The saddest thing about all of this is I had genuinely changed my mind about you and thought you were different. Thought you were actually a decent guy that I could see myself with. Shame on me for actually let down my walls for you; for believing I could trust you.
Thanks though, for showing me the real you–through my bedroom wall.
Please don't ever speak to me again.
Goodbye, Emerson.
Brooke
I wanted to throw up. Emotions I couldn’t describe if I wanted to rolled through me. I wanted to punch something. Someone.
Chris.
I jumped up and almost fell over I was so frustrated and angry. All that time, I hadn't given much thought to the fact that Chris' bedroom was next to Brooke's. Knowing that every time Chris had brought a girl home, Brooke had thought it had been me getting it on with the girl made me sick.
It was a disaster, an absolute disaster. If she stopped reading my text before the end, the odds are she probably hadn't even read the part of my message where I had poured out my heart. Not that it would have mattered, considering what she thought of me. Considering she imagined I was a womanizer like Chris.
And, what was even worse, that scumbag Garrett seemed to be weaseling his way in.
“Alright, Emerson, take a breath. Calm down. There has to be a way to make this right, to clear up this mess. There has to be!” I said to myself.
Then an idea hit me. There was only one way to do this. I took off at a sprint, almost knocking over a cluster of unsuspecting shoppers as I bolted to my car. After a sprint through the parking lot, I was out of breath. I jumped in my truck, hit the ignition, and took off with tires screaming. I was a man on a mission.
I had somewhat regrouped by the time I knocked on the door.
; Leslie opened the door and her eyes widened with surprise as she saw me standing there. “Uh, hi, Emerson,” she said uneasily.
“Hey, Leslie. Can I come in?” I asked.
“Um, Brooke's not here, she's at her RAG meeting and—”
“Yeah, I know. Her car isn’t here. Look, this is kind of an emergency. I've gotta talk to you. Please?”
She nodded. “Alright. Come on in.”
I stepped into the living room and immediately began to spill everything. I told her about what had happened with me and Brooke. Everything, from the beginning to the end. I told her how I felt about Brooke. The words just started tumbling out of my mouth like an avalanche—uncontrollable and with a great force—and I didn't stop until I'd brought every last detail out into the open.
When I was done, Leslie sat there with a shocked expression on her face. “This is all true? All of it?” she asked.
“Everything.”
“And, you really feel that way about her?”
“Absolutely. She's the most amazing woman I've ever met. Ever.”
Leslie breathed in deeply and then nodded. “Well then, we've gotta fix this mess. I’m sorry I messed up by calling the cops and causing that whole misunderstanding, so I need to help you fix it.”
I muttered a silent prayer of thanks before looking at Leslie. “Thank you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
“She's my best friend, Emerson, and I want her to be happy. And after everything you've just told me, if you really feel that way, I think you're the kind of guy who can actually make her happy.”
“I know I can if she'll just give me one more chance.”
“Alright, well, I think I've got a plan. Do you have a voice recording app on your phone?”
“I do.”