19 >> Mercy
As Justin walked out of Rie’s life yet again, she was forced to turn and face the woman behind her, who had yet to figure out what the hell was going on.
“Rie?” Talis began to question her, not even sure where to begin.
“I know,” Rie shook her head in shame. “I’m so sorry for all of that.”
“Okay, but what was that?”
“I… He’s come back for me, I guess.”
“Why is he coming back for you? Aren’t you--.”
“He slept with Jessica,” she blurted out, fighting the urge to throw up at the words. “He slept with her while we were ‘together’ or whatever, and he finally told me like a month later. So I left.”
“You left him?”
She nodded sadly. “I didn’t really “ I couldn’t…” She sighed heavily, replaying that night of the wedding in her head over and over again. “I had to.”
“Why didn’t you “ Why did you let me think that you cheated on him?”
“I dunno,” Rie shrugged. “I thought “ I mean, I guess I figured you needed someone to relate to, so I just kept it to myself.”
“That’s so ridiculous,” she chuckled. “I mean, it was sweet, but so, so ridiculous.”
“I’m a little ridiculous sometimes,” she chuckled back.
“God, how “ I mean, why? After the way I talked to you? And how I just rambled on and on about how stupid ‘we’ were and just… I’m sorry, girl.”
“It’s not a big deal.”
“No, I’m an idiot. And I can’t imagine how you must have felt to sit there, listening to me…”
“Talis, it’s fine,” she assured her. “Like I said, I needed a friend too, so I really didn’t mind. You helped me relate, I guess.”
Talis shook her head and finally took a seat in Rie’s living room. “I can’t believe he cheated on you.”
“Yeah, no kidding.”
“And with Jess?” Rie continued to nod while Talis attempted to get a grasp on all of this information. “I always knew, on some level, that she wanted him.”
“Yeah, and like a fucking idiot, I brought it up to her.”
“What did she say?”
“She denied it,” Rie rolled her eyes. “She stole my best friend, slept with my man, and then tried to act like the victim all the damn time. I can’t believe I ever liked that bitch.”
“Okay now, she’s still my friend.”
“Sorry. I just--.”
“No, I get it.”
“It’s just hard for me not to hate her right now.”
“Hell, I haven’t talked to her since I left LA, so I guess I can’t say too much,” Talis realized. “It’s so sad how… friendships “ they fade. When you meet someone, and form some kind of bond with them, you think it’s gonna last forever. And then something happens, and all of a sudden, it’s just… over.”
Rie silently agreed and finally decided to take a seat with Talis. “That’s why I always tried to avoid promising forever.”
“You can avoid saying the words out loud, but you know there’s always that little voice inside your head that’s hoping that this one will make it, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know… I don’t think I was made for long-lasting relationships.”
“Why not?”
“This whole thing with Justin? This was the first time I ever gave it, like, a real attempt. And I’m just not one of those people, I guess.”
“So you regret it?”
“I changed who I was for him,” she shook her head before resting it on the back of her sofa. “I mean, it was fun, of course. I was fucking Justin Timberlake, so how could it not be, ya know?”
“Mmhm.”
“But it was… I dunno. I mean, I used to be a cool chick, ya know? I used to hang out with the boys, and it was all about being wild and free and doing whatever I wanted. And I feel like Justin has kinda taken that away a little. Not him, but like, his life has got paparazzi following me on a regular basis, and I can’t do anything anymore. I feel a little stripped of who I was before I met him… maybe this is all for the best.”
“Well yeah, relationships are hard,” Talis submitted contemplatively. “You shave little pieces of yourself, and the other person chips away at you a little at a time, all to make yourself fit with them…”
“Right. Exactly.”
“You’re suddenly wearing Prada and going to premieres, and you’re taking flights at four in the morning to avoid your face ending up on the front page of some magazine your parents will see in the checkout line at Target, because your life has all of a sudden become their entertainment. You become spoiled, and you find yourself jaded. And all those pieces are so far gone that, eventually, you don’t even know who you are anymore.”
“Was it worth it?” Rie stared over at her intensely.
“Honestly?” she pondered. “For Justin, yeah.”
“Dammit,” Rie grinned.
“I wish I’d done so many things differently,” she woefully proclaimed. “I would do anything for a second chance…”
Rie quickly resorted to avoiding Talis’s sad brown eyes. “Maybe you’ll get one.”
