Drop Dead.

David was flying in from Ireland a couple days after I’d shown up on Tom’s doorstep. He called me just as I was getting out of the shower, readying myself for work.

“Hey beautiful,” his voice rang through the earpiece. Hearing him speak such words to me made me want to cry again, but I resisted.

“Hi,” I shortly responded. David instantly knew something was amiss.

“What’s wrong, love?” he asked. I mentally kicked myself for letting on that I wasn’t completely fine. But, since I’d already dug myself a rut, I decided it was better now than never, for if I put it off any longer, I’d never tell him, and I’d let our relationship continue on a lie.

“Um, there’s…there’s something you need to know. Um, can you meet me at the café tonight?” I asked him, my grip tightening on my towel.

“Sure, love.” David’s fearful voice mirrored my thoughts. He probably thought I was going to break up with him or something along those lines.

We hung up shortly after and I bid a quick goodbye to Tom, who was in the kitchen struggling with the coffee maker. The sight brought me back to the morning I found Oliver, shirtless and confused, standing before one similar to Tom’s. I remembered how childish he looked with his tongue poking out from between his lips as he pushed numerous buttons, growling every time he got it wrong.

That was before I realized how Oliver really was, before his personality shifted so dramatically from a love-struck rock star to a threatening asshole. I wondered if Melanie had spoken to Oliver yet, if she’d broken things off between them. I seriously hoped she had. Oliver was bad news if he could shamelessly lead a girl like Melanie on and then cheat on her with her best friend. Oliver had some nerve turning this whole situation around on me when I was happy with David. It was his fault I was now partially homeless. It was his fault Melanie hated my guts. It was his fault that David might end up breaking up with me after he learned that I’d been unfaithful – unintentionally, of course. I made a mental note to throw in the fact that I wouldn’t have cheated on David if Oliver hadn’t initiated it.

Even though I was working a nine-hour shift, those nine hours seemed to fly by and before I knew it, David was walking in through the front door of the café just as I was hanging up my white apron. He smiled, although it seemed a little forced given the news that I’d had something that he needed to know, but that fact didn’t stop him from opening his arms. Guilt and anxiety settled in my stomach as I wrapped my arms around his waist, pulling away shortly after. I didn’t deserve to be in such close proximity of David, not when I was still hiding what I’d done.

I led us over to a table in the corner, two cups of coffee in my hands. I set them down and took a seat in the chair, letting David take the other. He disregarded his coffee and clasped his hands together on the table, leaning forward.

“What did you want to tell me, babe?” he asked, a hint of fear in his voice. I shakily sipped my coffee, looked out the window, picked at my nails, tried to find any kind of distraction. “I’m gonna find out sooner or later, Charlotte. Might as well tell me now.”

He had a point; there was no doubt that if I didn’t tell him, someone else – like Melanie or Oliver – would. So, setting my pride aside, I opened my mouth.

“I cheated on yeh David,” I told him in a whisper. His face fell and my heart broke again. But I wasn’t finished. “With…Oliver.” He didn’t say anything for quite some time and I waited for his anger to set in, for him to shoot up out of the chair and flip the table over.

“When did this happen?” he asked, pursing his lips as he lifted his clasped hands to his mouth. I bit my lip and looked down at my lap, abandoning my coffee.

“At your parents’ house,” I whispered, hoping that, somehow, he hadn’t heard. But he did and I looked back up at him to catch his reaction. He dropped his head and raked his hands through his hair. Lifting his head, a small smirk settled on his lips, leaving me extremely confused.

“Charlotte, I knew you liked Oliver even before we got together. Honestly, I was expecting it sooner or later,” he responded, his smirk morphing into a smile. “And…I forgive you.”

“Y-yeh do?” I stuttered, completely shell-shocked. How could he forgive me just like that? In my eyes I was a horrible person, someone who didn’t deserve the care and love David gave to me. I didn’t deserve David. And yet he was acting like my cheating wasn’t a big deal at all.

He nodded. “Of course.” Then he took my hands and held them tightly on the tabletop. I cocked my head to the side.

“How?” I whispered, loud enough for him to hear. “How can yeh just…forgive me like that? Why aren’t yeh yelling at me, calling me names, breaking my heart?”

He smiled without showing his teeth. “Because I love you, Charlotte. That’s how.” My heart misplaced a few beats as his words ran circles in my head. Then Tom’s did.

If ‘e truly loves yeh, ‘e’ll forgi’ yeh.

I guess the younger Sykes had been right after all. An ear-to-ear smile carved its way onto my face. David’s soon mirrored mine and his grip tightened on my hands.

“I don’t expect you to say it back,” he told me, his eyes showing his sincerity. “I don’t want you to say it just because I did. I want you to mean it.”

I grinned and leaned across the table to press my lips to David’s. And, in my head, everything was right. Sure, I’d lost my best friend and I was potentially homeless, but knowing David didn’t hate my guts as well was a huge relief. At least one of the most important person in my life didn’t want me burned at the stake. I also found it comically ironic that David would confess his love for me after I’d just admitted to cheating on him. We shared a laugh about that on the ride back to Tom’s.