Simple & Clean

Empathy

I sat on the floor where he left me, staring off as I got lost in my own thoughts.

A knock on the door snapped me back into reality.

I willed a bit of strength to let myself stand and answer the door.

I looked through the peephole, seeing someone I wasn't expecting to see.

Avi.

I opened the door. "Avi?"

"Hey, Mitch." Avi smiles.

"Come in," I said, letting him enter. "So, what are you doing here?"

"Scott told me what happened, so I thought you could use a friend to help you out. Kevin is with Scott right now." Avi explained.

"I'm fine, Avi." I lied. "Thanks for thinking of me, though."

"You look far from fine, Mitch." Avi says. "You look like you've been crying."

I pursed my lips, looking down at the floor. "I'm fine, Avi." I repeated, looking back up at him. "I promise. I'm not crying anymore. I was upset at first, but I understand why Scott would leave. I understand that he may never want to talk to me again. It may take some adjusting, but I'll be fine without him."

"That's the biggest lie I have ever heard you tell." Avi stated, shaking his head. "And you're not only lying to me, but you're also lying to yourself, and that's not a good thing, Mitch. Soon you'll start believing it and you'll turn out much worse later than you are now."

I closed my eyes. He was right. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right.

This has never happened before. I've never had to lose my best friend, or have to accept someone else's help.

But I'm as stubborn as a mule; always have and always will. I want to be able to be independent, do everything on my own.

Fixing a broken heart isn't something you can do by yourself, especially when it's your own heart that's broken.

I opened my eyes and nodded. "How much did Scott tell you?"

"All he said is that you two fought. I asked why you were fighting, and he just said that it was a long story."

"Okay."

"Do you want to talk about the fight, or something else?"

"What makes you think I want to talk?"

Avi's eyes widened a bit, then he shrugs. "I can help in any way you want me to."

I tried to gauge how bad I felt, but I couldn't really feel anything. And I didn't feel numb either. I just felt... empty.

I sighed. "I guess it would make me feel better if I talked about it."

Avi nods. "I'll listen."

We sat down on the couch.

"Scott may have a different view on this, but I'm not Scott." I began. "I might as well start with when Scott and Alex first got together. I was happy for them. I was happy that Scott had found a man that he was happy and in love with. But, as they grew closer and their relationship grew more serious, I began to feel jealous. So, when Alex came to me and asked for advice on how to break up with Scott, I knew that this was my chance. Alex would break Scott's heart, then I would swoop in and comfort Scott."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "The things people do when they get jealous," I muttered, rubbing my eyes. I sighed, then continued.

"After Alex broke up with Scott, I thought Scott would turn to me for comfort, but he became so detached. He would barely talk to me. I didn't know how much Scott loved Alex until then. I wanted to feel bad for him, but I still felt jealous. Alex still had Scott's heart.

"Then, just this morning, Alex showed up at our door. He wanted to talk to Scott. Apparently, Alex had told Scott that I had given him advice on how to break up with Scott. Scott demanded an explanation, and I confessed my feelings of jealousy and lust. Things escalated, and Scott ended up leaving."

Avi nodded. "I see."

"I don't blame him for leaving." I confessed. "I hurt him. Indirectly, of course, but I still hurt him. I feel awful."

"Don't Mitch," Avi says, resting a hand on my shoulder reassuringly. "I'm sure you and Scott could work things out."

"I want to talk to him, but I highly doubt he wants to talk to me."

Avi shrugged. "You never know, Mitch. Scott might just surprise you."