Free Out of My Element by Taryn Plendl

Whatever.
    The second he hung up the phone,
the door swung open again, and Adam was walking toward me, smiling. I glanced
back at Nick, but what I saw in his eyes was disgust, and in a matter of
seconds, all of the walls I allowed him to tear down were erected again.
Without another word, Nick turned and walked away.
    “Are you ready Chelsea?” Adam
touched my arm softly.
    I shook my head, trying to clear
it. “Yes, let’s go.” I smiled up at him. He looked at me with such gentleness;
it made me want to cry. The issues I had with Nick weren’t Adam’s fault. He
deserved my full attention tonight, and that is exactly what I was going to do.
    “So, I noticed some tension between
you and Nick. Are you sure there isn’t anything going on there?” Adam opened my
door for me. I waited until he got in the driver’s seat before answering him.
    “No, there is definitely nothing
going on between Nick and me.” Why did that statement make me feel like I’d
been punched in the gut?
    Adam grabbed my hand and squeezed
it. “I’m glad. Ready for a good time?” His smile was huge, and I did my best to
put Nick out of my mind. Tonight was about Adam and me.
    ***
    I lay on the couch, glancing at the
clock again, like I’d done about every fifteen minutes for the last two hours.
It was almost one in the morning, and Nick wasn’t home yet.
    My date with Adam had been … nice.
He took me to a cute little restaurant and was attentive and sweet. He was good
company and wasn’t overly aggressive with his affection. Our conversation was
easy and constant. I truly enjoyed my time with him, but I couldn’t get Nick’s
face out of my mind, and when Adam had kissed me goodnight, I couldn’t help but
wish it was Nick. The idea of kissing Nick had thrown me off. I thought I was
past that.I needed to talk to him. I needed
to know why he was so upset with me going out with Adam, but most of all, I
needed to know if I was the only one who was feeling more than friendship.
    I heard the keys jingle in the
door. I sat up so quickly that my head was spinning slightly.  I wanted to get
Nick’s attention when he came in, before he headed to bed. The door swung open,
and he stumbled through with a pair of arms and legs wrapped around him. He
managed to get the door closed before he pushed his blonde guest up against the
wall, kissing down her neck as she moaned and giggled. I was frozen in my spot,
unable to turn or even move away.
    “Who is she?” Nick’s head snapped
up, locking eyes with me as his flavor of the week glared at me.
    “No one. She just my roommate.” He
took her hand and walked her down the hallway to his bedroom, keeping eye
contact with me until he was at his door. I swallowed the sob that threatened
to escape. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, and I’d be dammed if I
would allow him to see how much his words had hurt me. I stood up and walked
around the couch, glancing back in time to see Nick’s door close. I practically
ran to my room and shut the door, allowing myself to slide down until I was
seated on the floor, where I wrapped my arms around my knees and finally let
the tears consume me.
    I’m not sure how long I sat there
crying, but when I heard the doors opening and closing, and the raised voices,
I scurried to my bed. I may have wanted to talk to Nick before, but I didn’t
anymore. I had my answer now. It was obvious that my feelings had become more,
or this wouldn’t have hurt so much. Even worse, his actions and words left no
doubt to how he felt about me. He had said I was no one but his roommate, and
now I knew. I knew where I stood—and it hurt like hell.
    I pulled the covers up to my neck
and closed my eyes tightly so the tears wouldn’t start again. I felt raw and the
covers felt almost rough on my exposed skin. I was as sensitive on the outside
as I was on the inside. The soft knock on the door made me catch my breath.
When I didn’t answer, he opened the door.
    “Chelsea?”