Buzz: A Second Chance Romance

by Karli Perrin

  My mum clears her throat. “For years I always said that I never wanted children but look at me now, sitting next to my son who just so happens to be the most extraordinary person I know.” I want to give her a high five as I watch John’s smug little smile disappear from his face. “People can change their minds. Life is about the journey, not the destination.”

  “Indeed,” John replies. “But it’s always sensible to have a destination in mind, right? Otherwise we may never get to where we want to be.”

  “If you want to be somewhere bad enough, you’ll arrive when the time is right. What is meant for you will not pass you.”

  I squeeze my mom’s hand under the table then glance at Lori. Her head is tilted to one side as though she’s thinking carefully about what my mom just said. We all sit in silence for a few seconds before Julie laughs. “Look at us being all serious. I’m guessing you don’t believe in marriage then, Buzz?”

  “I believe that loving someone for the rest of your life should be enough. I don’t understand why a piece of paper holds more weight than a person’s word. But saying that, if it was the only way I could be with the woman I loved then I would get married right here, right now.”

  “I’m sure that woman wouldn’t want you to get married just because it was the only way to keep her,” John chips in.

  “Oh, I’m sure she would appreciate the fact that I would do anything for her. I won't stop fighting for her.”

  “Your view on it sounds a little unhealthy to me.”

  “Unhealthy? Hmmm. Would you say it's more or less unhealthy than printing off somebody’s photo without them knowing, framing it and then displaying it on their desk at work?”

  Lori almost chokes on her drink and then stands up. “Excuse me. I need to use the restroom.”

  My mom stands up too, probably sensing that I was about to go after her. “I’ll go with you.”

  I look from John to his mother. Well isn’t this cozy?

  “I think it’s lovely that you would do anything for the woman that you love,” Julie says which is followed by a look of disgust from John.

  “Thank you, Julie,” I reply, smugly. “I hope you’ll excuse me, too. I just need to make a quick phone call.”

  I walk outside and count to ten in my head, wondering how long it’ll take for John to join me.

  One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Si…

  The door opens.

  I fold my arms across my chest as he heads in my direction. “Why are you here?” he asks, getting straight to the point.

  “The same reason as you.”

  “You’re here to introduce Lori to your mother?”

  “Nah, Lori has already been introduced to my mother. They get along really well, actually.”

  “Then we’re not here for the same reason. Why are you doing this?”

  I sigh. “Believe it or not, I didn’t know you were going to be here today. I came to have lunch with my mom.”

  “I don’t believe you.”

  “I don’t care.”

  He looks deep in thought and after a long pause asks me, “Where were you last night?”

  I can’t hide my smirk. I know that what we did was wrong, but the guy is a total asshole. “I was at home.”

  “Doing what?”

  “Lots of things.”

  “Did you happen to see Lori?”

  “Why would I have seen Lori?”

  “Because she went missing for a couple of hours.”

  “Did you file a missing persons report?”

  “Funny.”

  “Did you try asking her where she was?”

  “She said she was at a friend’s house.”

  “Then she was at a friend’s house. What’s the matter, don’t you trust her?”

  “I do trust her.”

  “Then what’s the problem?”

  “I don’t trust you. You’re my problem.”

  I laugh. “You don’t even know me.”

  “I know enough about you. She came home in a weird mood.”

  “And why do you think it has anything to do with me?”

  “Because everything was going great until we had dinner with you a couple of nights ago. Since then, she’s been trapped inside of her own head. It’s like a wall has come up. She’s become distant.”

  “Then you need to talk to her about it, not me.”

  “I’ve tried. She refuses to talk about you. It’s like you’re that Voldemord guy and I’m not even allowed to mention your name.”

  “It’s Voldemort and I’m pretty sure she would break up with you right now if she heard you calling him that.” So go ahead, keep on saying it.

  “What happened between you two? What did you do to her?”

  “What did I do to her? Are you being serious right now?”

  “Yes, I am. You must have done something. Did you cheat on her?”

  “Fuck you.” I can feel my blood bubbling underneath my skin. “I would never cheat on her,” I tell him through clenched teeth.

  “Then what happened?”

  “It’s none of your goddamn business.”

  He smirks and nods his head. “So you did cheat on her.”

  I take a step closer to him. “I didn’t cheat on her and if I have to tell you again, I’m not going to be happy about it.”

  “What are you going to do? Stop by my office and damage more of my stuff?”

  “No, I’ll damage your fucking face.”

  “No wonder she’s with me now instead of you. She had a lucky escape.”

  I can’t decide if he’s brave or stupid but I’m about to find out. I close the gap between us and peer down at him. “Say that again.” The only thing I can think about is how much I would love to knock him out. It’s a good thing my mom and Lori are here otherwise I would have already done it by now.

  I hear the door open but I don’t take my eyes off John until Lori appears next to him, looking worried. “Buzz,” she says quietly, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel good that she’s concentrating on me instead of him. “What’s going on?” she asks.

  “Nothing,” John answers for me as he takes a couple of steps back. “I was just getting some air.”

