5. Thin white lies

I fiddled with my phone, playing Subway Surfers, a game I'd been obsessed with since middle school. It had always helped me relax, but today, it felt futile. The game couldn't drown out the thundering of my heart or the growing anxiety that was threatening to engulf me.He was right there—the guy who'd changed everything for me, the one who made me feel like I'd "joined the ranks." And yet, I couldn't bring myself to look him in the eyes. The shame was overwhelming, and nausea was rising in my throat.How was I supposed to handle this situation? And more importantly, how on earth was I going to tell Tamara? The thought of breaking it to her was unbearable. She was so head over heels for him, and I knew the truth would crush her. The weight of the secret felt heavy, and I was paralyzed by the fear of what would happen if it ever came out."You're thinking so loudly."I looked up at him, startled by his unexpected comment. I wasn't prepared for this conversation."I guess..." I chuckled awkwardly, hugging myself as I fidgeted, unsure what to do with my hands.Liam took a slow sip of his beer, his gaze lingering on me. "What are we going to do?""About?" I asked, playing dumb to mask my anxiety.He ran a hand through his hair, frustration evident. "I'm talking about us sleeping together."A chill ran up my spine. This was bad. Of course, he remembered; I had known it the moment we saw each other. Hearing him confirm it made everything feel even more real."I mean, we did it before I met Tamara," he said, attempting to justify himself. "I didn't cheat on her..."He had a point. Our one night together happened long before he and Tamara were together. It shouldn't affect their relationship, right? It wouldn't be fair to her."Yeah, and it meant nothing," I said, trying to sound nonchalant, though the words felt hollow.He looks at me with an unreadable expression on his face, "Yeah it meant nothing." He repeated sharply. "So we don't need to freak out about anything cause there isn't anything...we don't know each other and it was a one night thing...""So what do we tell her?"I feel my heart racing at the thought of telling Tamara something that heartbreaking. I just don't want to see her on such a high and then take it all away because of a stupid meaningless one night stand, I won't do that to her."No. You two are in a good place, she's happy and that's all that matters.""What are you guys talking about? Sounds serious."Reese arrived with my beer, taking a seat beside me. "Drink up."I thanked him as Liam responded casually to Reese's question, "I was trying to get her to like me. If the best friend approves, the relationship sails smoothly."Reese grinned, "Luckily for me, Tamara already likes me." He winked at me, and I couldn't help but smile at his effortlessly flirty demeanor.Confident and energetic people like Reese and Tamara really drew me in. They had a way of making everyone feel at ease, and their free-spirited nature was something I admired.================================================================================At the end of the night, after playing tons of games and watching Tamara and Liam make out 99% of the time, we finally got ready to leave. We called an Uber since no one was in any state to drive. I was relieved—Liam was supposed to drive us home, but thankfully, he was now too drunk to do so, which spared me from an awkward drive."I don't want to go, baby!" Tamara pouted, clinging onto Liam. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. All couples seemed annoying to me when they were being overly lovey-dovey, and this was no exception.Liam held her by the waist, grinning down at her. "You're so cute." He leaned in for a kiss, which quickly turned into a passionate make-out session."You'll get used to it," Reese said, walking over with his jacket in hand. He extended it to me with a warm smile. "Wear this. It's cold."I took the jacket from him, appreciating the thoughtful gesture as I wrapped it around myself, feeling its comforting warmth. His easy confidence and kindness were a welcome contrast to the scene unfolding between Tamara and Liam.I thanked Reese as I put on his jacket, feeling its warmth. "They're acting like they'll be apart for all eternity.""I know... couples are so annoying. Promise we won't be like that," he joked, flashing a grin.I chuckled at his silliness. Reese was sweet, handsome, and funny, but I still had that messy history with his best friend. I needed to handle this situation delicately, avoiding anything that might complicate things further."Look, I had a lot of fun with you, Amelia," he said, his tone sincere.I turned to him, searching for the right words to keep things from escalating. I knew I needed to be cautious and gentle."I... had fun with you too, Reese," I replied.His grin widened. "So let's have more fun... during the summer. Promise you'll come."I glanced at Tamara and Liam, still locked in their passionate embrace. In that brief moment of eye contact with Liam, I felt a lingering attachment that wasn't completely gone."No... Reese, I really can't make it."He frowned and pulled out his phone. "Then how about we start our romance through texting really long messages and sending each other cringe memes?"A smile crept onto my lips as I took his phone and typed in my number. This was a way to move on from Liam and explore something new with someone who seemed genuinely great. It felt like a good step forward."I'd love to get the cringy memes from you," I said, handing his phone back with a smile.================================================================================Tamara was drying her hair, sitting on my bed, and she looked up with an excited grin. "So... tell me, what do you think of Reese?"I knew she was hoping I'd fall for Reese to make our summer trip work, but I had no intention of going. I needed to stay away from Liam and avoid any risk of our secret being exposed and spending an entire summer with him just didn't sound like a good idea."Reese is cool," I said."Just cool?" Tamara's face fell a bit. "You two seemed to be hitting it off, even Liam thought so.""Liam thought Reese and I were hitting it off?""Yeah," she confirmed, nodding. "He totally thought you two would be cute together, like us."I managed a smile, though my mind was still swirling with the complicated mess of my feelings. The last thing I wanted was to complicate things further, but Tamara's enthusiasm was hard to ignore however, I wasn't going to entertain things with Reese, I slept with his best friend for god sake.