Six Months Ago

Saturday (The Day Before Graduation)

"Hold up! All this happened in the last two days? This weekend? Friday and Saturday? Yesterday and today?" Mia looks at me incredulously. "You can't be serious." She flips the hair out of her face in frustration. Her long, curly black hair is the perfect complement to her off-beat, thrift store sense of fashion. My best friend, but also my family, Mia is the little sister that thinks she's bigger than the big sister. Slightly taller than me, she tries to use that extra inch to make me believe it but it doesn't work. I'm sharper, smarter and cuter. OK. She's cute too. Super cute, actually.

"Oh, I'm serious, Mia! So, my question is, what do I do about it?"

"I'll tell you what you do, chica! You can't let these guys run over you," my down-for-everything girl, Penelope, puts her two cents in.

Forever in my corner, Penelope Lopez is the kind of girl you keep around when things go south. She doesn't shy away from a challenge and will hold you steady when you're unsure. Ever since her mom moved into our neighborhood in third grade, we three have been thick as a full head of unkempt, natural hair. We're inseparable.

"Where do they get off thinking they can treat you like that? The disrespect! Pinche pendejos!" Her stunning hazel eyes burn with frustration. She runs her hand through her long, black, shiny mane.

The waitress sits a café mocha with a heart swirled into the foam, in front of me, a café latte and blueberry muffin for Mia, and caramel flan latte for Penelope. It's late in the evening, but caffeine never goes out of style for us. I intentionally slurp the heart out of my foam. Who needs it?

"What do you think Sebastian was talking about when he said he stood there watching you for twenty minutes?"

"Girl, I have no idea how he could see me doing anything anywhere, we didn't see each other last night. I cancelled our date because I had to work all night! And trust me, nothing happened at the job."

"Let's back track that for a second." Mia's investigative bone kicks in. "I need to know everything. Is there anything you haven't told us?"

"I don't know. Let me think." I try remembering anything worth telling. "Sebastian's always been a little insecure. He used to tell me about this reoccurring dream he had of me cheating on him with a guy at a party." I frown and shrug my shoulders.

"That's only because he's a rotten boyfriend," Mia adds.

"Yeah, didn't he sleep around when you two first got together?"

"That was before we got serious."

Mia purses her lips. "Well, those dreams are just residual guilt. The guilt comes when they start catching feelings for you."

"You're probably right," I admit.

"Chica, is that it? Cause a dream shouldn't have caused him to act like that. Unless he's one of those domestic violence crazies. You know, you've seen the type on Investigation Discovery, aka ID." She raises her perfectly arched eyebrow. "You know my neighbor, Karen? She was involved with one of those crazies and—"

"—Penelope, let's stay on task." Mia looks at me. "Anything else you can tell us?"

"Like what?"

"Like anything, Ari. The devil's always in the details."

"Nope. Went straight home. I was exhausted. I made a lot of money last night, but I was done. Had nothing left. I went home and crashed." I sip my café mocha.

"Well, Sebastian's got a problem, if you ask me. So, you go to the get-together today and he dumps you? Just like that?" Penelope snaps her finger.

"Yes. Now you know just as much as I do."

"Well, what about his mother? I'm sure that old bitch had something to do with it." Penelope shakes her head. "She should be ashamed of herself. How she treated you!"

"Yeah. I think so too. You should've seen how much she was enjoying it. Made me sick to my stomach."

"I say we pay that coddling cabrón and his hag-ass mother back." Penelope's eyes light up.

"I usually don't condone things like that, but I agree. After what he did, he deserves it, Ari. Look at you! You look terrible, girl. Flat-out beat down. I can't stand to see you like this. I'm in." Mia takes a bite of her muffin.

"And as for Phoenix? What should I do about that situation?"

"The older guy from the club?" Mia takes another bite.

"You mean the hot older guy?" Penelope adds.

"He's only like thirty." I roll my eyes.

"I'd take the money and keep it moving! It was a gift, right?" Penelope raises her eyebrows as a huge smile lights up her gorgeous face. "What?" She runs her hand down her long dark hair and holds up her index finger. "See, he's no coddling cabrón. He's a full-grown man! Puts his money where his mouth is. His word means something, ya know? And from the sound of it, he's the type to make you say, damn! Hmm. I wouldn't mind meeting him, myself!"

