Planning on Forever (18 page)

I
have no clue where we are or how far we’ve walked, but we start to hear music
coming from a bar just ahead of us. Once we get closer, I notice Matt sitting
in the front wearing a security shirt. I had no clue he worked down here, but
there’s also a lot about Matt that I don’t know. Either way, I’m sure he’ll let
us in. He stands up when he sees us coming, greeting me with a huge hug.

“Matt!”
I slur, a little louder than probably necessary.

“I
uh, see you ladies are having a good night,” he says with an arched eyebrow.

“It's
actually been a real shitty night,” I tell him, trying to fight back the tears.

“Can
you let us in, please, please, please?” Amanda begs.

“Um,
hold that thought,” he says with a smile, pulling out his cellphone to text
someone.

The
next thing I know, I see Collin walk out the door and I can no longer hold back
the tears. Seeing that I’m a sloppy mess, he runs over to me, pulling me into
his embrace.

“Oh
Collin, I’m so happy to see you right now,” I cry into his shoulder.

– COLLIN –

Matt
texts me that Alexa is outside with her friends and is in rough shape. He
doesn’t know what to do with them.

When
I walk out the door, Alexa is standing there; a drunken mess and on the verge
of tears. Without thinking, I run to her and hold her in my arms to comfort
her. Even though we aren’t together anymore, I still love her and it still
kills me to see her hurt.

“Lex,
look at me…what happened?” I ask, lifting her face up to look at me. It takes
her a minute to stop crying and to catch her breath.

“We
went to surprise my boyfriend…well, I thought he was my boyfriend...” Hold up,
she has a boyfriend? We’ve only been broken up for like a month and she already
has a boyfriend? Forgetting that detail for a minute, I continue to listen to
her. “...at the club that he works at...and saw him walking out the back
door...all over some girl.”

“God,
Lex. I’m so sorry you had to see that. Let’s get you home,” I say, rubbing her
back. Turning to Matt sitting next to me, I ask if he can keep an eye on her
for a second while I go tell Summer what’s going on. I feel bad leaving, but I
can't just leave Alexa out here like this.

“Who's
Summer?” Alexa asks, overhearing me talking to Matt. “Do you have a girlfriend?
You don't have to leave her for me.” She starts to cry again.

“Just
stay here, I’ll be right back. Don't move,” I tell her before walking back into
the bar. On a mission, I walk right behind the bar to Summer.

“I
really hate to do this, but I’ve gotta go,” I say, grabbing her hand.

“Is
everything okay?” she asks, looking concerned.

“It's
Alexa, she caught her boyfriend cheating on her and she is a drunken mess
outside. I'm gonna bring her home. Matt and Travis will stay here to help you,”
I tell her, squeezing her hand.

“Okay…”
She looks apprehensive.

“I'm
just taking her home, that's all.”

“Look,
Collin, I don't do drama, so if you say you're just bringing her home, then I
believe you,” Summer says with a serious look. Cupping her face with my hand, I
smile in appreciation. The girl amazes me more and more every day.

“Thank
you,” I say, kissing her on the lips. “Call me when you get home.” I squeeze
her hand before walking away.

I
quickly call a cab for Nicole and Amanda and hurry back out front. When I get
there, Alexa is sitting, leaned up against the building with her head on her
knees, still faintly crying. Once I get Nicole and Amanda safely in the cab, I
practically carry Alexa to my car. Knowing there is no way I can bring her home
in this shape, I stop at a little coffee shop a few blocks away to get her some
food and water.

“Thanks
for doing this, Collin,” she whispers, before getting out of the car.

“I'm
always going to be here for you, you know that, right?” I tell her, patting her
leg.

We
sit in one of the bistro chairs outside on the patio. I get us a both coffee,
and a water for her as well. We sit there for a couple of minutes in silence
until her phone chimes with a message.

She
looks it and yells. “Are you freaking’ kidding me?” She starts crying again. I
take the phone from her hand and read the message on the screen.

“Missing
you, hope you're having fun.”

“Is
this from him?” I ask, holding up the cellphone. I can’t believe this guy has
the balls to write this to her right after he cheats on her.
What a douchbag
.
She nods her head yes, takes the phone back from me, and begins typing.

“What
did you say?” I ask, after she puts it down. It's a little weird seeing this
side of her, because when she found out about Nicole and me, she ran off and
wouldn't let me near her.

“I
told him to go fuck himself.”

I
almost choke on my coffee when I hear her say that. I’ve never heard Alexa talk
like that, but I’m so proud of her. Within seconds her phone rings. We both
look down; it is lit up, with the name Nolan displayed across it. “You don't
have to answer that,” I say looking at her.

