- Ch. 1 | Ophelia

  (unedited)

  *Age 22*

  "I don't think he's going to go for it..." Willow, of course, picked up before I even pressed my phone to my ear, "not only is he the jealous type, but he literally cannot function without you. Hundred bucks says he won't go for it."

  "I don't have betting money like that and you know it. "

  "I don't want to cause any problems, Phe." I'm not a liar, especially to Willow, but I've been skirting the line lately. We've always danced around the subject, but I know the moment I get too defensive I'll give too much away.

  "What is it that you think is going to happen?" I force a laugh.

  She lets out a defeated sigh, "I don't know, Phe." At the same moment, I hear a deep voice ask, "Is that Ophelia?" and it makes my heart stop. I haven't heard his voice in three years, so long, I nearly forgot what it sounded like. Then I hear the unmistakable sound of Willow slapping his chest as she says, "Do you remember the last time you tried to leave the state?"

  "I wasn't trying to leave the state, I was trying to leave *him*."

  Did he call in a bomb threat to the airport? Unconfirmed.

  Was I escorted off the plane in zip ties and put on a no fly list? Unfortunately, yes.

  "That doesn't make me feel any better." She's nearly out of breath, batting her brother away when she asks, "Does he-Trissy I swear to god," I hear his deep laugh as she pushes him away again, "-you're safe, right Phe?"

  The silence echoes when his laughter cuts off.

  "I'm good, Will." I smile through the words even though she can't see me, hoping she can hear it in my voice, and nothing else, "You know how my parents are. Theirs no way I'll be able to bail on this."

  I haven't seen Willow since she was offered her dream job six months ago and moved across the state. After living right next door for most of our lives, it's been an adjustment.

  "I'm not worried about your parents, I'm worried about how your fiancé will react."

  Suddenly, I'm wondering why I called her. Willow treads lightly around the subject but it's clear she suspects something. More and more lately I'm having a hard time maintaining the facade.

  "You know what? You're right. I'm not really sure what I'm so stressed out about." I laugh, though it's strained.

  "Wait Phe-"

  "Will, it's late, I gotta get inside, I'll call you in the morning okay?"

  After a brief pause, Willow lets out another sigh, "I love you Phe. Call me if you need me."

  "Love you too. I will."

  "But actually do it."

  "I will."

  - --

  "Absolutely, not." Jon is standing in the kitchen, still in his gym clothes. My eyes track a drop of sauce that falls from the pizza slice in his hand to the white tile beneath him.

  "You know I don't really have a choice. My parents want me at this fundraiser. I'll leave tomorrow morning and be back within 24 hours."

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  Before I've finished my sentence he's already shaking his head. "No, no way, I have a game!" he all but stomps his foot, "You need to be there!"

  "And I will be." I say as calmly as I can without seeming like I'm placating him, "I just have to leave right after."

  He folds his arms across his chest beneath his sleeveless t shirt. *What's the point in wearing a t shirt if you've ripped it so much it shows both your nipples?* I already know what he's about to ask when he leans on the counter behind him, "Are you meeting someone there?"

  The truth is the only option here, I mentally cringe but do my best to keep a neutral face and say, "The Blume Family is hosting the event, so it's safe to assume they'll be there."

  "So Tristian will be there."

  "Tristian Blume, Willows brother will be there, yes."

  "If he's going, you're not."

  This is what I don't understand, he's always had an issue with Tristian. He'd give us rides and let us tag along on most of his tamer adventures in high scool. He's never been anything but brotherly to me.

  "Do we really have to have this conversation again? I'm not cheating on you." Something changed in his expression but at this point, I was beyond evaluating it. A new rage burning in me, I say, "I really wasn't asking you, I was letting you-"

  He pushes himself off the counter and stalks a few steps toward me, "You wanna try that again?"

  It takes everything in me to keep my composure and not fall in on myself. Luckily I have a lot of experience in deescalating. "You could come with me." My voice comes out small and I'm hoping he thinks the idea is ridiculous, "I just figured you'd be too tired to travel after your game and I know you don't even like Kansas City and I didn't want-"

  "You, you, you that's all you think about, huh?" he takes another step toward me, backing me into the sink and invading my space.

  Forcing my eyes to watch him instead of rolling like they so desperately want to, "What's this really about?" he and I both know that every game I've been to he's lost.

  "I guess I can't stop you, can I?" he tosses his crust into the garbage beside me. As if that was the plan all along. *How did I end up with someone that doesn't like pizza crust??* I don't miss the threat laced between his words. "How do I even know you'll come back? How do I know this isn't some elaborate ruse to leave me again?"

  I turn my back to him, causing him to take a half step back, and start unloading the dishwasher that I filled this morning, hoping it will diffuse some tension, "It's not like I even want to go. I'm only going because my parents need to show a unified front, you know how it is."

  I can feel the burn of his eyes fueling the tears brimming in my eyes. He rips the freezer open, grabs a handle of whiskey and slams it closed turning his back and mumbles, "We'll talk in the morning."

  I know he thinks he won.

  Maybe, in a way, he did.

  ---