We don't call her the man-eater for nothing.

"I bet you would Penelope!" Mia turns to me. "I don't know. I don't like any of it. It's great that he apologized and everything, but the fact that he did what he did in the first place. I don't like it."

"She's right. He's not perfect. A little damaged, maybe, but still good at heart. At least be cool with him, chica. From the sound of that letter, he plans on seeing you around. Probably at your job. I say forgive him and see what happens. I mean you never know, you did say he was quite the charmer before he got drunk."

"Now that I think of it. It's kind of odd. Like that Phoenix guy was a sort of harbinger? You know, he kind of foretold that things were going to change for you?" The wheels turn behind Mia's eyes. "Think about it. He unexpectedly called you out your name and sort of embarrassed you at work. I say 'sort of' because the music was so loud, and the people were so drunk, no one was really paying attention or remembers. But it set the scene for what you'd experience today." Mia emphasizes her point, pounding the table lightly with her fist.

"She's right!" Penelope leans forward. "He was like the check engine light you get on a trap car before the engine explodes."

"He was your warning. Sebastian called you a bitch today and totally humiliated you while everyone was paying attention and watching. And take that a step further. This was like a sign from like the Universe."

"I'm listening."

"Look at it. Both situations stopped you dead in your tracks. They halted you and called your attention. Then both situations caused you to veer off course and go in a different direction! On one hand, you were led toward someone new, toward a budding new friendship with Phoenix. As crazy as that sounds."

"Um-huh!" Penelope nods in agreement and pounds the table one good time. "Preach!"

"And in the other situation, you were led away from someone, someone you had your heart set on. It ended your long-term relationship with Sebastian, something you probably never would've done yourself. Honestly, he wasn't for you, but you couldn't see it. Now he's out the picture, your life is going in a new direction. Maybe Phoenix was a good thing?"

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Two more cups of café mocha later, and the caffeine isn't enough to rid me of heavy eyelids. I crawl into bed using my last ounce of strength. I'm beat. It's been a super long, trying day. Just as I pull the sheets up over my shoulders, I hear birds chirping, welcoming the new day as I'm trying to get rid of the old one. I desperately need sleep but sleep won't find me. A montage of the day's events flash before my eyes. I'm haunted by it all.

The sense of being entirely alone suddenly seizes my body as I realize there's no one that can help me out of this. It's only me and I have no idea what to do to fix what's been done. An overwhelming sadness floods my body. The dam is overflowing and ready to break. I press my face into a pillow, and screaming as loud as I can, banish Sebastian forever. I let it all out, all the pain, anguish, sorrow, and confusion. I feel like a lonely wolf, howling at the moon.

All this and graduation is only a few hours away! My face tells the story of a girl that's traveled the horrors of Dante's Nine Circles and lived to tell about it. "Abandon all hope, ye who enters here!" My life!

I should be excited, happy because I finally did it. I'm graduating, with honors. Four years of sacrifice, of eating Ramen noodles, of late nights studying and getting no sleep. Four years of working crappy campus jobs, having no money, and spending my last cent on textbooks. I've worked hard and should be enjoying this moment, but I can't bring myself to focus on it long enough for it to take priority over my broken heart. My world is crumbling while I'm supposed to be making plans to celebrate. It's ass backwards.

And he did this. Timed it well. Maximum impact. Double whammy. He got me good. What a cunning, calculating asshole! How could I be so blind? And so wrong about him? How did I not see this coming? How long had he been planning this?

Damn, that burns.

To know that someone I was so close to had it in for me like that is mind blowing. What made his hatred run so deep?

I accept it. This relationship was a fake. Counterfeit. But no matter how phony he is, I am real and I deserve better than this.

Then on the flip side, Phoenix! He totally blindsided me with that letter. I don't know if I should love him or hate him. It's confusing. What was he thinking being so disrespectful? We had just met. He must be used to women falling at his feet just because he shows a little interest.

Dazed and exhausted from what turned out to be one of the most puzzling days of my life, I drift off into a restless sleep.

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A/N: Hey Lovers! This is the end of chapter 9. What do you think? Are Mia and Penelope right? Please Vote, Comment and Follow! Let me know!

I'm dedicating this chapter to @abradant because I love my interaction with this reader! It's been awesome talking to you and reading your comments. Thank you!