Playing With Fire

"Oh, very attractive guy, eight o'clock," Olivia said under her breath, elbowing Bridgette in the rib. The blond nearly fell off of her bar stool and in an attempt to catch herself, she knocked her elbow against the bar. She glared at her friend, who obviously wasn't paying attention.

"First, ouch," Bridgette laughed, smacking the back of Olivia's head in revenge. "And second, I'm engaged."

She held her hand up for proof, and her engagement ring caught in the dim lights of the low-key club . Olivia rolled her eyes and batted the hand away, her eyes still trained on the guy walking past. Bridgette kept her gaze on her best friend, eyebrows raised expectantly.

"First," she mocked, and it was Bridgette's turn to roll her eyes. "Put that boulder back, you just blinded everyone standing within ten feet. And second, I'm looking for me, not you."

"You're something, Liv," Bridgette chuckled, stirring the ice in her cup.

"I'm taking that as a compliment," she retorted, taking a sip from her own glass. "But seriously, not all of us are as lucky as you and have a dreamy fiance. Some of us are roughin' it and playing the field."

"Oh, to be single," Bridgette teased.

"Shut up."

"But what fun would life be if I didn't harass you just a little?"

Olivia seemed to stop and consider it before reaching over to ruffle Bridgette's loose blond curls. "None at all, 'cause that would mean I couldn't harass you back, and I mean, we all know I'm hilarious, so it would be a huge loss for you."

"I know. If I never met you, well I'd probably be living out of that corner in the library at the high school, desperately awkward, anti-social, and desperate for companionship."

"Well, you're welcome," Olivia said with a wink, both of them managing to keep straight faces.

"Oh, there's a guy who's pretty cute!" Bridgette said, nodding at a guy a few stools over. Olivia wrinkled her nose and tilted her head before shaking it.

"No. He definitely looks like the type to run out after a few days. What about him?" she asked, pointing across the bar to a small table.

"I don't know. I can only see the back of his head," Bridgette responded, both of them craning their necks to get a better glance. As if sensing their eyes on him, the man turned, leaving both of the girls to gasp at the familiar face.

"Nope. Never mind. Definitely not him," Olivia blurted out quickly, taking a gulp of her drink. Bridgette ducked her head down immediately, hoping he hadn't seen them.

"What is he doing here?" she asked, not really expecting an answer. She rested her forehead on the cool wooden surface of the bar for a few moments before sneaking another peek. There was no denying it. There sat the one and only James Maslow in the flesh.

"Well, I mean is it so strange he has a social life? When you dated him, he went out a lot. It's only natural he still does now, I mean, he's young and single and not bad looking," Olivia rationalized, still watching him.

"Of course," Bridgette mumbled, looking intently at the bottles lining the wall behind the bar. "Actually, I should have known. Why of all the fricken clubs in LA does he have to be here though?"

"Uh, because life likes a good laugh every now and then?" Bridgette narrowed her eyes, and Olivia held her hands up defensively. "Not the time for jokes? Okay, sorry."

"But really, what is he doing her? I mean I have never seen anyone go to a club by himself..."

"Actually..." Olivia said hesitantly, and Bridgette's full attention snapped over to James faster than a bullet.

Her whole body felt weak as her gaze landed on a girl sitting next to him. Her light hair cascaded over her shoulders as she reached across the table to grab his hand. She laughed at something he said, and her perfect teeth glinted in the light. James laughed too, tangling his fingers with hers. Something inside Bridgette broke as she watched the scene unfold.

"Bee," Olivia said softly, then her voice rose as Bridgette pushed away from the table. "Bridge, what are you doing?"

Bridgette didn't hear her as she wove quickly through the crowd. She couldn't hear the loud rumble of the bass or the drunken chatter surrounding her; nothing but her heartbeat echoed through her ears. She was on auto-pilot as she arrived at the table with a sweet smile plastered on her face. James looked up, his expression a mix of shock and confusion, and his date just looked lost.

"Bridgette, hi," James said awkwardly, tilting his head. "Fancy seeing you here."

"I know, I just thought I'd say hi," she rambled, her attention finally turning fully to the other girl. "Sorry, I'm interrupting something, aren't I?"

"You're fine," the girl said stiffly, eying Bridgette.

"Have we met before?" Bridgette asked, putting a finger to her lip in consideration. The other girl shifted in her seat, her hands folded tightly on the table.

"No, I don't think so."

"Are you sure?" she pressed, and the girl nodded. "Huh, maybe it was someone else then. With him, it's kinda hard to keep up I guess."

James and Bridgette's eyes widened as the words slipped out of her mouth. The other girl pursed her lips, her eyes darting between James and Bridgette, who were now in a deadlock.

"I just realized I forgot something in the car," she excused quickly, scurrying up.

"Melissa, wait," James called to no avail. He stood up, hovering over Bridgette. His face was red as he ran a shaking hand through his long hair. Bridgette could feel a knot in the pit of her stomach as he glared at her, obviously pissed.

"James, I am so so-"

“What the hell did you just do?” James screamed, cutting her apology off; Bridgette took a wavering breathe, her throat constricting. "What were you thinking?"

“I- I don’t know what came over me. I'm sorry,” she said truthfully, wrapping her arms around herself. The part of her that broke when she saw them was shattering now, and her eyes watered involuntarily.

"Sorry doesn't fix what you just did!"

"I know, I'm just... I don't know! I was over there minding my own business and I saw you and her and I just-"

“You broke up with me a long time ago and walked right out of my life! You left me!"

"I know!"

"You're marrying my best friend and I haven't pulled anything like that! In case you momentarily forgot in spontaneously losing your mind, I'm the best man!”

"I know!"

"We ended, and you moved on! What does it matter to you if I'm out on a date with someone else and moving on too?"

“It doesn’t!”

“Bullshit! If it doesn't matter, then what the hell was that?"

He waited for an answer, but she was completely silent. In the course of the argument, her tears had spilled over and there were multiple people watching them cautiously. Still their eyes never left each other. Bridgette only felt James's eyes, heavy with questions and rage. She shook her head slowly, biting her lip as she fought for words.

"I don't know. I just don't know, okay? I'm sorry! So, so sorry!"

James looked up at the ceiling and tugged at the ends of his hair before looking back at her. Finally, he kicked at the ground and grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair. As he brushed past her, he paused for just a moment, his voice low.

"You can't do this now when I'm finally moving on. You left me. Dammit Bridgette, you left me!”

She stood unmoving right there for what seemed like hours to her, the water gushing from her eyes like a broken dam. When Olivia finally reached her, she crumpled into her best friends arms wordlessly. Olivia looked from the head of chestnut hair disappearing in the crowd to the weeping blond, just as lost as the rest of the people surrounding them.

"What the hell just happened?" she asked softly, holding Bridgette for dear life.

"I screwed up," Bridgette choked out. "I screwed up, and he hates me. Or at least he should!"

"Bee, what are you talking about?"

"I was a completely bitchy, crazy ex-girlfriend! After all he's doing for me and Reece and the wedding, I just ruined that for him! He probably hates me and he has every single right to!"

"He doesn't hate you," Olivia promised softly, brushing the hair out of Bridgette's eyes.

"How can he not? That was by far the meanest, most selfish thing I have ever done! He hates me, and I hate me right now too," she admitted thickly, her voice cracking. "It wasn't supposed to be like this! We weren't supposed to be like this!"

Olivia wrapped her arms a little tighter around her. "I know sweetheart. I know."