>>>>>>>>>>
The moment Justin found out that Rie was working for SNL, he put his clout to good use and gave them a call over at NBC. It was too late for him to host the show, as they already had Jeremy Piven lined up for the job, but luck happened to have it that T.I. was the musical guest, and no one minded in the least bit that Justin would be featured with him. Except for Rie, of course.
Unfortunate for her, that meant she was forced to photograph him for the credits and such. But on the bright side, perhaps, at least she knew he hadn’t given up.
It was Thursday morning, and as usual, Rie entered the makeup room at Studion 8H in Rockefeller Center to introduce herself to the musical guest of the upcoming show, and prepare for their photshoot. With a venti cup of vanilla latte in one hand and a stack of photos in the other, she went directly to where T.I. was sitting, Talis standing right in front of him, and said Hello.
“Hi,” she grinned, flaunting her perfect white teeth. “I’m Rie, I’ll be doing the shoot with you today.”
“Okay,” he looked up to her, flashing his own version of an immaculate smile as his Atlanta accent melted every woman in the room. “Nice to meet you, Rie.”
“Likewise,” she nodded. “Now should I call you T.I., Tip, Clifford, Mr. Harris? What would you prefer?”
“Oh, you can call me anything you want, baby.”
Rie looked over to Talis, who was grinning just as widely as she had been. “Well okay, Mr. Harris. We’re ready when you are.” She thought it best to keep things professional.
“He didn’t even need any makeup,” Talis commented. “I don’t know why they sent him in here.”
“Clearly, somebody out there wanted me to meet the two of y’all,” he inserted suavely. “I need to start comin’ to SNL more often.”
“Next time, you should get in on the hosting,” Talis suggested. “Everyone says it’s a lot of funnn.”
“Nah, I ain’t down for that actin’ on live TV business,” he chuckled. “It’s only a select few people that can pull that off.”
Just as Tip completed his sentence, the door to the room opened, and in sauntered Justin, followed by his small entourage of Rachael and his publicist, Sonia. His eyes locked on Talis for a brief moment before landing on Rie, and a small smile formed on his small lips.
“Shit,” Rie whispered to herself. She glanced at Talis, and then back to T.I., wanting to excuse herself with as little embarrassment as possible. “Well… I’m gonna head out before it gets too crowded in here, but I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
“Lookin’ forward to it,” he smirked.
She attempted to scurry out of the door, but Justin made sure to block her exit in the most obnoxious way he could. He just stood there. “Hi Rie,” he greeted her, as if nothing was wrong at all.
She kept her head down as she waited for him to move, but responded quietly, “Hello.”
“Everything okay?”
“I need to get to work, could you move?”
“Fine,” he moved to the side, allowing her to squeeze by. “But you have some explaining to do,” he hissed.
“Fuck you,” she mumbled, strutting away from him.
“Does that mean you forgive me?” he called after her. With a mischievous grin, he turned back into the room, hoping that he was slowly but surely getting the best of her.
>>>>>>>>>>
“Okay, Mr. Timberlake, could you stand over here for me?” Rie instructed, pointing to T.I.’s far right.
“Where?” Justin pretended not to know what to do.
“Where you’re standing now? Move about three feet to your right.”
“Oh.” He purposely moved to his left, causing several of the crew members to laugh.
“Your other right, Justin.”
“Sorry,” he grinned. “This okay?”
“Fine. And then just stand back a little.” He moved back entirely too far, but at this point, Rie didn’t even care. “Now I want you both to hold your ties right at the knot, right hand over left.”
T.I. immediately did exactly as told, but Justin was intent on being completely difficult all morning. “Can you show me what you mean?” he requested of her. He knew she was annoyed, and that was exactly what he was going for. “Please?”
She left her camera with one of her assistants and walked up to Justin with pure impatience looming in her eyes. “Why are you doing this?” she demanded, harshly straightening his gray and blue tie. She paused when their hands touched for a moment, and regrettably, she felt sparks between them.
“What am I doing?” He licked his lips and watched her carefully as she worked.
“You’re making this really hard,” she swallowed visibly. She began to position his fingers over his tie and then tilted his face so that he could no longer see her.
“So are you,” he simpered.
“Stop,” she instructed with raised eyebrows. Luckily, the music in the room prevented everyone else from hearing their conversation, but she still felt so vulnerable there, with everyone standing there watching them. “Please.”
“Just take my picture.”