She
picks up the phone, “Hello?”

– ALEXA –

“Doll,
what is going on?”

Are
you kidding me? He's playing dumb? At least when I called Collin out on it, he
told me the truth. I've been down this cheating road before. I’m not an idiot,
especially when I’ve seen it with my own two eyes.

They
may have been slightly blurry eyes, but I know what I saw.

“Don't
doll me. I freaking saw you with that girl, Nolan!”

I
feel the tears filling in my eyes again; I’m doing all I can to hold them in. I
don't want him to hear me upset. Obviously, I don’t mean as much to him as he
does to me. He doesn't deserve to hear my tears.

“What
are you talking about? There's no other girl, Alexa!
You’re
my heart!”

God,
I wish that were true. I wish I was his heart. There’s no holding back the
tears anymore, hearing his voice is breaking my heart, so I look at Collin for
moral support. I'm sure Collin can hear every word that Nolan is saying since
he is yelling just as loud as I am. Reaching for my hand, he whispers “You
don't have to do this. You don't have to talk to him.”

Deciding
that I
do
have to do this, I ask, “How can you even say that? I came to
the club tonight, Nolan. I saw you walking out the back door all wrapped up
with some girl.”

“Oh
Christ, doll, that was my best friend, Layla,” he sighs. “We've been friends
since we were kids. She's visiting for the weekend and stopped in to surprise
me.”

Why
were they in his apartment? Why were they so wrapped up with each other? I
don't hang all over my guy friends. “If she surprised you at the club, why were
you leaving through your apartment door together? And I’m sorry, but I’m not
all over my guy friends like that.”

Please
have a good explanation for this.
I can’t handle this anymore; I’m not
good with confrontation, and I really don’t want this to be the end of us.

“Yes,
she surprised me in the club, and we could barely talk over the music so we cut
through the basement to get to my car in the back. She is like a sister to me,
so, I probably gave her a hug and kiss. I haven't seen her in almost two
years...Oh god, doll. I’m so sorry. Where are you?”

I
can barely talk I’m so upset. This is just a huge misunderstanding. “Collin
brought me to the coffee shop,” I tell him, crying hysterically.

“You're
with Collin?” he asks, sounding confused.

“He
was at the bar down the street and saw me a mess, so he brought me here.”

“Don't
move, I'll be there in two minutes,” Nolan says, sounding like he is running. I
hang up the phone and sigh in relief. However, I can’t help but notice the look
of disappointment on Collin’s face.

“It
was just a misunderstanding,” I try to explain.

“This
is bullshit, Alexa! When you heard that I cheated on you, you wouldn't even
give me the time of day to explain, and now you
see
him with someone
else, and not only do you hear his bullshit excuse, but you believe him?” He is
yelling at me; I’ve never seen him this mad before.

“That
was different Collin, and you
did
cheat on me.”

“You
wouldn't even let me explain, you only were going by what you heard…you
saw
him.”

“This
is different, he’s telling the truth… I just know it.”

“How
is it different? Please tell me how this is different, because I’d love to
know?”

“Because
I’m in love with him!”

Dropping
his chin to his chest, he sighs, and asks in a whisper, “Are you telling me
that you weren't in love with me?”

“Collin,
I do love you, I always will, but the way I feel about Nolan is like nothing
I’ve ever felt before. It’s just different...I'm sorry.”

“Doll!”
Nolan yells, running around the corner. My heart skips a beat just seeing him.
Jumping out of my chair, I run towards him, leaping into his arms.

“Oh
baby doll, I’m so sorry,” he says, lifting me up off the ground in the tightest
hug. He begins to kiss me like we’ve been separated for weeks. Running my
fingers through his hair, I can’t control the tears again. This time though,
they’re happy tears; tears full of love and passion. Setting me down, he wipes
the tears from my face, smiling at me with the most heartfelt smile I have ever
seen.

“
You,
are my love, Alexa.
You,
are the love of my life. There is no one else–there
will never be anyone else,” he tells me, cupping my face with his hands.

Slithering
my fingers from his hair to his cheeks, we both stand there just holding each
other’s faces, staring into one another’s eyes and absorbing our love for each
other, taking in the moment. Any questions that we’ve had up to this point as
to how we feel about each other is now answered. We are deeply, madly in love,
and nothing will ever change that.

“I
love you. I’m so in love with you, Nolan.” I’m elated that I can finally say
these words to him.

I
do love him.

I’ve
loved him all along.