Page 70 of Malaise

“To do what?” I cry.

“Convince you that an older guy with a shady history like Brett Carver isn’t what you need.”

Don’t say it. Don’t.

“I am.”

“Urgh!” I shoot to my feet, snatching his stupid jacket as I go, and hurl the damn thing at him as hard as I can, forcing him to raise his hands in defence. “Go away. Just go.”

“Come on, Meg.” He stands, crowding me against the tree trunk. “You’ve always liked me too, I know it. I saw the way you’d check me out when you thought nobody was looking.”

“When I’d never spoken directly to you, yeah!” I push on his shoulders, but he sticks a foot behind himself and stays steady. “You were some fantasy then, some unattainable dream. But now I know what kind of a selfish pig you can be, I kind of miss those naïve days.”

“So what?” he asks, clearly still unsure if this is really no somehow. “You don’t want to give us a go now that you know me? You’d rather run around with a guy who’s only going to leave you on your own when he goes to jail again soon.”

“What the fuck do you know about that?” I ask with a clenched jaw.

“He’s being done for theft again, right? It’s all on camera. They know it was him. I mean, who else would it be when he’s pissed at the place for firing him after that footage from the bonfire leaked?”

“How do you know that’s why they fired him? Have you got something to do with this?” He’s caught off guard when I shove him this time, stumbling back and allowing me to step away.

“Just don’t come running back to the people who tried to help you when he’s gone, Meg. There’s only so much of your tantrums we can take before we’ve had enough.”

“Fuck,” I mutter, “you sound just like my parents.”

“Yeah? Well maybe they know what they’re talking about.”

Enough. I can’t take any more of this shit. I spin on my heel and stalk away, unsure exactly where I’m going, but just that it’s anywhere but here.