Sighing, she moved over to Tip, who’d held his pose, and tilted his head the same way she had with Justin. She stepped back into her territory and began to snap pictures of the delicious duo, trying to keep her focus on her job and not on Justin.
“Now Mr. Timberlake, rest your arm on Mr. Harris’s shoulder, like this,” she demonstrated, lifting her elbow. As she watched Justin’s intense blue eyes settle on her, she called for one of her assistants. “Leslie, could you get me a pair of sunglasses for Mr. Timberlake?”
“Sure, what kind?” the gopher asked.
“What is Mr. Harris wearing?”
“Dolce Gabbana.”
“Ummm. Okay. Let’s go with Gucci for Mr. Timberlake then.” The assistant nodded and quickly left the room just as Talis came in, so Rie put everything on pause for a moment. “Boys, we’re gonna take five, okay? Hey,” she turned to Talis.
“How’s it going in here?”
“Girl, I’m about to lose it.”
“Don’t let him get to you. He’s good at that.”
“I’ve noticed.”
“You need anything?”
Rie shook her head and rolled her eyes. “No, I just got Leslie to find me some shades for Justin so he can stop looking at me like a nutcase.”
“They look great,” Talis noted, referring to Justin and T.I.
“Yeah, they do…”
“Have you heard any of their rehearsals?”
“No, I’ve been avoiding this place like the plague since I found out Justin was coming,” she scoffed. “I did Jeremy’s shoot in less than two hours yesterday.”
“Why don’t you just talk to him?”
“You don’t know how much it hurts to see him right now, T.” She took a quick glance over to Justin, where he was laughing with T.I. and some of the crew, and her expression fell from irritated to miserable.
“I don’t know? Really, Rie?”
“Well I guess you do, but… it’s different!”
“Listen, Rie, I really like you. But if you don’t stop this bullshit, I’m gonna have to kick your ass.”
“I didn’t even do anything!”
“Exactly,” Talis quipped. “You’ve got your second chance and you’re shitting all over it.”
“But--.”
“The awful truth is, everyone hurts you at some point or another. You just have to decide who’s worth the pain.”
“Ugh, stop being so profound,” she rolled her eyes.
“Stop being so stupid.”
As the assistant returned with the pop star’s Gucci shades, Justin approached Rie from behind, tapping her on the shoulder. “Hey,” he said casually.
“Yes?” she turned around.
Ignoring Talis, he quickly pulled her away from the crowd of everyone else and demanded in a harsh whisper, “What are you doing with her?”
“She’s my friend,” Rie frowned. “She needed a friend.”
“Are you crazy?”
“She’s a good person,” she defended adamantly. “She’s a good person, who made a mistake. She didn’t deserve what you gave her.”
“Oh, but I did deserve what you gave me?”
“I haven’t done anything to you, Justin.”
“You’re doing it right now!”
“You’re an idiot,” she stated factually.
“So you hanging out with her just to hurt me isn’t--.”
“Boy, nobody is tryin’ to hurt you,” she laughed. “Your ego is fucking ridiculous!”
“Then what is this, Rie?”
She shrugged helplessly and turned from him. “Like I said, Justin, she just needed a friend.”
“And you had to be that friend?”
“Yes.”
“You’re killing me, you know.”
“Yes.” She shoved his sunglasses onto his face and pushed him backwards to the spot she needed. “Just let me take your picture.”
“Have dinner with me,” he eagerly proclaimed.
“I can’t.”
“I insist.”
“Shocking,” she sarcastically mocked him.
“Rie, come on.”
She rolled her eyes, wishing she had the power to decline, but she paused and eventually said, “Fine.”
“I knew you wanted me.”
“Where, Justin?”
“Shit, right here and now if you really wanna go there,” he quipped flirtatiously.
“Where for dinner.”
“My apartment,” he stated evenly. “I’m at Four-Fourteen Washington.”
“I’m gonna say ‘Hell no’ to that, but if you have a nice public restaurant in mind…”
“Fine, I’ll see you at Scalini Fedeli tonight, nine o’clock.”
“Fine.”
>>>>>>>>>>
At 9:02 PM, Justin entered the swanky restaurant and was quickly directed to where his dinner companion had supposedly been waiting. He was almost disgusted to see Talis sitting at the table instead of Rie.
“This is bullshit,” he mumbled, immediately turning for the exit.
