as he opened the passenger’s door to his Jeep. “Laurel worries what everyone else thinks instead of what’s important.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, feeling slightly defensive for her sake.
He remained at the door when I sat. “She cares too much about the reasons behind staying with Andy. It’s dumb because they were going to end up together anyway.”
“You don’t know that,” I replied.
“I don’t? They’ve been together for two years, Andy even had a ring—before the whole baby thing happened—and there’s no doubt she would have said yes.”
“Well, maybe proposing might have actually helped?” I retorted sarcastically.
He scoffed, and then shut my door. I watched him walk around to the driver’s seat and sit down. “So a guy can’t be nervous about proposing to a girl?” he asked me as he turned the key. “He only had the ring for a couple of weeks. He had everything planned—how he was going to propose and when—and then two days before he can get it out, she tells him she’s pregnant. What’s that supposed to do to a guy? He feels like an ass if he says, ‘Well, see, I wanted to marry you anyway...’”
“And he didn’t tell her that?”
“Should he have? He did eventually, but she already had it in her head that it was for the wrong reasons. When you’re feeling the heat, you’re not thinking straight and you don’t exactly say the ‘right’ things. Yeah, later he wanted to kick himself—when he didn’t tell her right away about the ring.”
“He eventually told her, and she didn’t believe him?”
“I don’t know if she didn’t ‘believe’ him, but she was pretty skeptical. I think she was already pretty stressed out about it.”
“Understandable.”
“So why are you blaming Andy? He was stressed out, too.”
“I’m not blaming anyone.”
“You seem to have your opinions set.”
“And what opinions are those?”
He sighed heavily. “Never mind.”
“Ben, I don’t know Andy and Laurel very well. All I know is what she told me—that she didn’t want to marry him—and I think it’s just a matter for the two of them to—”
“Wait a minute, she told you she doesn’t want to marry him? At all? She doesn’t want to marry him at all?”
He was seemingly shocked, but I didn’t know how to respond. “Well...I think she’s very emotional right now, Ben. Just give her some time to vent her worries.”
“I kind of thought you’d be on Andy’s side for this one.”
“Why, because Andy and I are in the same boat? We’re both pathetic fools in a relationship with someone who doesn’t share our same relationship goals?” He didn’t reply, so I added, “Maybe Andy and I should just marry each other.”
He chuckled at that. “Nah, he’s too in love with Laurel.” I didn’t disagree, but he quickly added, “Not that there’s anything wrong with you, it’s just that—”
“Yeah, yeah, sure. We all know I’ll become a spinster.”
He laughed again when we took an exit. “Whatever. You could have any guy you want. Except Andy, because he’s taken,” he joked.
“And except Austin, because he’s got more important things on his list.”
We drifted into silence again, but I could tell Ben felt bad for me. I knew I was throwing myself my own little pity party, but it was hard not to.
“Austin’s clueless,” he finally said. “If I were you, I wouldn’t put up with his crap. Just saying.”
“And what am I supposed to do?” I scoffed, slightly irritated.
“All right, since you asked,” he answered with contrived enthusiasm.
“Okay, so I know you have your opinions. Let’s hear ‘em.”
“I don’t think right now is a good time.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m afraid you’ll get pissed with me and hitch a ride home.”
“I doubt it,” I murmured, but I was amused.
He didn’t respond.
“There’s no way I’m missing Brandon Flowers,” I added.
With a chuckle he said, “Maybe he’ll marry you.”
“He’s already married.”
“Oh.”
“Anyway, I thought I was married to you,” I told him.
He cast me a look of confusion. “Huh?”
“Charlie claims we’re secretly married but he’s not supposed to tell anyone.”
Ben rolled his eyes. “And what else did he tell you?”
“Charlie? Uh, nothing really. He’s kind of weird, you know.”
“Yeah, which causes me to worry sometimes,” he smiled.
“Worry about what? All your deep, dark secrets?”
“Maybe. Probably should have had him ride with us, though. Laurel and Andy might’ve needed some time alone.”
We’d arrived at the Fox Theatre, and after Ben parked, the subject was dropped. I started to get excited for the concert again, and having a night out with Ben and his friends seemed to be just what I needed. From the opening act to the very end, the show was amazing, and even though I barely knew Andy, Laurel, and Charlie, I had a lot of fun with them.
We dropped by a busy bar-and-grill afterwards, mainly because Charlie wanted nachos. But he disappeared for a bit, and we didn’t know where to find him when it was time to leave.
“Fuck,” Ben hissed suddenly, and he abandoned us, too.