  “And quizzing me on what I was doing last night,” I add. “Apparently you went missing for a couple of hours and he seems to think that I know where you were.” Her face turns even paler. “I can’t speak for John, but I want you to know that I trust you. I trust your judgement. So wherever you were last night and whatever you were doing, I trust that you made the right decision at that time. I believe that you were exactly where you needed to be.”

  She looks at me with so much raw emotion in her eyes that I can’t imagine what it must feel like to be John right now. How can he be okay with his girlfriend looking at another man like that?

  Apparently he’s not okay with it as he narrows his eyes and steps in between me and Lori. “You know that I trust you,” he tells her. “I just got a little protective over my girl, that’s all.” His girl? I deserve a fucking medal for not losing my shit. “It’s only because I care about you so much,” he continues. He cares about her? I care about my grandma. I care about what toppings I have on my pizza. Saying that I care for Lori would be a huge insult. What I feel for her is way more meaningful than that. “It won’t happen again, babe.” He turns and holds out his right hand to me. “I’m sorry for involving you. I realize that you’re insignificant and have nothing to do with our relationship. You’re her past but I’m her future.”

  I laugh at his fake, passive-aggressive apology but shake his hand, squeezing it as hard as I can. Super mature of me, I know. He tries his best to hide the pain and I hope he feels it all day long. “Let’s get back inside,” he tells her when I finally let go.

  She glances at me. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what exactly?”

  “Everything.” She lowers her voice. “Everything that’s happened and everything that might happen.”

  “I�
��m not sure what that even means.”

  “Come on, babe,” John says as he starts to back away, holding his hand out.

  “Do you regret it?” I whisper so that only she can hear me. Her eyes fill with sadness. “I’m guessing that means you do.”

  She looks over her shoulder at John, checking that he can’t hear her as she says, “It means that I don’t.” My heart swells and breaks at the same time as I watch her walk back inside with him.

  I’m still staring at the door a few minutes later when my mom walks out. “Hi, Son.” She leans her head against my shoulder. “Are you okay?”

  “Not really.”

  “Of course you’re not. Why didn’t you tell me that she was with someone else?”

  “I only found out a couple of days ago.”

  “Well I’m here for you. What do you need?”

  “I need her.” She sighs and begins to fiddle with her necklace. “How was she?” I ask. “Did you speak to her?”

  She nods. “This is hard for her, son.”

  “Hard for her?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then how does she think I’m feeling?”

  “I’m pretty sure she has enough on her plate without having to worry about how you’re feeling too. You may spend your nights alone, but she spends her nights battling her head and her heart. And while you’re in love with somebody you can’t have, she’s in love with two people.”

  “She told you that?”

  “She didn’t need to tell me. It’s about empathy, darling. This isn’t easy for anybody involved. This is a turning point for her. She’s not just deciding who she wants to be with. She’s figuring out who she is and she’s trying to make a decision which she knows will probably affect her for the next fifty years of her life. So yes, this is hard for her.”

  I sigh. “I can’t watch her marry him, mom.”

  “You might have to.” Hearing the truth crushes me. Why is it so hard to breathe all of a sudden? “If you’re meant to end up together then you’ll end up together. It’s as simple as that. You have to be on the same page at the same time. If you expect her to be patient with you and your views on marriage and commitment, then you need to be patient with her in return. If marrying John is part of her story, then you need to let her write it. That’s the hardest part about this thing that we call life. Nobody can predict the future. You just have to keep the love in your heart and pray that your happy ending is with Lori.” She nudges me. “Life is pretty damn wonderful too. We get to edit when we want to. If we don’t like something, we can rip out a page or even a whole chapter. John is a part of Lori’s story, but he isn’t the whole book.”

  “Can’t we just skip ahead to the chapter where we get back together again?”

  She smiles. “I wish you could.

  I wrap an arm around her shoulders. “We better get back inside. I don’t want Julie to think that we’re being rude.”

  “I’ve already taken care of it. Let’s go and get some ice cream.”

  I laugh. “I’m not a kid anymore, mom. You don’t have to take me for ice cream.”

  “But it never fails to cheer you up. Besides, I’m not taking you. You’re taking me.”

  Mason calls just as I’m finishing up eating my ice cream. My mom was right. Even though my heart is craving Lori, my soul was craving mint choc chip. I’m already feeling a little bit better, or at least not as bad. I’m pretty sure it has more to do with my mom’s pep talk than the ice cream though. “Look who’s finally awake,” I say in greeting.

  “Finally awake? I was awake at six thirty thanks to you,” he replies.

  “Then why didn’t you come for coffee?”

  “Because I wanted to stay in bed with my beautiful fiancée.” I make the sound of a whip cracking. “Hey! Don’t act like you wouldn’t do the same. When you were with Lori, I wouldn’t hear from you for entire weekends at a time. You used to forget that anybody else existed.” Used to? “Where are you anyway?” he asks. “Is that a kid crying?”

  I look over at the little boy who is acting like the world is about to end. Welcome to the club, kid. “Yeah, he’s just dropped his ice cream.”

  “Ice cream? Where are you?”

  “Delucci’s.”

  “Why are you there?”