Talis popped up from her seat and made a beeline for him, standing directly in his path. “Please don’t leave,” she pleaded.
“What are you doing here?”
“Rie sent me,” she revealed cautiously.
“Is she okay?”
“She’s fine. She… umm… She wanted me to have my second chance.”
“And what makes either of you think--.”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t come here for that,” she chuckled, lighting up the room with her smile, as she always did. “I wanted to talk to you about Rie.”
“What about her?”
“Can we sit? Please?”
Justin stood there, staring at who was once the love of his life, in all her flawlessness. After all these years, the sight of her still made him weak sometimes. “Okay.”
They took their seats and stared across the table, avoiding one another for several awkward moments. Finally, when she couldn’t take the silence anymore, Talis decided to speak up. “So what happened?”
“I’m sure your new best friend has already told you. Why are you doing this?”
“I wanna hear your side.”
“I don’t have a side,” he shrugged. He sat back in his seat and began to play with his napkin. “I fucked up.” He looked up, his eyes full of guilt, and scoured the dim restaurant before stopping on Talis.
“Imagine that,” she smirked.
“I didn’t come here for a lecture, Talis.”
“I didn’t come here to lecture you. I assume you already hate yourself enough.”
“Well. Yeah,” he answered with a chuckle, raising his eyebrows.
“Justin, I know I fucked you up with one stupid mistake after another, so I do hope you know that I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” he waved off dismissively. “I made my own mistakes, so…”
She nodded.
“But Rie is a good person, all right? So… whatever it is you’re doing with her, just… I hope you don’t fuck her up.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
“What are you planning?”
“Nothing, Justin! I genuinely like her,” she chuckled. “Hell, I need her.”
He narrowed his eyes at her, trying to gauge her sincerity. “You’re up to something.”
“No.”
“You are.”
“When did you become so cynical?” she shook her head.
“When my fiancée left me for a bartender.”
“Justin, I told you I’m sorry.”
“Me too,” he conceded softly with a sigh.
“I’m not here to hurt Rie. At all. I was feeling so small, and so insignificant, and so helpless. And when she walked into that room at SNL, I felt so… relieved. I dunno,” she shrugged. “She’s been a godsend,” Talis finished, looking at him fixedly.
He took a deep breath and began to look around for a waiter. Before he knew it, two were standing in front of him.
“How may I help you, sir?”
“Yeah, I need a drink,” he nodded. “Could I get a black velvet?”
“And for you, miss?”
“I’ll have a Disaronno and Coke.”
“All right. And are you ready to order?”
“Umm. Yeah, sure. Are you ready, Jus?” He nodded, so she went ahead and ordered. “I’ll have the eggplant parmesan,” she decided immediately.
“I’ll have the same,” Justin nodded. “And could I get a side of plain linguine, covered with fresh garlic and butter?”
“Certainly, sir.” The waiter received their menus and quietly disappeared while Talis stared fondly at Justin.
“You remembered,” she grinned.
“How could I forget,” he scoffed. “That ghetto ass apartment you had, with no air conditioning, that electric stove, and it’s the middle of June, you’re trying to make some damn eggplant parmesan,” he chuckled. “And then you drowned that spaghetti in garlic butter.”
“I know! I was trying to be like Dan Tana’s,” she cackled. “And you ate it all, too.”
“Well, it was the first time you let me in your apartment. I didn’t wanna be rude.”
“You were so nice to me back then,” she reminisced happily. They stayed silent for a long moment, both of them remembering their good times together, until finally, they spoke at the same time. “Justin, I love you.”
“I miss you, Talis.”
“I miss you, too.”
“I love you, too.” He couldn’t believe the words had come out of his mouth, but it was true. It was hard to imagine that almost six months had passed since they were supposed to be walking down the aisle together, but in spite of it, while his love may have faded, it certainly hadn’t disappeared.
“I knew it,” she shook her head. “I knew it and I didn’t do anything about it.”
“What could you do?”
“I could’ve fought for you,” she retorted. “I shouldn’t have taken no for an answer. I could’ve “ I should’ve tried, every day for the rest of my life, until you forgave me. If you didn’t love me anymore, okay; but you did. And I should’ve known that you would’ve forgiven me, and that it would’ve been okay. I should’ve tried harder, and I’m sorry I didn’t.”
“So you do want your second chance,” he realized.
