Chapter 37

Joey

Startled when the door swings open, I spill water down the front of my t-shirt.

Rushing in, Andi sees me, just as startled as if she’d forgotten I was here. Before I can ask her what’s wrong, she spins on her heel and closes herself into the tiny bathroom.

“Are you sick?” I call out, but the question goes unanswered. “I told you not to eat that meat earlier since you couldn’t tell what it was.”

Turning my focus back to the TV, I let my best friend take care of her business. Upset stomachs are frighteningly common on cruises. It isn’t until I can hear gasping sobs on the other side of the door that I realize that something more than a bout of diarrhea has upset her.

Climbing out of bed, I cross the room in a few short strides. I tap my knuckles on the door, praying she’ll answer and tell me what’s wrong. I don’t remember seeing pizza in her hands when she entered, but that was her sole reason for going upstairs. I use that as a means to lighten whatever put her in a foul mood.

“Food in the bathroom isn’t the most sanitary,” I joke. “Unless it’s chocolate in a bubble bath, and I know for a fact your shower has hardly enough room to stand in, much less take a bath.”

My words go unnoticed or ignored, but dutifully, I stand near the door just in case she whispers something for me to hear.

It feels like a lifetime before I hear the water in the sink turn on. Giving her some privacy, I climb back into the bed and wait for her to step out so we can talk about it.

“Your brother is a huge asshole,” are the first words she says to me as she steps over the threshold of the bathroom. Her face is red, eyes puffy from crying.

Knowing what is coming before she can even get the words out, I open my arms and urge her to sit down beside me. I’ve witnessed it before. My brother was more than likely in the bar setting up his fun for the night, and although she said she was going to get pizza, her first mission would’ve been to seek him and the other guys out.

What I haven’t seen before is her complete breakdown over the pain. She’s usually very stoic, hiding from the group for a few days until she works through her feelings before she shows up chipper like nothing has happened. That’s the surprise that was written on her face when she discovered I was still in here.

“I’m sorry my brother is an asshole,” I tell her as my arms squeeze her a little tighter before she pulls away.

“A huge asshole,” she clarifies.

“Huge,” I agree. “Do you want to talk about it or order room service?”

“Talk about it while waiting for room service?”

Smiling, I reach for the menu even though I already know what we’re getting. We’ve been doing this cruise for several years now, and the menu never changes.

After placing our order for massive BLTs and the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had, I turn my full attention to Andi who has gone from sad to angry and back to sad in the course of five minutes.

“I’m officially out of love with Jonathan Snow.”

I clasp her hands because even with the determination in her voice, I know she’s full of shit. This is just part of her process.

“Were you really in love?” This conversation we’ve had numerous times.

“Have you been paying attention?” she asks with a wry smile. “We’re meant for each other. I can honestly see us being good together.”

“He’s an asshole,” I remind her. “Tell me why you came back so upset without my pizza?”

Giving me an apologetic smile, she looks away, wrinkling her nose when she sees that Harry Potter is still playing on the TV. “On the way to get the pizza, I found the guys down in the club.”

“The club isn’t on the way to the pizza,” I interject. “It’s not even on the same level.”

Her eyes narrow, but she doesn’t refute my words.

“I went down to see what they were doing.” My skin tightens in fear of what she might say about what Anthony was doing. “Cooper was all over the tall chick from the beach, but your brother had already called it an early night. Apparently, the other two girls from the beach are okay with a little three-way action.”

“Where was Dave?” Not asking about Anthony directly may be the best way to go.

“Talking with Anthony like Cooper wasn’t getting his face sucked off by some nineteen-year-old right beside him.”

“So it was only that one girl with them? The one with Cooper?”

Even upset, Andi comically rolls her eyes at my own insecurities. “Yes, Joey. You have nothing to worry about with Anthony. He’s infatuated with only you. It’s your asshole brother who can’t see the greatness right in front of him.”

“What are you going to do?” I already know the answer, but for some messed up reason, I ask it anyway.

“Wait until he gets his head out of his ass,” she mutters as she reaches for the remote.

“Oh, Andi, no. Please. I love the guy, but you deserve so much better than him.” Hello, broken record.

“My heart breaks every time I know he’s with someone else, but the next day when it’s recovered a little bit, it’s always beating just for him.”

“Then listen to your head. You’re a smart woman.”

“My head? That traitorous bitch can’t decide between chocolate and vanilla half the time. I can’t trust it with huge life decisions.”

Refusing to argue with her, I turn my attention back to the screen. She’s stopped on Miss Congeniality even though the show is half over.

“I wish we had liquor in here,” she mutters just before a loud knock comes to the door. “Food’s here!”

She bounces off the bed like a bipolar rabbit and practically skips to the door. Reaching beside me, I pull out a couple dollars from my bag and pass it to her for the tip as the guy pulls plate after plate from his cart and situates them on the small coffee table.

We eat in near silence, watching Sandra Bullock be a complete badass on the small TV. Even with the chocolate cake, of which Andi devoured hers and almost half of mine, the overload of carbs from the sandwich and chips, along with the time we spent in the sun today takes its toll on her. Before long she’s yawning, her eyes drifting closed numerous times before she finally gives into sleep.

She won’t be surprised when she wakes up alone. She’s well aware how violently she thrashes around in her sleep. Seldom do we actually make it through a full night in the same bed. She’ll think I’d had enough and went to my own room, but with any luck, the room directly across from hers will remain empty for the rest of the night.

Turning off the light, but leaving the TV on for noise, I slip out of her room, not even pausing to look at my own door. The place I need to be right now is several floors up, and a long elevator ride away.