Rebecca looked like I’d slapped her in the face.
“Rob told me,” I continued. “And Rebecca, it’s fine, really. I just wanted to say I’m sorry. I never noticed. I never picked up on the signals. And I’m straight,” I added quietly. “But it doesn’t bother me that you’re gay.”
Rebecca’s face turned from pale white to crimson red. “Molly,” she said slowly, shaking her head. “That’s crazy.”
I sighed. “Is it? You’ve been acting like a jealous witch ever since I started sleeping with your brother and I’m starting to wonder if you only suggested I sleep with him because you thought it would never happen.”
Rebecca’s expression changed. “I…” She trailed off and buried her face in her hands, bursting into tears. “Molly, I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m really sorry. I never meant for you to find out.”
I felt awkward as I sat there, staring at her bowl of pasta. “Its okay,” I said. “Everything’s going to be okay.”
Rebecca sobbed harder and harder, until her shoulders were shaking and the air was filled with the sound of her sucking wet snot back into her nose. She coughed and choked and gasped for air, sniffling and snuffling like she’d just been given the worst news of her life. I felt so guilty and sad as I just sat there, watching her cry.
“It’s okay,” I repeated. “Come here.” I stood up and held out my arms. Rebecca hesitated for a second, then got to her feet and dove into my embrace. I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tightly. Rebecca clung to me. She buried her face in my neck and I felt the dampness of her snot and tears soaking the fabric of my robe.
“It’ll be okay,” I said again as I rubbed Rebecca’s back. She pulled away and looked deeply into my eyes, sighing. Just as I was about to step away, Rebecca closed her eyes and pressed her lips to mine.
For a moment, I was too shocked to move. Then, I pushed her away and stared, feeling both violated and horrified.
“Oh my god,” I said. “Rebecca, no. I told you, I’ll always be your best friend. But I don’t have feelings for you in that way!”
“Molly, come on, you love me and you know it,” Rebecca said, advancing on me. She laughed. “I know you were only using Alex to make me jealous. It’s okay, you can tell me.” She reached for me again and I darted out of the way, knocking over a kitchen chair and jumping when it clattered to the floor.
“Rebecca, no,” I said.
She stepped closer and I pushed her away. “Leave me alone,” I said. “I don’t like you in that way!”
“Molly, stop lying to yourself,” Rebecca said. “We’re perfect for each other and you know it. Nobody cares about us, we’re a couple of losers. We could be so happy together,” she said, her eyes shining with desperation.
Horror filled my body as I pushed her to the side and ran down the hall. Rebecca was hot on my heels but I managed to dart inside my room and slam the door shut and lock it. Rebecca pounded on the door.
“Molly, let me in,” Rebecca yelled. “Please, I swear, I won’t try to kiss you again. We can just talk, or cuddle or something! We can work up to things at your own pace!”
With a trembling hand, I reached for my phone and dialed Alex.
“Hello?”
“Alex, it’s me,” I said in a shaky voice. “I really need your help!”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Alex
My chest was in knots as I sped across town, desperate to see Molly. She’d been so upset on the phone that I could barely understand her – what the hell had happened? The only thing I’d been able to make out was that she was desperately upset, and my heart was lurching as I drove. God, I hope she’s okay, I thought, pressing the gas pedal close to the floorboards. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to Molly!
When I reached her apartment, I ran inside without knocking. The kitchen was a disaster – chairs knocked to the floor, pasta and red sauce everywhere. Oh, fuck, I thought as I looked around in a blind panic. Someone must’ve broken in. I balled my hands into fists and growled. If someone had broken in and tried to hurt the woman I loved, I was going to make them wish they’d never been born.
I ran down the hall and knocked on Molly’s door. “Molly, it’s me,” I yelled. “Let me in!”
Molly was sobbing on the other side of the door. “Is she gone?” Molly asked tearfully. “I don’t want to open the door unless she’s gone!”
“There’s no one else here,” I said. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Molly unlocked the door and swung it open. She’d been crying and her eyes were red. “Oh my god, Alex,” she said, collapsing in my arms. “It was awful. I confronted her and she started crying, so I thought I should give her a hug, you know, get her to calm down. And then she tried to kiss me and kept saying that we belonged together and that we were perfect together.” Molly’s voice rose to a hysterical pitch.
“Oh my god,” I muttered. “You’re kidding me.”
Molly looked up at me tearfully and shook her head. “No,”