IRIS
FEBRUARY 14TH, 2000

      I AM BEYOND PISSED WITH JOEY LYNCH. I mean, he didn't even answer—like—any of my questions. Just left everything open and walked away.

The part I hated the most about what just happened was the fact that he still made my heart beat ten times faster than it should whenever he touched me.

And the fact that he brought up Christian. The way he said it like he could hang out with all the girls he wanted to hang out with, but I'm not allowed to have one guy friend.

He's lucky I didn't leave him right then and there.

"Hey Ivy." Rex skipped into the kitchen, heading straight towards the snack cabinets.

He's called me Ivy since we were five. He thought pretending to forget my name was funny, especially since it had pissed me off so much back then.

"You look like you're about ready to throw a fit."

"Oh, fuck off Rex." I grumbled, only proving him right.

Clearly not take aback by my words, Rex snickered "I knew it. I can always tell." He pulled out the box of cookies and marched over to stand beside me at the counter. "So, what did she do this time?"

By 'she', he's referring to Aoife. Last time I came home this mad was when she first started dating Paul. Not only because he had called me a slut the week before for doing absolutely nothing, but also because I knew Rex really liked her.

"It wasn't Aoife." I said, pulling a cookie out of his hands.

"Then who was it?"

"Joey."

"Joey?"

"Joey."

"My Joey?"

"No, the other Joey, Rex." Because we know so many. . .

"What other Joey?"

"There's no other Joey, ya eejit. We only know one." I resisted the urge to smack him across the face—an urge I get often. "I was being sarcastic."

"He talked to you?"

"Yeah." I nodded "walked me and Aoife home because her dad told him to."

Rex paused for a minute like he was doing math "her dad's his boss, right?"

"Right."

"So, how did he piss you off."

"He won't tell me what's wrong." I slumped against the counter. "I know I have no right to know what goes through his head, but I just thought we were closer than that. I thought maybe there was an actual good reason for him to just drop everything and abandon our friendship, but I'm starting to think that maybe I valued what we had more than he did."

Rex let out a sigh, dropping the cookie box on the counter before pulling me into a side hug. "Just give him some time. He's going through some stuff right now and he just needs a little while to get his head back on straight. I promise, once he's ready, he'll come crawling back to you." Then Rex laughed "he's always been madly in love with you and I'm pretty sure he always will be."

AUTHOR TALKS!!
Rex will not be the next Kevin Molloy.