Conceited [H.S.]

THIRTY-THREE

This chapter is over 11,500 words soooo get comfortable and enjoy...I'm sorry in advance OK ILY AND THANK YOU SO MUCH <333

...

ANDREA WILSON

Don't hit her. Don't hit her. Don't hit her. Don't hit her.

That's the only thing running through my mind right now as I pack up my things for the night and feel Jo's eyes staring into the back of my head. I know she's here to talk to me after we've both managed to ignore each other for the past two days.

She didn't really make following me in here as inconspicuous as she could have. She nearly ran to catch me before I left and then slowed down once she was a few feet behind me as I walked down the hallway.

She has no idea what her words have done to me since they came out of her mouth, and she said them with complete ease. As if she's thought lowly of me for who knows how long. Yes, she's my best friend, so she's seen me at my highs and lows. And I mean lowest of lows. But she's never once compared me to models in order to make me feel like utter crap about myself.

I've never been more aware of every bump and crease of my body until I felt the need to look, poke, and prod at them after she said those words to me. I'm a nurse, I know every single body is going to have its "imperfections" as society has decided to call them, despite how normal they are. So, you'd think I would know to think twice before pointing them out and deciding to dislike them. But no.

I know it is probably childish to ignore her, but she did the same to me.

"Can we talk?" I hear her finally speak up.

My eyes roll back almost so far that they get stuck in my head as I'm still facing my locker, preparing myself to be met with her. I let out a perturbed sigh as I set my purse back down, hearing the few metal buckles hitting the wooden cabinet that holds my belongings every shift.

After a few seconds to mentally prepare myself for whatever is going to come out of her mouth, I turn around to see her looking at me with guilty and saddened eyes. She frowns as she's met with nothing besides exasperation and anger written on my face.

Her hands rub over her face, her exhaustion showing clearly under her eyes, much like the rest of us, as she sits down on the bench across from my locker. I watch her every move, looking her up and down as she leans her elbow onto her knee, with her forehead lying in the palm of her hand.

"What exactly do you want to talk about? Haven't made me feel horrible enough yet?" I ask as I decide to follow her movements and sit down on the bench directly across from her.

She lets out a groan at my response, her arms moving to flail in annoyance at how quickly I've turned to be hostile towards her. She sits up straight in her spot, letting her arms hold her up as they plant themselves onto the bench on each side of her body.

"Andrea, that wasn't my intention," she starts to explain herself, but I refuse to give her my nice and understanding side. At least for now. "The delivery of my concern was absolutely terrible, I know that."

She knows that her opinion means the world to me and that everything she says I take into consideration because for the most part, she knows me best. I can be myself around her, just like I can with Harry, and she's never judged me. Even when I relapsed. I know that it was due to Luke's pressure, but it was still my decision and my fault, and she was there every step of my detox and withdrawal. She was, no one else.

I trust this woman with my life, yet she used some of the lowest parts of my life with her against me. She compared me to women Harry has been with before me. I can't even begin to explain how much it hurt to hear.