JEN
“Mother fucking daughter of a lame donkey!” I scream, staring at the Facebook message on my screen.
I slept with your boyfriend on Saturday night.
I clench my teeth, my eyes narrowing at the screen.
That’s funny. Because I’m pretty sure MY boyfriend was in MY bed, being fucked my ME. ALL NIGHT.
I hit send, and nod sharply. I’ve been at Uni all day, worked my ass off, got given a stack of work to do, and then come home to this shitbag sending me bullshit messages.
It’s a frickin’ damn good job she isn’t right in front of me, or she could have a new nose to go with those footballs on her chest.
I slam the laptop shut, and walk across the room, fuming. It’s one thing to be told something when you’re unsure if it’s a lie – but to be told something that is clearly not true. Uh, yeah, hi Miss. Boobs-Bigger-Than-Your-Brain, but Bing obviously told you it wasn’t gonna happen on Saturday night, then came home with me. I think I’d know the whereabouts of my boyfriend.
That, and Bing’s balls are too precious to him for him to want me to put them on a restaurant menu.
Lexy opens my door, and stops mid-sentence when she sees me pacing.
“This doesn’t look good,” she says to herself, putting the Chinese food on the side.
“She! Whore! Bag! Muncher! Ahhhhh!” I throw my arms in the air, storm across the room, and grab one of the bags.
“Informative,” Lexy comments nonchalantly. “I absolutely know who that is, obviously. You were so clear in your explanation.”
“That… thing, your brother used to sleep with.”
“Again, that leaves me with a large choice, but since we saw Heidi on Saturday night, I’m gonna go out on a limb here. What’s she done?”
I put the egg fried rice down. “I… I… I just… Whore.” I finish, slamming the drawer shut.
“Again with information overload,” Lexy mutters.
“It’s a damn good job you’re my best friend, Edwards, or I’d have to kick your butt for using a pro level of sarcasm on me.” I point a fork at her. “Pro level is my level, and you’re getting too damn good at it. I’ma have to do something about that,” I muse to myself.
Lexy grins. “You rub off on people, Jen. It’s not my fault if I’m nursing some Jen-tude.”
“Jen-tude? What, for the love of all things smutty, is Jen-tude?”
“Its attitude only you can pull off. Therefore, Jen-tude.”
I nod. “I like it. We’ll keep it.” I wink as I sit down. “Anyway. Whorebag ex-girlfriend – whatever we’re calling her these days – tried to tell me she was with your brother Saturday night.”
“And have you spoken to Bing?”
I catch my tongue between my teeth. “I know she wasn’t with your brother. Let’s leave it at that, shall we?”
“Please.” She puts some food in her mouth, and looks around thoughtfully as she chews. “Heidi is an asshole.”
“Politer than I’d use, but yeah, we can use that.”
“What would you – you know what? Don’t worry.”
I laugh. “Anyway, what I’d call her isn’t important. The point is I’ve just come out of a shambles of a relationship, haven’t I? Because essentially, that’s what it was in the end with Carl. A shambles, right?”
“Right.”
“And I’ve kinda rushed into another relationship.”
“Right. But you wanted this.” She frowns. “Didn’t you?”
“Well, yeah, obviously. I’ve only been making googly eyes at the lobster head for the last year and half.” I roll my eyes. “But this relationship has barely begun, and already it’s like I’ve stepped into a soap opera.” I sigh, poking food around in the plastic tub. “I don’t want the bullshit that goes along with this, Lex. I don’t want the jealous ex with constant rumours, I don’t want the constant doubt over whether or not the vindictive bitch actually means what she says.
“I just want Bing. Me and him, no fuss, no drama. Just crazy nights out, crazy nights in, and crazy days to fill it all in. Because that’s us – we’re both crazy, and that’s why it works.” I look down at the table, heaviness settling in my stomach at the thought of it not working. For the last year and a half, he’s wormed his way into my life and my heart. He hasn’t taken Carl’s place – he’s taken the whole damn lot of me. “I don’t want there to be any drama unless we make it ourselves. I just want us.”
Lexy is quiet as she mulls over my words. She knew it already – of course she did. She knows me better than Daniel Radcliffe knows the character of Harry Potter. She knows all my fears, all my hopes and dreams, but my feelings about her brother aren’t something I’ve ever fully opened up about. Sure, I’ve dropped hints, I’ve been obvious, and we’ve had small conversations about it, but this is different.
This is me admitting I want the kind of love she has with Alec. This is me admitting I could have found it. With Bing.
“I think you have to stop worrying about what other people say. Face it, Jen,” she says quietly, looking at me. “People are always gonna try and put you down. No matter how good or bad you do in life, there will always be someone there to pull you down. If you let them, then they’ve won. Don’t let her pull you down. As gross as it is, I like you and Bing together. You make each other happy in a crazy kinda way I’ll never understand – but you’re happy, and that’s all that matters to me. Don’t let her jealousy and rumours stand in the way of what you have, or even what you could have.”
I nod slowly, closing my eyes.
“You aren’t her, Jen,” she continues. “I’m damned if I can work out what has my brother so enthralled-” I open my eyes and glare at her. “-But something has. When we were in Devon, Mum said to me that everyone has a bada bing person. I was Alec’s – I was the one person to change his life and make him re-evaluate everything he thought he knew.” She smiles softly and it’s full of love. It’s the kind of smile you see on your grandparent’s faces. It’s the kind of smile that shows a timeless love.
“You are that person. You know that.” I flick some rice her way.
She swats it away. “I do know that.” Her brown eyes meet mine. “But do you know that you’re my brother’s bada bing person?”
“How do you know that I am?” I narrow my eyes.
Lexy smiles at me, a cheeky, playful smile, and shrugs a shoulder. “Basically, I know it because I’m the shit.”
My pursed lips transform into a smile, and I let out a giggle. Trust her to the only person to take me from angry, to sad, to happy, all in the space of twenty minutes.
She exaggerates a wink to me across the table, snapping a bite of prawn cracker off.
Some things in life are priceless – and true friendship is one of them.