Better Off As Lovers

"Jaxin?" Giani pops his head into my room. "Jaxin, I made tea." 

I turn in bed to face him. "I don't want tea."

He seems to take this as an invitation to walk into my room and sit on the edge if my bed. "I didn't make you tea. This is my tea."

I sit up against my headboard and rub at my dry eyes. I hate crying. It makes me feel like such a little bitch. "Then why did you tell me you made tea?"

"It's a conversation starter." He shrugs, lifting the cup to his lips and taking a sip. 

"That's a horrible conversation starter." I protest. 

"Oh, really? We're conversing. Checkmate."

I smile for the first time in a week. Giani always knows how to make me feel better.

"Ah, there you go. I've been dying to see those pearly whites." Giani jokes. "Now let me see those baby blues." 

He reaches forward to brush my hair out of my eyes. He pulls a face and shakes his head. "Jesus, when was the last time you washed your hair? C'mon, Jax. You can't let him affect you like this!" 

"Gigi! I was in love with him! He fucking broke my heart!"

He sighs heavily and sets his tea on my nightstand. "How many text messages did he send you?" 

"Three." I say automatically.

"And how many missed calls do you have?"

"Four."

"And does any of this change the fact that he fucked Jason? Your best friend?"

"No." I admit, burying my face in my hands.

"He's not worth your tears, sweetheart." Giani says softly. "I know all about his type, okay? He's the type of guy who texts all day and talks all night. Shane doesn't deserve you."

I know he's right but I can't help but accept the depression as it rolls through me. For some reason, I expected this from Jason. I've known him since I was eight. He goes after what he wants and he really wanted Shane. It's not the first time he's stolen my boyfriend but for some reason, I couldn't just dump him as a friend. He's more like my brother than anything.

But Shane. I loved him. I thought we actually had something. I dated him for a year which is longer than any of my previous relationships.

And then he fucking broke my heart.

"What's wrong with me?" I cry.

"Oh, baby, c'mere." Giani pulls me against him and hugs me tightly. "Nothing is wrong with you. You're brilliant and hilarious and you deserve a guy who can see that and who will cherish you and who will make you feel like the only man in the world."

"I'm sorry, Gigi." I whimper.

"Sorry for what?" He demands, pulling away.

"You were right about Shane. You tried to tell me but-"

"You stop that right now." He cuts me off. "Now, listen, you're going to go take a shower. Then we can make some cookies and watch reruns of Project Runway."

"Uh, Giani, I'm gay and all but I still have a dick."

"Ugh! I know but it's the season with Christian Siriano and you know how much I love him." 

I laugh. "Fine! Fine. Whatever you want." 

Giani smiles and hugs me again. "Good. Now go get that shower. And use that stuff that smells like mangos. You need it."

I smile once again and watch as he prances out of my room. Giani Giordano has once again managed to be my light at the end of the tunnel. Weather it's coming with me to my brothers grave or attending my college graduation when my mom couldn't or moving in with me in order to help with the rent, Giani has always come through for me.

He bursts back into the room as I pull off my shirt and grabs his forgotten tea. "I was serious about the mangos!" He calls, leaving once again.

I take a long hot shower, making sure to use the mango stuff Giani so kindly asked me to use. When I step out, I put on a pair of boxers and my Reptar pajama bottoms and meet Giani in the kitchen where he's pulling out all the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.

He dances around my tall, awkward frame, mixing and storing the dough to perfection. Giani has always been a natural in the kitchen which is perfect because one time I burnt myself while making smoothies.

There's a knock at the door and I'm told to answer it as Giani is busy arranging dough on trays. I swipe some dough from the bowl and dodge the spoon he tries to hit me with as I leave the small room.

I swing the door open and the smile melts from my face. "Shane."

"Jaxin, baby, where have you been? I missed you." He steps forward and places a hand on my chest, looking up at me through his eyelashes. 

I feel the sudden urge to take him into my arms and kiss him and pretend that none of this ever happened. "I....you-"

"Jax, who is it?" Giani calls, snapping me back to reality. 

"It's nobody." I reply, stepping away from my ex.

Pain flashes across his face as he steps closer. "Baby, how can you say that" 

"Because it's true, Shane. You've proven that I mean nothing to you and now I need to move on."

"We can work this out." He insists. "I called you..."

"I know you called. I got them all but that doesn't change the fact that you cheated on me!" I shake my head. "There's no working this out."

Giani appears at my side out of nowhere and gazes over Shane more calmly than I expected. "Everything okay?"

"This is all your fault." Shane turns a glare on Giani.

"My fault?! How is it my fault that you cheated?" Giani shoots back outraged.

"If you hadn't gotten between us none of this would have happened!" Shane screams, stepping closer and closer to Giani with every word. "Everyone knows that you're in love with him but just let it go! You just fuck everything up and-"

"How dare you?" I growl, stepping in between the two shorter men.

"Yeah, you sure got a lot of nerve to say that this is all my fault." Giani says around me.

I gently push him back into the apartment and turn my attention to the other. "Shane, just go. We're through."

"But Jaxin, I-"

"No, Shane. Even after three text messages and four missed calls you still slept with my best friend and nothing you say or do will ever change that." I close the door gently and sigh heavily.

Giani places a hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay Jax?"

"I'm fine, Gigi." I smile. "Thanks for...putting up with him and I'm sorry for what he said." 

"Don't apologize got that doucher." He smiles, walking into the living room. I follow him and slide down onto the couch. 

"Hey, what did Shane mean when he said that everyone knew you were in love with me?" I ask, small smile playing on my lips.

Giani freezes, eyes going wide. "I don't- I mean- I-" 

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Relief washes over his face as he scrambles out of the room to go get the cookies out of the oven. I chuckle under my breath. Giani is so special. I'm glad I met him. 

That morning, on the New Jersey bridge, he saved me in more ways than one and he continues to do so in every way.

He skips back into the room with a warm cookie in his hand. He breaks off a piece ad tries to hand it to me but I open my mouth instead. A blush covers his cheeks as he places the treat on my tongue, fingers brushing my lips ever so slightly.

Giani brings his legs up under him as he sits next to me and turns up the TV. I watch his profile and decide that I'd really like it if it turned out that he really was in love with me. 

Because I've been in love with him since that morning on the bridge.

And that would be just one more way that he saved me.