Page 45 of F Buddy

No, I didn’t want to let this get to me to the point I gave up on my friends. Zach was supposed to be a one night stand, probably one I’d regret. If it hadn’t been for his personality, I would have. Only now, he was so much more than that, and I was letting it get to me. I’d been worried about what would happen after we slept together, considering we were friends, because of this very reason. I was pretty used to backing off when my boyfriends broke up with me and letting others have their way.

But Zach hadn’t broken up with me. He wasn’t with me to begin with.

So why was I lying down in defeat? I needed to get over him, to get over what happened between us, if I was going to have any peace of mind. So what if he happened to be at the party? It would be a good thing. He and I would finally have the talk we should have had the moment I realized I was pregnant.

I might as well get it over with, I decided. I couldn’t run from him for forever after all.

Finally, I sighed. I patted Olivia’s arm until she let go of me, and pulled away far enough so I could give her a smile. I knew it was anything but enthusiastic, but I tried.

“Just let me shower and get changed first, all right?”

She brightened up and moved away from the arm of the couch, putting her arm back around my shoulders to help me up.

“Sure. I came early, so we still have some time until the party.”

My smile turned grateful as I leaned on her to get to my feet. “You thought this through, didn’t you?”

She smiled softly at me. “I just wanted you to realize a few things on your own. Like how you can’t suddenly decide to live in a cage just because Zach decided to come back for Christmas. He’ll probably be moving back soon, you know.”

“And I’m just going to have to deal with his constant presence,” I muttered.

Her smile turned sympathetic.

She dropped me off at my bedroom, then went back to wait in the living room for me. I took a shower, then went back to my bedroom to look for something to wear. It took me a while because I wasn’t sure just what to choose. Not that I had a lot to choose from, but I wanted to try and be festive, and I didn’t want to freeze to death. Dressing up sexy was out of the question with my stomach, though I was tempted to.

Finally, I settled on a red dress, one that flattered my appearance best. I added a jacket on top and pulled on a pair of flats on my feet. I decided to forgo the jewelry. If I had my way, I wouldn’t be there for long. I picked a purse with a thin strap and put my phone and some money and other accessories inside.

I walked out of my bedroom to find Olivia pacing in my living room. When she noticed I was in the room, she looked up. Her eyes grew wide, then she was grinning at me, and she glowed.

“You look so beautiful, Scarlett.”

I sighed. “There’s no need to flatter me, Olivia. I know what I look like.”

“I’m not making fun of you,” she scolded. “You look lovely. Now, come on. The restaurant is a bit of a way off, and we’re going to have to deal with the traffic as it is.”

I let her help me out of the apartment and down to the streets. I stood aside as she hailed a taxi. It took a while, then she was leading me inside, and we were going. She’d been right about traffic, and I grumbled a bit to myself since I knew it was partly my fault. If I hadn't held us up, we might not have been stuck in it. But we eventually made it to where the group was meeting up. Olivia paid for the ride, ignoring my protests, and hustled me out of the car.

It was the same place where I’d met everyone for lunch several months back. The place was packed, I could see through the huge windows from inside, but Olivia just led me confidently inside. The place was usually more disorganized around this time of the year, so it wasn't even a surprise to get in and see the crush of people.

We waved to people we’d met there before as we walked through, looking around for our friends. Pretty much every table drew a large crowd, so picking them out wasn’t as easy as it usually would have been.

“Oh, Scarlett! There you are!”

I looked up at the enthusiastic voice, smiling when I saw Sasha rushing over to us. She was a little smaller than the people she elbowed out of her way to get to us, grinning.

“Hey, Sasha,” I said. “Merry Christmas.”

When she was close enough, she pulled me into a hug, mindful of my stomach, then did the same for Olivia.

“Merry Christmas to both of you, too! I almost thought you weren’t gonna make it.”

Olivia and I shared a look, though I had a feeling mine looked guiltier.

“Well, come on,” Sasha said with enthusiasm. “Everybody is already waiting for you guys!”

The ‘everybody’ part made me freeze again. Even as she tried to tug me forward, I didn’t move.

“Is Zach here?” I asked, almost fearful.