“No,” she cracked a smile. “I just “ if there’s one piece of advice I can give you, it’s if this is something you really want, fight for it. People make mistakes, but this is the part that matters. This is the part where you learn from it and make up for it, and that’s okay. The best things in life… you gotta work for.”
“Why are you doing this?” he wondered. “Why aren’t you plotting some scheme to overthrow Rie and get me back?”
She chuckled at the fact that he apparently thought she was such a conniving bitch these days. “Because. Like I said, Rie helped bring me back to life. And in spite of everything, you… you’re still the best, Justin, and you deserve your happy ending.
Even if it’s not with me.”
He had to soften at her honesty and her blatant vulnerability. “I was so mean to you after the wedding...”
“You were low,” she dismissed with a comforting smile. “I get that. I know it didn’t mean that you didn’t care.”
He nodded.
“But I do hope you can eventually realize that I’m so sorry, Jus.”
His eyes locked with her beautiful face, and for the first time since he found out she left “ since the moment she ran from their wedding via Mercedes Sedan, taking his heart along with her “ he felt peace. He could look at her without hate stirring or hurt surfacing. It seemed that, perhaps, he’d gotten his heart back. And for the first time since six months ago, he was able to openly say, “I forgive you, Talis.”
>>>>>>>>>>>
Hit the beat and take it to the verse now
Yeah, yeah, yeah
It had been a long week for Rie, to say the least, and she was more than relieved when Saturday finally arrived. The show had gone off without any major glitches to report, and the afterparty, which she was strongly encouraged to attend, was underway. She had done everything she could to avoid Justin since she stood him up at dinner the previous Wednesday, but it appeared that her luck had run out.
“Hey you,” he announced from just behind her.
Rie actually wanted to turn around, especially when she began to feel the heat from his body radiate to hers, but she was trying so hard not to give in...
I love you
But I gotta stay true
“Rie,” he pressed, tilting his head to try and get a glimpse of her face.
She kept walking and turning any way she could so that she could ignore him. Just when she thought she had successfully escaped, he called her out.
“Yo, Adrienne!” he boisterously greeted.
She turned sharply and walked towards him. “WHAT?” she answered through gritted teeth.
“You’re really good at this evasive shit,” he noted. “But you can’t play me like that and expect to get away with it.”
“I played you?”
“Sending Talis to dinner?” he reminded her. “That was dirty.”
“I just couldn’t do it,” she shrugged breezily. “What do you want from me?”
“I want my second chance.”
“What, you think I owe you something?”
“At the least, I think you owe yourself. I’ve forgiven Talis, now it’s your turn.”
“So what happens, Justin? I open my arms and welcome you back and everything’s hunky fucking dory?”
My morals got me on my knees
I’m begging please, stop playing games
He stared at her for a moment before settling on a response. “…Yeah.”
“Stop stalking me,” she told him seriously. “For real. This is all useless.”
“So when you asked if I had given up, you weren’t just a little sad when you thought I had?”
“Not really.”
“You’re a liar,” he shook his head.
“No, I think you’re the liar in this relationship,” she retorted quickly.
“You know what your problem is, Rie-but-really-Adrienne?”
“No, what’s my problem, Justin-but-really-asshole?”
“Good one,” he chuckled sarcastically. “Your problem is that you’re a fucking coward.”
“Oh, I’m a coward?”
“Yes, you are,” he nodded. “You’re so afraid to put yourself out there, so afraid to stick out your neck or your ass and possibly get a little bruised, in exchange for something that could be really amazing. You’re afraid to realize that life is a fact, Rie, and people do fall in love, and people do have relationships, and people do belong to each other, because it’s the only chance any of us have for real happiness. You’re too scared to find out that, ‘Holy fucking shit, I give a damn about something other than myself. I actually care about this motherfucker and I don’t wanna let him go, even though he fucked up.’”
“Fuck you,” she spat, beginning to turn away from him.
“You wanna act like some hipster free spirit bohemian whatever-the-fuck-you-are, like you don’t have a care in the world, and you just… it’s so painfully obvious that you do. You’re so worried that someone’s gonna tie you down, make you commit, stick you in a cage, but you’re so guarded that you’ve built your own cage, put up your own walls. And those are the worst ones. Because now, no matter where you run, you just end up running into yourself.”
I don’t know what this is, but you got me good
Just like you knew you would
She appeared to be nodding, but he couldn’t tell whether it was in agreement, or disdain, or if she was just staring off into oblivion. “Rie, say something.”
