The Jealousy Plot

54) Let her go

I can't think straight. All this time Luke hid this from me. He hid the fact that he ruined a girl's life.

I always knew he had a hard and complicated life and that he had a lot of secrets he wanted to keep to himself and himself only, but I honestly thought that Rachel was the last of it. That she was the end of all the secrets. The end of the lies. I guess I was wrong.

I want to cry. I want to scream and I want all of this confusion and pain and betrayal to go away. I am walking along the dark street and I thank every star in the sky that Luke isn't chasing me down. I wouldn't be able to handle him right now. I don't know if I'll ever be able to be normal around him again.

As I am walking I hear the familiar techno music and look up to see that the same house that was having the party was merely a block away. And that house had the one thing I really need right now.

He took her virginity. To win a football game. The thought makes my stomach churn again and I am silently cursing myself for ever getting involved with that blonde boy that I knew was trouble from the start.

The scariest thing, I realize as I walk towards the lit up house in the freezing bitter night, is that I'm not sure if I would rather forget everything. I don't know that if I could go back and make the decision on whether or not to get caught up in Luke Evans, that I would choose a different path.

That thought scares me the most and it takes all I have to shove it to the back of my mind as I walk into the loud and booming house.

Sweaty, half naked bodies are scattered everywhere and I have to twist and turn past the crowd to avoid accidentally touching one of them. I finally reach the room that holds the kegs of beer and don't pause before walking up to the one of them with a familiar face standing in front of it.

"Claire!" Zack greets with his warm and excited smile that used to light up my day. His smile falls when he sees my face though. "What's-".

"Make me forget about him" I simply state and Zack understands immediately. He always did understand me. I never had to explain myself to let him know what I was thinking. He always just seemed to know.

For a split second I wonder why I ever broke up with him but immediately afterwards Luke's troubling smile creeps into my mind and I remember how good it felt being able to actually explain what I'm feeling to someone that only wanted to make me happy.

Dammit, I'm thinking about him again.

"Scale of 1-10 drunk?" Zack asks, filling a cup of beer to the brim, barely any foam in it.

"Absolutely wasted" I state. Zack nods before handing me the cup. "I'm giving you a ride home" he says as I take a sip of the bitter liquid.

I smile sadly at him. "What would I do without you?" I ask, pinching his cheek.

"Probably wake up passed out in a bush" Zack exclaims before shooting me his warm smile again and walking out of the room, leaving me alone with the keg.

I smile at his retreating figure. Sure, good friends wouldn't let one of their friends get wasted at a party if they were having emotional conflicts with themselves but true friends realize that sometimes the only thing you can do when someone is hurting is offer them a beer to make them forget and give them a ride home afterwards.

Luke's P.O.V

"Aren't you going to chase her down" the prick behind me asks but I don't turn around from where I stand in the middle of the living room, looking at the door where the most important person in my life just walked out. Because of me. Because I fucked up. Again.