Josh was extremely tired after seeing his family and friends, but he just couldn’t fall asleep. His head was still hurting. He grabbed his phone from the bedside table and tried to sit down somehow. Every movement was still terribly exhausting for him. 

He entered the code and thought about what to do next. Still there were several missed calls and countless messages from the time he was in coma. He opened iMessage and scrolled through the list. 

„Who is cupcake?“ He was thinking, before opening the chat. 

Then he read the latest conversation:

„Hey, handsome.“ [Cupcake]

„Hey, beautiful.“ [Josh]

„T just showed up for lunch. You wanna join us?“ [Cupcake]

„I would love to, but I have a phone conference with a client in few minutes.“ [Josh]

„Busy bee…“ [Cupcake]

„Says the workaholic.“ [Josh]

„I promise to be home early tonight.“ [Cupcake]

„Heard that before…“ [Josh]

„I know. But I’ll make things up to you. [Cupcake]

„How?“ [Josh]

„I have no time for explanation.“ [Cupcake]

„How?“ [Josh]

„The thing I did in the shower recently… but this time not in the shower…“ [Cupcake]

„Oh this…“ [Josh]

„Did I turn you on?“ [Cupcake]

„Yes.“ [Josh]

„I like that. [Cupcake]

„I know you do…“ [Josh]

„Can’t wait for tonight. I love you.“ [Cupcake]

„I love you back. Enjoy your break.“ [Josh]

Lucy helped Eve standing up. All of them went into the living room and sat down around the coffee table. 

„I want to know what happened between you and Justin. And don’t you dare missing any detail.“ Lucy said, looking at Eve. 

„In that case, I suggest Lance starts talking.“ Eve replied. 

Lance rolled his eyes and sighed. 

„What has Lance to do with this?“ Lucy asked. 

„More than you expect.“ Eve answered. 

After hearing the whole story, Lucy needed to process. It’s not like she was surprised, that something happened between Eve and Justin. She was aware of, that living together was a risk, especially since Justin was already having feelings for her. But she was disappointed, that her friend kept the secret.

„Why you stopped talking to me about those things? I don’t understand.“ Lucy blamed her. 

„All of this just happened, Lu. It’s not like I kept that secret for months.“ Eve defended herself. 

Lucy decided it wasn’t helpful giving Eve a hard time for not telling her. 

„Okay. So, what now? You wanna be with Justin?“ She asked next. 

Eve looked at Lucy and then at Lance, before answering.

„I know I can’t.“

„This is not answering my question, Eve.“ Lucy replied. 

„I miss him.“ 

„Still no answer.“ 

„Lucy, come on. Don’t push her.“ Lance intervened. 

„And Josh? What about Josh? Doesn’t he matter anymore?“ 

Eve opened her eyes wide.

„How can you even think that, Lu???“ 

„I think this is a legitimate question, as you can’t love both men at once.“ 

„Why not?“ Lance asked. 

„Yes. Why not?“ Eve said. 

„Are you losing your minds now?! This is not how love works!“ Lucy said outraged. 

„Excuse me, but what makes you the expert?“ Lance talked back. 

Lucy shook her head. 

„Okay. Whatever. You love both men at once. Got it. But you will agree that you can’t have them both, right???“

Lance and Eve exchanged glances. 

„Right.“ They said at the same time. 

Lucy sighed relieved. 

„So, what now?“ 

„Justin is gone. He left, because he wants to make the choice easy for you, Eve. All of us know that he loves you. But he won’t take you away from his best friend. That’s why he isn’t an option.“ Lance explained.

Eve needed to admit, that Lance was right. Justin was definitely not an option.

„Josh’s amnesia makes it so hard…“ She suddenly sobbed. 

„Oh darling…“ Lance said, feeling extremely sorry for her. „It’s really awful. I know it is.“ 

„But it’s just a matter of time. That’s what the doctor said, right?“ Lucy tried to cheer her up.

„His doctor failed! I don’t trust anything he says!“ Eve said angrily. 

„Come on, Eve. You can’t blame that man. Nobody believed in Josh’s recovery. How should he know better?“ Lance replied. 

„When I listened to his advice, Josh would be already gone for months!“ 

Lance and Lucy sighed. 

„Stop thinking about what if, okay? The only thing which matters now is, that C came back to you.“ Lance replied. 

„Yes, he came back. But he’s not the man I used to know. I’m simply vanished out of his life without any trace. This is beyond cruelty, Lance. It feels like hell.“

Josh continued reading old messages to get an idea what he’ve missed in the last months. At some point he found a chat with Jen. His heart immediately accelerated. He opened the chat and started reading:

„Are you home?“ [Jay]

„I am. Why?“ [Jen]

„I need some company.“ [Jay]

„Means?“ [Jen]

„I’m in Daytona and would like to see Bronson.“ [Jay]

„Sure, you can have him. Actually I’m busy with my new job. I wouldn’t mind, if you keep him few days.“ [Jen]

„Sounds good. Give me your address. I’ll pick him up later.“ [Jay]

„Who is Bronson?“ Josh was thinking.

He gazed at his phone for a while, being lost in thoughts. Then he suddenly started typing. 

„Hi.“ [Jay]

„Hi, stranger. It’s been a while…“ [Jen]

Josh's heart accelerated again. He didn’t expect Jen would respond that fast. He thought about what to write next. 

„How is Bronson?“ [Jay]

„Just got his yearly deworming treatment. The vet says he’s doing fine.“ [Jen]

Josh smirked, realizing Bronson must be a pet. 

„Do you have a current picture of him?“ [Jay]

Jen sent a photo from Bronson. Josh frowned, seeing Bronson’s grumpy wrinkled face. 

„What an ugly dog.“ He was thinking. 

„I want a picture in return.“ [Jen]

„From what?“ [Jay]

„Come on, you know what I mean. Your baby must be born by now. Eve looked like giving birth any moment at the pics in the L.A. Sun.“ [Jen]

Josh felt suddenly uneasy. He didn’t expect Jen would ask for a picture of Jake. 

„I don’t have any pics from the baby.“ [Jay]

„Why not? Don’t say the rumors are true…“ [Jen]

„Which rumors?“ [Jay]

„That the baby is Justin’s.“ [Jen]

Josh’s heart skipped a beat. After sorting his mind, he opened the internet browser and googled Justin. Immediately pictures of Justin and Eve showed up, walking down the street next to each other. One pic showed him having his arm around her shoulders and whispering something in her ear. Both looked tensed, but very familiar with each other. 

„What the hell is this?“ Josh was thinking.

Suddenly another headline caught his attention:

JESSICA BIEL AND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE DIVORCED 

Josh couldn’t believe his own eyes. Why did Justin and Jess broke up? He was completely lost in thoughts until another message from Jen appeared in his display. 

„Jay? Are you still there?“ [Jen]

„Listen… I’ve had an accident…“ [Jay]

Eve woke up in the next morning, immediately turning sick. Her life was just a giant mess and she could do absolutely nothing about it. She turned around and suddenly frightened as she saw Lucy lying next to her. She completely forgot that her friend offered staying the night. 

Lucy opened her eyes slowly. 

„Hey… how are you?“ She murmured. 

„Awesome. And you?“

Lucy sat up slowly, looking at her. 

„How come your baby sleeps longer than you do?“ 

„It’s Josh’s DNA. He loves sleeping.“ 

Lucy smirked. 

„I’ll make you some breakfast now and then you can go and see your husband.“

Eve nodded and forced a smile.