Page 22 of Don’t Forget Me

He found me once, when I was twelve. I was incapable of pressing an antiseptic cotton swab on a gash on my back, and he’d entered my room to call me for dinner when he saw me struggling. Ever since then, he’s made sure to keep close. We’ve been inseparable. But it still didn’t stop me from being annoyed at his mocking smirk when that girl walked away from me.

“So, Davi, here is our room,” I said as I opened the door. My dry tone hurt even me, it wasn’t his fault I was being punished.

My father made me accept him as a roommate just to remind me that he was the one in control here. To indirectly tell me how my life was his and not my own.

His brown eyes were captivated by the chambers before us. I remained silent, my lips in a line as he gasped. As if he’d never seen something so wondrous before, but I didn’t think there was anything special about the room, other than the fact that it was the largest room on the campus. Only because my father paid for it, and not because I had earned it.

“That’s your side, and this is mine.” I pointed.

His side of the room was left blank, while mine held dozens of imprints of my soul in it. Pictures, vinyls, books, candles, and my belongings were spread across my side.

“T-thank you,” he gulped out with a harsh accent. “You have no idea how excited I am to be here today.”

“Ah, I didn’t do much.”

“Your hospitality is enough. So, thank you. I was nervous to come from Brazil to Scotland. My accent is horrible, but everyone from the airport and on the tram was kind to me,” he said.

I didn’t really know what to say after that, so I just gave him a small nod.

“Get some sleep. I’ll help you unpack tomorrow,” I said.

“Thanks. Okay, well, goodnight then,” he said before unzipping his baggage, grabbing a few pieces of clothing out and heading into the bathroom.

I sighed. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad to have a roommate. Davi seemed like a good guy, and he probably wouldn't give me a headache. The only worry I had about getting a roommate was if they were a party animal like Zack.

Zack was already too much for me to handle, and I barely relieved myself of his mess. But Zack was my best friend, and whatever mess he was in, so was I. Unfortunately.

eleven

EZRA

“I can’t believe she’s back in my life again,” I sighed. My pulse thumped in my veins as I packed the script into my case.

“You need to let go of this girl. She’s about to get married.” Zack flipped through a magazine, his feet over the edge of my desk. The chatter of the assistants echoed through the glass walls of the conference room. From here, I could hear the clicking of keyboards and the beeping of the printers.

“I don’t care.”

Zack’s emerald eyes widened before he gave me a daring smirk as he fixed his tie. “You know, I expected more from you. I thought I would be the first to be involved in an affair.”

“I am not going to have an affair with her,” I snapped. How could he ever believe that she’d be capable of such an atrocity? She was loyal and faithful. She would never do that to her fiancé, whoever the lad was. I breathed in once and I noticed Zack’s furrowed brows. “I’m going to fight for her. But it’ll be her choice whether she wants to be with me or with him.”

“Who says she’ll pick you? I recall the day at the stadium, the way she looked at you was full of hate. I never thought a person could ever be that angry until I saw her.”

“And whose fault is that? Whose sister told her the truth before I ever had the chance?” I argued.

I reminded myself that it wasn’t his fault. It was mine.

He shrugged. “My sister paid for what she did.”

“And it fixed nothing between Lysandra and me.”

Having a younger sister myself, I didn’t know if I could ever bring myself to treat her with such cruelty. We’d lived with privilege our entire lives, to cut everything from her and leave her to fend for herself seemed like neglect.

I was glad that Maya and I never had those types of issues as Scarlett and Zack.

“You didn’t have to. It wasn’t her place to open her mouth, and she ruined what you and this girl had. You have no idea what it was like to be around you at the time. You were so gloomy and sad; it became rather annoying. Plus, cutting her off was probably one of the best entertainments I’ve had.”

I remained silent. All the sour memories came crashing into me. He was right about one thing. She was so full of rage that day. I’d never seen someone so hurt and angry all at once. But she felt all of it. She went through it by herself, and I hated myself for it.