I don’t know what you do, but you do it well
I’m under your spell
“I hate you.” She was on the verge of tears all of a sudden.
“I love you,” he answered.
And now, those tears had spilled onto her cheeks. “I love you back.”
“I know.”
“Take me home with you.”
He looked around the room quickly before staring back at her. “Are you s”.”
“Yeah, can we go now?”
“Absolutely.”
You got me begging you for mercy
Why won’t you release me?
April showers had taken over the city of New York as Justin and Rie made their way over to his TriBeCa apartment. They didn’t even wait for security and such to handle the job; they just hopped in a cab and hoped for the best.
Their impatience carried them throughout the cab ride and into Justin’s building, where they absolutely couldn’t keep their hands off of each other, making out like teenagers and groping one another like they were drunk, though neither one of them had more than a glass of wine throughout the night.
You got me begging you for mercy
Why won’t you release me?
The urgency they displayed made this seem more like a torrid love affair than a reunion of two people in love. And Rie liked it better that way. This wasn’t about love, even if she was in it. She wanted to pretend she wasn’t. She didn’t want to worry about who would be hurt in the morning “ no one seemed to think about that when it was her feelings in jeopardy. It had been so long since she felt good “ since she felt the way Justin made her feel “ that that was all she really wanted. To fuck him and not think about the consequences of tomorrow.
I said release me
She loved every singular sensation that he provided, like the way he slightly trembled as he swiftly unbuttoned her jeans and unclasped her bra. She loved the feel of his fingers running along the center of her spine, and the way his big hands swept her hair away from her neck so that he could place kisses against it. And god, the feel of his lips. They were so soft and so small that it felt like a ticklish tingle whenever they came into contact with her skin. She drew in a deep breath and held it, anticipating his next move as she bit her lower lip.
I don’t know what this is but you got me good
Just like you knew you would
As his hands found her hips, and began to peel her skinny jeans from her unskinny waist, Rie realized that he was in control and she hated it. She had given in, as much as she tried to avoid it, but she couldn’t bring herself to stop him. Not when he was kissing her like that, she couldn’t. Not with the way he ran his tongue over her nipples, teasing them with just the right amount of bite. Not when she could feel his throbbing dick through his jeans, basically knocking on her door, begging to be let in. Not when his hand was reaching between her thighs, exploring every crevice she had to offer. Yeah, he was definitely in control, but even in spite of it, she couldn’t have been more satisfied in that very moment. She knew she'd get it back eventually.
I don’t know what you do, but you do it well
I’m under your spell
>>>>>>>>>>
The following morning, after all had been said and done, Justin awoke to what he thought would be an amazing day. It was the Sunday morning after a successful night on SNL; Rie had come home with him, making it an even more triumphant evening; and hopefully, they were about to spend the day together, continuing where they left off.
He was slightly disappointed to find that she wasn’t wrapped in his arms the way they fell asleep, but he shrugged it off and removed himself from bed. “Now I now your lazy ass isn’t cooking,” he smiled tiredly, throwing on some sweats before heading to the kitchen of his huge loft. “So what are you up to?”
He entered the living area to find it completely empty. Their clothes weren’t even strewn across the room anymore, though he was pretty sure that’s how they left them the previous night.
Figuring she was either in the bathroom or laundry room, he trekked backwards towards his bedroom, searching for any sign of her. He quickly realized that the apartment was silent.
He ran a confused hand through his curly brown hair and let it fall over his frowning face. “Rie, are you here?” he questioned loudly.
No answer.
You got me begging you for mercy
Why won’t you release me?
“Shit,” he mumbled, heading back for his bedroom. He immediately grabbed his BlackBerry from his nightstand, hoping that she’d at least left one of her infamous voicemails for him, saying she just ran to Starbucks or something. No such luck.
All he’d received was a text that he assumed was from her new number: I can’t. I’m sorry.
Speechless, he turned off the phone and crawled back into bed.
You got me begging you for mercy
Why won’t you release me?
I said you better release me
Lyrics: “Mercy” “ Duffy (Rockferry)
Author's Chapter Notes:
Happy New Year! I just found out my little story was nominated at the NF.com Awards, so as a treat, I thought I would update! Thank you guys so much for all your feedback. Hope you enjoy this one. -Ash
Story Tags: interracial unrequited boyfriendj love fiancej vulnerablej
