-Taylor

* * * *

     By the time I had gotten home, a whole argument was happening on social media. My head was pounding and all I wanted to do was smash my phone with a hammer to stop the buzzing notifications I kept receiving. 

Tossing my book bag into the hallway closet, I drag myself into the kitchen. 

"Hey honey," my mom greeted. I looked up at her with an eyebrow raised. "Mom? What are you doing home so early?"

She grabbed the nearest rag and wiped her hands before making her way over to me. "I just thought I would come home early to get a head start on dinner. Your father has to work later than usual so it's just you, your brother and I tonight. I hope that's okay."

Her act of kindness made me question what was going on. Most days my parents worked until seven or eight PM, so I wondered why my mom decided to spend dinner with my younger brother Nick and I tonight. 

Before I could ask any more questions, she rushed back over to the kitchen island and grabbed a tray. "I made you kids after school snacks. Since I didn't know which one you preferred, I made both. There's fruit smoothies and meat and cheese wraps." Her voice was strained, like she was trying to stop herself from bursting out into tears. 

"Mom, what's wrong?" I ask cautiously. 

"Oh, it's nothing. I-I just finally opened my eyes and noticed. I-haven't been being a good mother lately. So, I talked with my boss, and changed my schedule around a little bit. Since there's still a lot to do at the art studio, I was only able to change Tuesday's and Thursday's from 7:00 AM to 2:30 PM. "

Rushing over to her, I pull her into a big hug. "I love you, mom," I mumble.

"I-I love you too sweetheart," she says in between small sniffles.

* * * *

"Bye mom, I'll be back in time for dinner!" I shout as I pull the front door closed behind me. I had told her I had to run to Taylor's for a school assignment. I know I shouldn't have lied, but what was I supposed to tell her? "Hey mom, I'm going to go meet up with my ex best friend/ boyfriend behind his current girlfriend's back to talk about who knows what."

I contemplated whether to go or not, but I was afraid he really would show up at my house or something. Whether he would or not, I didn't want to take the chance. 

Climbing into my 2015 Chevrolet Volt, I sigh deeply. 

Ten minutes later, I was pulling into the small parking lot in front of Silver-lake Park.  I rubbed my sweaty palms on my jeans. I would like to think they were caused by gripping the steering wheel a little too tight. But deep down, I knew that was bullshit. 

Pulling myself out of the car, I pull out my phone to check the time. It's 5:13, which means if Noah isn't here in two minutes, his chance of a conversation was off of the table. 

I started to walk up the small hill that acted as a divider between the park and the parking lot. Few people were here on this chilly day, but a couple of kids didn't mind the nippy weather and still laughed and chased each other around the playground. 

I took my time wandering around the area before making my way to the set of swings. Memories from my childhood bubbled to the surface as I took in the familiar surroundings. 

I hadn't been here since our break up. All of the memories from when Noah and I were toddlers to the end of our relationship flashed across my vision. A small smile appeared on my lips without me noticing as I thought back to third grade when we were playing pirates and I had to walk the plank.

I had just reached the swings when my head shot up at the sound of a deep voice. "Why are you smiling?" 

My smile faltered as I took in the sight of Noah. His brown hair was disheveled and the tip of his ears were beginning to turn red from the bitter breeze. He sat on one of the swings, his fingers dangling loosely around the rusty chains. 

I took a seat on the swing to the left of him before grumbling. "Is it a crime?" 

He chuckled, glancing at the squealing children in front of us. "No, not at all. It's just a rare sight to see."

"And as we both know, you would be the cause of that being so rare." 

"Lona-"

"Ma-lona," I corrected him bitterly. 

"Malona. I just want to talk."

"Two years. You had two years to talk, and you chose now?" The anger I had towards him surfaced and buried the few minutes of happy memories I had deep inside. 

"Malona, you don't understand! I tried. I called you everyday, texted as much as I could and even went to your house a few times! But every time, one of your parents would come to the door and say the same thing every time. "She's not ready." I did that for two months! How long was I supposed to wait for you? You didn't want to even look at me! I-I was miserable. You wouldn't let me in no matter what..."

"No, Noah! You are not about to make me feel like the bad guy here. Who's the one who made a horrible mistake? Who's the one who started to talk to other girls behind my back? Who's the one who ended our relationship out of the blue even after I forgave you for flirting with other girls? You were!" By the time I was done yelling, I was doing everything in my power to hold in the tears that burned in my eyes. 

"That's just it Lona! It was a horrible mistake! One that I've regretted since it happened! We were still young! I hadn't been in any real relationship until we both finally admitted our feelings for one another. I thought I needed to experience it all before staying loyal. I thought, hey, what the hell. She's my best friend. She'll forgive me. She'll understand." 

"And I did! I forgave you no matter how much I was hurting. I forgave you because I loved you even after you were disloyal to me. But what happened after that? You still left me!"

Noah was standing now, running his hands through his hair. Even in an argument, and even with a pained expression, he still managed to look handsome.

"Because I didn't forgive myself Malona. I saw how much it hurt you. I saw your pain. And I hated myself for it. It wasn't until you were out of my life in all that I realized just how fucked up it was to beg for your forgiveness and then break up with you and put you through even more pain."

There was a long silence, but Noah wasn't done. 

"I'm a good guy. I know what I did was wrong. It's way too late for apologizing, but you needed to know. My actions made me a fool and I lost the most generous, kindhearted girl I've ever met. And now this drama with Joyce just makes me feel even more guilty for ever treating you like dirt when you deserve to be treated like a queen by someone that truly loves you."

He left me baffled. Speechless. It took a minute to register his words, but when they did, I cleared my throat and stood up pulling my jacket tighter around me. "You're right. I deserve to be treated with respect. I appreciate your apology, but that doesn't mean everything is forgotten."

He looked at me, prompting me to continue. 

"You should probably tell your girlfriend about this little chat. She trusts you, so you wouldn't want her to think you're doing anything shitty behind her back, right? I hope you don't make the same pathetic mistake twice now."

With that, I trekked back to my car with a boost of confidence. Or bitchiness, whichever is more fitting due to that conversation. 

* * * *

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Yay! Another chapter complete! This one is longer than usual but I just couldn't stop writing! :)

I am hoping it wasn't too bad, so leave your thoughts in the comments and make sure to vote and share! 

Oh, and before I go, I am wondering how you guys like the social media posts? Do you think there's too many in a chapter or is it okay? I would really appreciate your feedback! :)