K. Robinson: Twisted Ties

“Whoa, wait a minute. You’ve never watched a Saw movie before?”

I shook my head. “Nope, never.”

“Okay, now, we have to watch it. You’ll love it.”

“I seriously doubt that.” I popped the top off my beer and took a drink.

“Trust me, you will. And it looks like you’re in luck. They’re doing a Saw marathon day. You can watch them all.”

“Lucky me,” I grumbled as I nursed my beer.

“Chicken,” he coughed out under his breath.

“I am not! I just don’t want to watch people die and stuff.”

“And stuff? Really?”

“Shut up, and watch your damn movie.”

He laughed as he threw the remote down onto the coffee table and leaned back into the couch.

As we watched the first movie, I had to admit that it was pretty good. I would cringe from time to time when something was too gross, but other than that, I was fine. I put away my ice cream halfway through the first movie and grabbed us both new beers from the fridge. I had to admit that hanging out with Andy was actually kind of fun, and he was taking my mind off of everything happening in my life.

By the time the third movie started, the coffee table was littered with beer bottles, and I was starting to feel the effects of the alcohol coursing through my blood. Andy seemed to still be sober, but I wasn’t sure. I didn’t want to look like a lightweight, so I kept my mouth shut.

“I’m tired,” I mumbled as I rested my head against Andy’s arm.

“You can’t fall asleep on me. We have to finish the movie!” Andy said as he pulled me against him and wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

“I’m not going to fall asleep, I promise. I just need to rest my eyes.” I closed my eyes and relaxed into Andy. God, he smells good. I had no idea how I hadn’t noticed this before. I inhaled deeply, breathing in his scent.

I dozed on and off as the movie played. I would jump and snuggle in closer to Andy when someone on TV screamed in terror. I must have finally fallen asleep toward the end because when I woke up, the house was dark, and the TV was off.

I could feel Andy rubbing my lower back underneath my shirt. I knew I shouldn’t like it, but it felt so damn good. I’d been so alone this past month, but I didn’t feel that way with Andy next to me. I took another deep breath, instantly regretting it. Between his scent and his hand rubbing my back, I felt myself starting to become aroused. I knew this was a bad idea and that I needed to leave, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

His hand slipped lower until he was teasing the top of my shorts. My breathing grew heavy as I tried not to pay attention to what his hand was doing.

“Emma? Are you okay?” Andy whispered in the darkness.

Present Day

Life sucks. It had taken me a while to realize that, but it finally hit me like a ton of bricks. The only positive is that you learn from your experiences, and you grow.

Two years ago, I’d certainly grown up when I walked in on the boy I thought I loved in bed with one of his best friends. I’d learned to let him go as time passed—or at least I thought I had.

Now, I wasn’t so sure. There are people who pass through your life who forever change you and everything you thought you knew about yourself and the world. Jesse was one of them.

It had been two years since I’d left him standing in his driveway, but I’d never been able to let him go completely.

I’d debated this decision for months. I’d told myself over and over that it was stupid and pointless, but I think I always knew that I would end up here. I knew that Jesse had been a part of my old life, my old self, but I couldn’t get my heart to accept that little fact.

I gripped the steering wheel tightly as I drove down I-79 from the Pittsburgh airport to my new school. Up ahead, I saw the sign welcoming me to my new state. It was ridiculous to be nervous at the sight of a simple sign. The chances of him ending up at the same school as me were slim to none.

Then, why am I here?

I took a deep breath as I glanced up at the sign just before I drove past it.

Welcome to West Virginia.

“You okay?” Andy asked from the passenger seat.

“Yeah, I’m just nervous.”

“Don’t be. This is a whole new experience for you. You can be whoever you want here, and no one will know you’re the rich girl from Santa Monica. You can tell them you’ve been living in a box or something.”

“I’m not nervous about anyone finding out who my dad is. I’m nervous about the fact that I might see Jesse again.”

“I know. I was being sarcastic. I know it’s pointless to tell you not to stress, but I’m going to—again. Don’t stress. If you and Jesse were meant to be together, things will work out. If you two weren’t meant to be, you’ll find someone else.”

“You make it sound so easy. I just want to find him, so I can at least apologize for assuming the worst. He tried to tell me, but I wouldn’t listen.”

“If I’d walked in on my girlfriend in bed with another guy, I would have thought the same thing you did. You can’t be angry with yourself. You were trying to protect yourself from being hurt.”

“I’d still like to punch Ally.”

Andy snorted. “I’m her brother, and I want to punch her for what she did.”

After Jesse had left, Andy and I became good friends. Ally hated that little fact, and she’d refused to speak to her brother for months. When she finally had, she’d dropped a bomb on him. I still felt sick to my stomach every time I thought about that day.

Andy called me one afternoon just as I was leaving school. “Hey, Emma. Can you come over to my house for a while? I need to talk to you.”

“Yeah, I’ll head over now. What’s wrong?”

“I’ll see you when you get here,” Andy said before he ended the call.

All the way to his house, I was terrified of what he wanted to tell me. I had no idea what it could be, but I was afraid that it had something to do with Jesse. I was just starting to let him go, and I wasn’t sure what I would do if I found out he had moved back.

Out of habit, I glanced at Jesse’s old house when I drove past.

A new family was living there now. They’d moved in just over a month ago. The first time I’d driven by and noticed cars in the parking spaces, I’d nearly had a panic attack. I’d run into Andy’s house, freaking out about it, until he’d calmed me down enough to tell me that it wasn’t Jesse.

“What’s up?” I asked nervously after walking into his house.

Andy had become one of my best friends, and I never bothered to knock anymore.

“Sit down. I need to talk to you,” Andy said.

“You’re starting to freak me out. What’s wrong?”

“Ally finally decided to talk to me.”

“And that’s a good thing? Should I throw a party?” I asked sarcastically.

“She told me something that I think you should know.”

“And that would be…”

“Jesse didn’t sleep with her,” Andy said quietly.

I froze. “What?”

“Ally admitted that Jesse didn’t sleep with her. I guess he was upset because you two got in a fight, so he got trashed. Ally brought him home and stayed with him. She said she did it in case you came looking for him. She didn’t want you to hurt him anymore. Of course, you did come to his house, and we know what happened after that. I’m so sorry, Emma. I’m so fucking pissed off at Ally right now. I have no idea how she could do that to either of you.”