Rachael heaves a sigh as she folds her arms and leans back against the arm of one of the vintage chairs. She kicks at the rug and fixes Tyler with a hard look. “Can’t you guys grow up already? You broke up, whatever. That was two years ago. Get over it.”
“Are you being serious right now, Rachael?” Tyler blinks back at her, his eyes widening. He laughs, so stunned by the situation that I think laughing is the only thing he can do. “Fuck this. I’m out.” Throwing his arms up in defeat, he turns around and strides straight for the door, pulling it open so forcefully that the hinges squeak. “I’ll wait for you in the car, Eden,” he throws over his shoulder, and promptly slams the suite door shut. There’s a tremendous echo.
“So moving to New York clearly hasn’t fixed his anger issues,” Rachael says after a moment of silence. She’s making a joke, of course, but I don’t find it funny. In fact, I find it totally disrespectful. So rude that I can’t help but glare at her.
“Why’s he always such an asshole?” Tiffani adds, voice sweet and soft, as though she’s deeply offended. “He’s got serious issues. So aggressive. He clearly gets it from his dad.”
I’m about to say something, about to open my mouth to call Tiffani out for saying what she just said, but surprisingly, Dean beats me to it.
“Guys, really?” he asks, dropping his arm from around my shoulders to around my waist. “Give him a break.”
“He’s a bit dramatic, though,” Rachael murmurs. “Don’t you think so? Storming out like that. Same old Tyler, I guess.”
“I can’t blame him,” I say as I throw a pointed glance at Tiffani. I’m not even going to attempt to hide my contempt for her. Rachael is slowly aggravating me too. Same old Tyler? They’re only seeing him right now. Of course he’s going to get mad when Tiffani turns up out of absolutely nowhere. Neither Rachael nor Tiffani have really seen him, the Tyler who’s always laughing those hearty laughs and smiling at random moments throughout the day. They haven’t seen the new Tyler yet. Sure, he’s still a work in progress, but he’s getting there. He’s a lot happier than he ever was before, and their insults are pissing me off. I’m always going to defend him.
“Not you too,” Rachael groans, tilting her head back and closing her eyes.
“God, Eden,” Tiffani says, “I thought maybe now that you’ve graduated you’d have matured.” She flutters her eyelashes at me from the bathroom door and holds on to her towel, pursing her lips.
“What’s your problem with me, Tiffani?” I demand, losing my temper as I shrug Dean’s grip off me and make a move for her. “Why have you always been so—?”
Dean grabs me from behind again, pulling me back against his body as he stops me from lunging toward her. “Tiffani,” he says. “Don’t be a bitch.”
“Shut the hell up, Dean,” she orders. Her voice has lost its gentleness and now it sounds sharp. Fixing the two of us with a fierce glare, she storms into one of the bedrooms and slams the door behind her.
I glance back at Dean as his hold on me loosens, and he just shrugs at me as though it’s no big deal. He’s defended both Tyler and me, and it only makes me feel even guiltier than I already did. Dean’s just like that. Always there for people. Soon I’ll be throwing it all back in his face. It’s difficult to think about, so I focus my attention elsewhere.
“She’s a bit dramatic, though, don’t you think so?” I throw at Rachael, quoting her earlier words about Tyler. I step away from Dean and fold my arms across my chest, raising my eyebrows at her. “What the hell is she even doing here?”
Rachael stands up from the chair, sighing as she walks over. She brings with her a waft of her perfume again. “She was always going to be coming, Eden. I just didn’t mention it to you because I didn’t want you complaining about it for months. Can’t you guys just let all of this go?”
“Let it go?” I echo. “Seriously?”
“Look, I get it,” she says. “You hate her because of what she did to Tyler and she hates you because you took his side. But that was years ago. Don’t you think you’re being a little childish? Can’t you just forgive and forget? Tiffani has. She’s ready to be friends with you again. Both of you.”
I want to laugh, just like Tyler did, in disbelief. Rachael has no idea what really went down two summers ago. Sometimes I wish she knew. But she doesn’t, so I can only grit my teeth to stop myself from telling her the truth. “I’m never going to be her friend, Rachael. Never.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Dean says from behind me, and I flinch. I’m not used to hearing his voice. The fact that he’s here is still taking me by surprise. He puts a hand on my shoulder and steps by my side, offering me a smile of reassurance. “You don’t have to be friends with her.”