  “Why wouldn’t I be here? Not everybody is allergic to ice cream like you are.”

  “Oh yeah, I forgot that most people can eat it without dying. What are you really doing there?”

  “I’m cheering myself up.”

  “You’re making me work for my answers today. Why do you need cheering up?”

  I sigh dramatically. “Because my best friend wouldn’t come for coffee with me.”

  “Wow, you really want to make me feel bad about it, huh? Come on, stop messing. Who are you there with?”

  “My mom.”

  “Oh. Well make sure you tell her I said thanks for last night.”

  “I don’t have to, you’re on loud speaker.”

  He starts to choke and then whispers, “Shit. Are you being serious?”

  I chuckle. “No, I’m joking.”

  “Thank god for that.”

  “But don’t worry, I’ll tell her now.”

  “Buzz…”

  “Mom,” I shout but not loud enough for her to hear. “Mason says thanks for last night.” He curses on the other end of the line. “What’s wrong?” I ask innocently. “You wanted me to tell her.”

  “You’re fired.”

  “And you’re full of shit. I’ve heard that about five hundred times. Come up with a new threat.”

  He sighs. “Let me talk to your mom.”

  “She’s busy entertaining the crying toddler. She’s a sucker for kids.”

  “Wait. So she isn’t even with you?”

  “Nope.”

  “You son of a bitch! I was going to invite you to my house for a few games of pool, but you can forget about it now.”

  “When? Tonight?”

  “Yeah. Sophia’s going out for dinner. We could order take-out.”

  “Sounds good. I’ll be there around seven.”

  “See you then. Tell your mom to call me.”

  “Mom,” I shout again but this time she turns around. “Mason wants you to call him.”

  “Okay, darling,” she replies.

  Mason groans. “I hate you.”

  “I love you too, Brother.”

  “You’re a cheating bastard.”

  “How did I cheat?” Mason asks.

  “You moved the ball when I wasn’t looking.”

  “No, I didn’t. You’re just a sore loser.”

  He’s right but I’ll never admit it. “Rematch?”

  “That was the rematch.”

  “Best of three?”

  He laughs. “As long as you’re okay with losing again, cry baby. I’m sure there are some tissues lying around here somewhere.”

  “You carry a pack in your pocket, remember? For when you're always jerking off.”

  He laughs. “I’m engaged, remember? You’re the one who needs them.” I’ve always had a terrible poker face and today is no different. He tilts his head to the side. “Of course you don’t need them. Who was it this time?”

  I simply shrug. I want to confide in him but after the day I’ve had, I’m not in the mood for a lecture. I already know what he’s going to say. Sometimes it’s hard being best friends with Mr Perfect. I'm always going to look like a fuck-up compared to him. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Does that mean you can’t remember her name? Or did you not even bother to ask?”

  “No. It means it doesn’t matter.” I collect the balls and begin to rack them when I hear the front door close, followed by voices. I look at my cell. “Sophia’s back early,” I say to Mason, changing the subject. “I thought you said she only left ten minutes before I got here.”

  He frowns. “Yeah, she did. That’s weird.”

  I follow him towards the hallway and both my legs and h
eart forget how to function when I see Lori standing behind Sophia. They’re deep in conversation but fall silent when they notice us. Lori’s eyes widen but Sophia’s narrow. “What are you doing here?” she asks.

  I chuckle. “It’s nice to see you too, Soph.”

  She gives Mason a fake smile. “You didn’t mention that Buzz was stopping by.”

  “I didn’t realize I had to." He winks at her. "Why are you back so early?”

  “The, um, restaurant…it was fully booked.”

  I can tell that she’s lying by the way Lori is shifting from one foot to the other. My chin tilts up in question but she answers with a small shake of her head.

  “Never mind,” Mason says, unaware of our little exchange. “You can have take-out with us instead. Buzz ordered enough food to feed a small village.”

  “I ordered three pizzas,” I correct him.

  “For two people. Plus the chicken wings and fries.”

  Sophia turns to Lori and gives her a pointed look. “I’m not sure what we're doing yet. Are we going back out? We could try a different restaurant.”

  “No, it’s fine,” she replies.

  Sophia raises an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”

  “Like Mason said, there’s enough food for everyone,” I add.

  “Well she might not want what you’re offering.”

  Lori places a hand on her arm, “Soph, it’s fine.”

  “Yeah, Soph, it’s fine,” I say. “She will definitely want what I’m offering. It's extremely satisfying and very filling.”

  Sensing the weird atmosphere, Mason taps me on the shoulder. “Come on. I need to beat you at pool.”

  “You already beat me,” I say, reluctant to leave Lori.

  “You asked for best of three, remember?”

  There’s no chance in hell that I’m going to play pool while Lori is in the same building as me. I want to spend every minute I can get with her, especially while the dickhead dentist isn’t here. “It’s fine,” I tell him. “You won fair and square.”

  He feigns shock. “Can I have that in writing?”

  I hold up my middle finger. “You can have this in writing.”

  He laughs. "You three go and sit down, I’ll get us some drinks."

  “No, I’ll get them,” Sophia says. “Lori wants to see your game room.”