Days of Black and Gold

Waddling to the door, I tried to reach it before several more bangs sounded. “I’m coming, I’m coming,” I mumbled, flipping on the foyer light.

On the third knock, I pulled the door toward me. “Shit,” I breathed. “What are you doing here?”

“I had to see if it was true,” she smirked, looking me up and down. “This is what you’ve been doing during the past year? I say I need a bit of time to think, and you shack up with a sexy hockey player in a different state. Did you really think I wouldn’t hear about this?”

“Who told you were I was?” I seethed, already having a good idea of what her answer would be.

“Your whore from the Capitals.”

“Excuse me?”

“Alex, right?” She pushed past my large belly and wandered into the living room. “He’s living in your old place. Said something about you ruining his marriage, which was rich coming from the man who started our fallout.”

“You left, Robin. I was willing to work it out, but you left.”

“And what did you do? Waited one month, started dating the captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins and then what? Things got a bit messy?”

“Things aren’t messy,” I spat.

“Oh, no?” She raised her brows at me. “Did you just get fat then? Are the rumors of pregnancy untrue?”

“Do not start this,” I pleaded.

“Why? Is he home? Does he not know about me? Are you scared I might cause him to dump your cheating ass?”

“I have never cheated on him.”

“But you cheated on me.”

“I told you because honesty is important to me. I thought it was to you, too, but I guess I was wrong.”

“Oh, Mag, you’re so full of shit. Do you really believe that you told me because you were being honest?”

“No,” I argued. “I told you because you deserved to know. I made a mistake, and I was sorry for it. I didn’t want to hurt you, or us. That was never my end game.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Mag, but we both know you told me because you weren’t happy with us anymore. If you were, you wouldn’t have let things get carried away with the false toothed fucker.”

“I don’t care how bitter you are that I’ve moved on, but don’t you dare blame me for you calling it quits.”

“I believe the words I used were that I needed a break. I wasn’t calling it quits, I just needed to wrap my head around a few things.”

“Is that what you told your mother when you showed up alone to your sister’s funeral?”

“That’s not fair, Margot.”

“Not fair? Are you kidding right now? You show up out of no where after a year of ‘thinking’ and get angry with me because I moved on? I can’t remember the last time I was this happy.”

Robin’s face dropped. “You’re such a bitch.”

“Are you really going there?”

“You have no idea,” she growled, a fire igniting in her eyes. “We were together for four years, Maggie, and we were engaged for two of those. I have all the dirt on you that I need.”

“You were engaged before?”

My breath hitched in my throat at the sound of Sidney’s voice behind me. I squeezed my eyes closed, and turned to face him. “Sid, look, I can explain.”

“I’d like to see this,” Robin chuckled.

“Get the fuck out of my house,” Sidney barked.

“Good luck,” Robin smirked, grabbing her bag and exiting the house.

I watched Sidney pace back and forth in front of me. “Sidney, please.”

“Don’t,” he interrupted. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me you were engaged or a lesbian.”

“I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Bullshit.”

“I wanted to tell you when we spent that month getting to know each other, then you asked me out.”

“And you decided I shouldn’t know that my girlfriend used to be in a romantic relationship with another woman? Who the hell do you think you are?”

“It wasn’t like that,” I tried, tears running down my cheeks. “I wanted the time to be right.”

“And you didn’t think finding out you were pregnant was a good time?”

“I tried, just ask Cath.”

“Catherine knows you were dating her?”

“Shit,” I muttered, closing my eyes again. “It came up when I told her about my talk with Geno.”

“Geno?”

“I digging myself into a fucking hole,” I breathed.

“Did you announce it to the whole team?”

“I didn’t,” I shook my head. “From what I know, only three of your teammates know.”

“Son of a bitch!” Sidney shouted, punching the wall in front of him.

“Oh my God!” I gasped, taking the few steps over to him. “Are you okay?”

“Leave me alone,” he growled, shaking his hand. “I can’t talk about this anymore. I just need…”

“Some time? Fine, take all the time you need.” I moved as quickly as I could through the house to our bedroom. I pulled clothes out of the dresser and closet before tossing them into a duffel bag. Grabbing the bag and my purse, I made my way back to the front of the house. “Call me if you want,” I told him, placing the engagement ring on the small side table and shutting the door, hard, behind me.

Pulling out of the driveway in my Rav4, I sped in the only direction I knew would be able to help me. The trip had become so easy for me that I didn’t even have to think about the turns as my mind raced almost as quickly as my vehicle.

Once I arrived, I slowly removed myself from the driver’s seat, and grabbed my belongings. I made my way to the front door and knocked, hoping I wouldn’t have to wait too long in the cold January evening.

“Margot?”

“He,” I whispered, as realization hit and tears spilled down my face. “He knows.”