Disregard the Lies

Sadie couldn’t believe that Kyra had actually accused her of sleeping with Henrik. There was no way she would ever do that for a couple of reasons. One, she was still in love with Jonathan, and while she knew there was a very small chance that they would ever get back together, she wasn’t going to ruin that chance by sleeping with one of his best friends. And, two, she simply wasn’t attracted to Henrik.

She had tried talking to Kyra after the game, but she really didn’t know why. Kyra still refused to believe anything that she said, and Sadie was beginning to think she should just stop trying altogether when it came to Kyra.

She sighed as she sat down on her couch, grabbing the remote, trying to find something good to watch on television. She stopped when she saw one of the stations talking about the Red Wings, and against her better judgment, she decided to continue walking.

The screen changed to show an interview with Jonathan, and Sadie melted a bit at his accent. She finished listening to the interview, and without thinking, she stood up, grabbed her keys off of the table, and made her way out to her car. She drove to Jonathan’s place, and quickly got out of her car, walking up to his door.

Before she was able to talk herself out of it, she knocked on the door, and moments later, Jonathan opened the door, staring at her. “You’re the last person I thought I’d find here,” he admitted.

“We need to talk, Jon,” she told him. “Please, just let me explain my side of things,” she begged.

Jonathan sighed, but moved aside anyways, letting her inside. He watched her walk over to the dining room table, sitting down. He followed her, taking a seat across from her. “So, what’s your side?” he asked, crossing his arms.

Sadie sunk down in the seat, wondering why she had even come here in the first place. She could tell by his body language that he wasn’t open to anything she was about to say. He continued to stare at her, and she knew she needed to say something to him. “Jonathan, I’ve worked for the paper for nearly two years now. And, the entire time all I’ve ever wanted was that one big story that would propel me and make me a well-known journalist. So, when my boss, Lydia, offered me this piece, promising me that it was exactly what I had been asking for, I jumped at it,” she began, taking a breath.

Jonathan didn’t say anything, but shifted in his seat, waiting on her to continue. She looked up at him, taking another deep breath before starting again.

“I’ve been myself this entire time. When I first saw you, I was immediately attracted to you. You asked me out, and I was hesitant to say yes, and you know that. I didn’t want to lose my position as an Ice Girl, and I told you that. I just left out the part about me also losing my job at the paper. Everything I’ve ever told you has been the truth except for my job. I swear, Jon,” she said, slowly looked up into his eyes, worried for how he was going to react.

Jonathan stared at the table, unable to look at Sadie. On the one hand, he knew she was sorry that she had lied, and he wanted to forgive her. But, the other part of him was still furious that she hadn’t told him everything from the beginning. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Sadie calling his name.

“Please say something,” Sadie begged. “I know you’re mad at me right now, but I need you to say something. Anything.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Jonathan admitted. “I know you’re sorry about what you did. But, we can’t go back and change it.”

“I know, but I just want you to forgive me,” she cried, but Jonathan remained quiet. “I quit my job, if that means anything,” she added quietly.

Jonathan quickly lifted his head to look at her. “You quit your job?” he questioned. “At the paper?” Sadie nodded her head, and Jonathan’s eyes widened. “Why? I thought you did all of this so you could become this widely known journalist,” he said, using her words against her.

“Did you read the article?” she asked him, and Jonathan slowly nodded his head, wondering if she had wanted him to or not. “Well, did you notice the author’s name?” she asked, and he gave her a confused look. “It was Lydia Scottsdale, my boss,” she explained. “My story didn’t even get published. She wrote the article based on information that I had given her.”

“Sadie,” Jonathan said quietly, but trailed off, not knowing what to say to her.

“That’s why I quit,” she explained. “There was no point in me staying there.”

“So, what are you going to do?” he asked her.

“I’m going to finish out my run with the Ice Girls, and after that, I’m not too sure,” she admitted. “I guess try to find a job at another paper. But, I’m sure Lydia’s going to give me a bad reference for anyplace that I apply to,” she said, thinking out loud.

“Well, I wish you well, Sadie,” Jonathan told her sincerely.

“Jonathan, I never meant to hurt you,” she stated.

“I know,” Jonathan said with a nod of his head. “And, I forgive you.”

Sadie’s head snapped up, wondering if she had heard him correctly. “You forgive me?” she asked hopefully.

“Yeah,” Jonathan confirmed. “I know you never wanted to hurt anyone. And, I forgive you for lying and for writing it behind everyone’s backs and everything else. But, I’m not the only one that you’re going to have to apologize to. You’ve hurt a lot of people.”

“I know,” Sadie said quietly. “So, if you forgive me, do you think we can give us another try?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, as she was afraid of what his answer was going to be.

“I’m sorry,” he said, and with those two words, Sadie’s heart immediately broke. She looked up at him sadly. “Sadie, we can’t be together.”

“I thought you forgave me, though,” she said, sounding like a little kid who had just been told she couldn’t get a new toy.

“I do forgive you, Sadie. But, our relationship was based on a lie,” he told her.

“It wasn’t based on a lie!” Sadie exclaimed. “I told you the truth about everything except for my job. Can’t you just look past that one lie?” she begged.

Jonathan shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he told her.

“Well, can we start over?” she asked. “Can we begin a new relationship? Jonathan, I want to be with you,” she told him.

“Sadie, we can’t.”

“Jon,” Sadie began.

“I’m sorry. Sadie, I don’t know if we can even be friends,” he told her.

“But, you just said that you forgave me.”

“I know, and I do. But, Sadie, you’ve got to see where I’m coming from. We were so close, and I don’t know if I can just go back to being friends,” he tried explaining, even though Sadie couldn’t understand.

“Okay,” Sadie said, nodding her head as she tried to push back the tears that were forming in her eyes. “I’m just going to go,” she said, standing up and pushing the chair in. “Goodbye.”

“Bye, Sadie. I’ll see you at the game tomorrow,” he told her, and she simply nodded her head as she exited his apartment, scared to say anything as she was so close to tears.

As soon as she walked out to her car, she could feel the barrier break, and the tears started streaming down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away, scolding herself for crying. She should be happy right now since Jonathan had forgiven her. She had known going in that it was nearly impossible that they were going to get back together, and it had been a pleasant surprise to hear him forgive her. But, here she was, still crying.

She made her way back home, controlling her tears long enough so she could see where she was driving, but as soon as she walked into her apartment, she began sobbing once again. She walked back to her bedroom, letting the tears fall freely as she fell backwards onto the bed.