Free Demonspawn by Glenn Bullion Page B

myself. She put in The Matrix . It was relaxing,
just hanging out with my best friend. But my mind started drifting
in between action scenes and Keanu Reeve's superior acting. I
started thinking about Julie. I went back and forth between
self-pity and anger. It wasn't only Julie either. I was just
unhappy. I was a suddenly single shipping dock worker. Not really
much to brag about there. Nothing compared to Cindy, who was a
college graduate with a good job doing something she loved.
    Julie was icing on the cake with how I felt
about myself at that time.
    “What the hell happened?”
    Cindy looked at me. “Huh?”
    “We had sex on Wednesday night. Then Saturday
morning she tells me it's not working out? How do you go from naked
time on one day, then three days later, oh it's not working out?
After a damn year?”
    She wrinkled her face. “Christ, Alex. You
could have kept some of that to yourself.”
    “Sorry. But you get what I'm saying.”
    Cindy didn't say anything. She just looked at
me, sympathy in her eyes. Maybe she didn't know what to say.
    “Remember Marie, two years ago? She at least
had a reason for breaking up. She was screwing someone behind my
back. That's a reason, right?” I paused. “Did I goof up somehow and
not know it?”
    Cindy uncurled her legs and leaned toward me
slightly. “Do you want to know what's wrong with you?”
    “Hold on,” I said, and put my soda on the
coffee table. A definite plus about our relationship was that we
knew each other so long that honesty was never a problem. We could
be honest with each other, even if it was painful, and we'd still
be friends. “Okay, what's wrong with me?”
    “Absolutely nothing.”
    I was surprised, to say the least.
    She continued.
    “Alex, you've got faults, like we all do.
You're a little more down on yourself than you should be. Sometimes
you can be a little too quiet. Not as bad as when we were little,
but it's there sometimes. But don't change. Ever. Forget those
stupid bitches. You're awesome just like you are. That's why you're
my best friend.”
    I let her words sink in. Right then I knew I
would get over Julie. I could get through anything, because of
friends like Cindy.
    “Thanks, Cindy.”
    We turned our attention back to the
movie.
    “I never thought my best friend would be a
goofy white dude.”
    I threw a couch-pillow at her.
    *****
    Monday came around, and the weekly grind
started once again. Nothing exciting ever happened during the week.
I woke up, went to work, then came home. I didn't see Cindy too
much during the week because of her working late with her father.
Alicia did stop by twice. We had dinner together. She filled me in
on the normal topics. Guys she was interested in, classes she had
trouble with.
    I felt bad for her. At least when I was
growing up at the house, she had me for company, since Mom wasn't
home much. Now with me gone, it was just her. Although I had a
suspicion she had more people over the house than she let on.
    It felt like forever for Friday to come
around. It would be my first official weekend without Julie.
Surprisingly, I was okay with it. Single life had its perks too. On
Friday, when I got home, I kicked my shoes off and threw a quick
dinner in the microwave. I could do whatever I wanted. I never had
to see her parents again, and I'm sure they were grateful they
never had to see me either.
    At around seven the front door to my
apartment opened up. Cindy poked her head in, still wearing her
cute dress from working at her father's firm.
    “Hey Alex? You're not naked in here, are
you?”
    “Nah.”
    “Oh, damn,” she joked. “Everyone's coming
over my place tonight. You coming over?”
    I knew everyone consisted of our usual
friends. At least minus Alicia, as Friday was her night she usually
hung out with her school friends.
    “Yeah. What time?”
    “About an hour. I gotta take a shower.”
    “Good. You smell.”
    “You're so damn funny.”
    She closed the door.
    I did a quick workout