Gabe knocks on the door and I’m forced to reluctantly let the guy in. After all, this is technically his property. It’s been two whole days since I’ve seen that woman, Emma, and I’m going stir crazy in this house here. There’s nothing to do and nowhere to go. I’m just stuck, and my brother isn’t making things any better.

“I know you hate me, brother, but I’m going to keep checking up on you,” he says. “I still worry about you, you know.”

I groan and feel my hands start to shake with rage. “Did you get your head knocked in during one of your fights?” I ask him. “I never asked you for your help.”

“You were never the one to ask. That’s true. Look, you’re back here. You clearly need something,” he reasons. “So, whatever it is, I can help you.”

“I didn’t come back here for anything,” I say, slamming my fist against the table. “I came back to get away for a while. I need some nature in my life. I’m tired of the city life.”

“Whatever, man,” he laughs. “I can see that you’re lying to me right now, but it’s cool. We don’t need to talk about what’s really going on if you don’t want to.”

I run my hands through my hair and feel winded. Dealing with Gabe is like dealing with a fly that won’t leave you alone. Can’t he see that I just want peace and quiet? And Emma. I’d like a piece of her too. Truth is, I do get kind of lonely out here in the wilderness. There’s not much I can do besides turn on the TV, drink, and fall asleep. When I wake up, I’m already starting over again. It’s a constant loop of pain and regret.

“You should come over sometime,” he says, finally. “I’ve got a new house. Julia and I—”

I laugh, interrupting him before he can finish. “Julia,” I mutter under my breath. “Hah.”

Gabe stammers for a second, before he’s able to recuperate his words. “It would be nice to have you over for dinner. You know, we could put everything behind us for one night.”

“Sounds pretty terrible,” I sigh and turn on the TV, trying to tune him out.

He walks over and stands in front of the TV. “One night. One hour, even. That’s it. You don’t even have to do anything, but eat. It’ll be civil, I promise.”

I lean back against the couch. “One hour?” I ask him.

“Sure,” he says. “Whatever you want.”

“Can I bring someone?” I ask him, thinking about Emma. I don’t know if she’ll even want to go. After all, it was just a crazy thing that happened. I can’t go there alone, though. I need backup because if I don’t have any, I might lose my fucking mind. Julia. I hate that woman with a passion. I never want to see her face again. However, Emma could diffuse the situation. She could make it at least a little doable.

“Uh, sure,” he says, eyes turning big with surprise. “Anyone you like. I didn’t know you were, uh, seeing someone new.”

“I’m not. It’s just a friend,” I say.

“Who is he? Anyone I know?” he asks.

“He? Get the hell out of here. It’s a she. Her name’s Emma,” I say, turning away.

“She cute?” he asks, smiling.

“She’s alright,” I tell him. “Nice butt, I guess.”

He sits on the edge of the couch and nods his head. It pisses me off to see him smiling in that way of his. “It’s good to see you out there on the prowl,” he says. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

“She’s just a friend,” I reiterate. “And we’re not cool. You still piss me the fuck off.” I get up from the couch and turn the TV off.

“Alright,” he throws his hands up. “Sorry, man. I’ll back off. Dinner in two days. Seven pm. I’ll write the address down for you since you don’t have a phone anymore.”

“Whatever is easy for you,” I say. “I don’t care.”

He writes the address down on a small piece of paper and taps his hand against it. “It’s here for you. We’re hoping you’ll come through.” When I don’t say anything back, he opens the door and leaves me to the silence of my house.

Gabe can’t earn my trust back. Maybe I’m bitter, but everything inside my very being tells me that I’m right. He stole everything from me. He stole my life. I wouldn’t have gone to Buffalo in the first place, had he just been a normal guy about things and followed the code. Instead, he chose to violate it. He chose to fuck me over.

So, I don’t give a shit about him or Julia, that bitch. Because, when he fucked her, my girlfriend of five years, he essentially ruined our brotherhood forever. Sure, I’ll be at that dinner if Emma decides she wants to come with. But I don’t promise that it’ll be any fun. In fact, I have a feeling it’s going to get real interesting.

I turn the TV on to the sports channel and there’s the highlights of last week’s fight. An anchor says, “Gabe Payne has really stepped his game up. For a while, we saw him losing match after match, but he’s really made a comeback and—”

I turn the TV off again. Fuck it all.