Into the Darkness

“It’s you.” Her voice quivered, the emotion building up as she attempted to get her words out. “Charlie, I’m so, so sorry.”

Tears fell down her face. She was young at the time and had done what most girls would do. I was the one who had played with fire, or should I say her brother. I let go of Julian and hugged her tight. Everything about her felt familiar and for a second I wondered if that’s what it would feel like with Lex.

“Adriana, please stop crying. You’ll ruin your mascara and mine,” I chuckled as a tear slid down my cheek. She smiled that beautiful smile of hers. It was easy to forgive Adriana; she had been my best friend since I was eight.

“I’d say wipe it on your dress, but wow Charlie, what the hell has happened to you? You look stunning. Dolce & Gabbana? I’m in love with this dress.” Just like that, the old Adriana I knew and loved was back.

“The moment I saw it I knew we were soulmates.” As I spoke about the dress I noticed Julian and the rest of the gang standing there, obviously waiting for an introduction.

“Oh, sorry. Adriana, please meet Rocky and Nikki. We’ve known each other since college. Nikki and I are actually partners in our ow

n firm,” I said proudly.

“Firm?! As in lawyer?” she exclaimed.

I nodded. “This is Eric, my assistant, and Emma is Nikki’s assistant. This handsome man here is my fiancé, Julian.” I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.

“OK, so has anyone ever told you that you look like Christian Bale?” Adriana asked Julian in her flirty voice. Oh how I remembered that voice!

“Who, me? Never,” he sarcastically responded. I swatted his arm as he laughed along with the rest of the group.

“So from what I hear you and Elijah are still together. Married, right?”

“Ah, yes and no. It’s kind of a long story which we’ll have plenty of time to catch up on later.” She lowered her voice. I knew something wasn’t right but I wasn’t going to pry in front of everyone.

“Do you guys mind if Adriana and I grab a drink from the bar?”

They all nodded and happily chatted to each other while Adriana and I walked to the bar.

“He looked for you.”

“Adriana, look, the past is the past.” I shut her down, not wanting to take a walk down memory lane.

“Charlie, Lex is not the same. Not since you. You have to understand he was under a lot of pressure back then.”

“I know he isn’t the same. I’ve run into him twice now and everything about him has changed. He isn’t the Alex I once loved.”

“I know he comes across cold but deep down he still has something for you, Charlie. You were the love of his life.”

“But what about his kid, Adriana? Do you know what it was like for me to find out from the town skank that his wife was pregnant? He promised me they stopped having sex and then to find out his wife was pregnant… Adriana, you just don’t understand.” The words came out harsh.

“It wasn’t his baby, Charlie. They never had sex. Samantha lied about everything. When he found out, he went ballistic and took the next flight to Cuba to find you, thinking you left to live with your mom.”

“But I wasn’t there.” The revelation was a shock to me. So it wasn’t his baby? I bowed my head, questioning my decisions. Was I wrong? But no, I remembered that he still chose her first. He believed it was his and he chose to honor his marriage over what we had.

“I know, but your mom told us you had moved elsewhere and were happy with someone else. She begged us to leave you alone. She said you found a great guy and had moved in together. She said you were studying hard and that if we found you, she thought your life would go backwards. It was my fault as well, I told Lex you deserved the best and that he needed to let you be.”

“Adriana, I don’t know what to say. I went to Connecticut to live with my grandmother. After she died I just wanted to move on and do her proud so I got into Harvard. There wasn’t another guy. How could there be after him? How could he doubt my love for him? Did he really think I would move on straight away?” I poured my heart out. If anyone could understand, it was Adriana.

“Your mom was very convincing. I’m sorry, you’re right, but you really need to talk to Lex.”

“It’s just too much. There’s more to this than…” I stopped speaking. Now was not the time to get into the painful semantics of it all. “Here is my number.” I pulled a business card out of my purse and handed it to her. “Let’s catch up for lunch soon and talk about this but for right now, I just need time. It’s a lot to take in.”

She kissed me on the cheek, understanding I needed my space.

Julian came over, asking me if I wanted to dance some more. I gladly welcomed the return to reality and reminded Adriana to call me. He was there, a few feet away from me. His eyes looked my way, watching me watching him. He leaned into the woman’s neck and kissed her gently, closing his eyes as he did so. I couldn’t help but watch him, and the fury was building inside me. Why was he touching her like that? He slowly opened his eyes, directing them at me again. I couldn’t bear to watch anymore, it was too painful. I needed a moment of clarity and excused myself.

I exited the ballroom and walked down the long corridor. Breathe, only a few more feet. I needed to get to the bathroom. My mind was scattered with thoughts. What if he had come after me? Would everything have worked out for us? My heart was sinking deeper as the thought crossed my mind.