Promises to Keep

"Oh- hey, Tayla!" Jason greeted happily. "You look great! I haven't seen you around town much since you came home" he proceeded to say, unaware Tayla had left town almost as quickly as she had come back.

"Oh- that's probably because I left again" Tayla laughed, a little awkwardly.

"You- you left?" Jason asked, realizing where this was going. "You took him back, didn't you?" Jason asked in disgust.

"It's really none of your damn business, but yes- we're together" Tayla replied coolly. After having the dream she had, running into Jason was not at the top of her list of things she wanted to happen.

"Why the fuck would you do something like that?" Jason asked, scoffing. "Look, Tay. I really care about you- and I want nothing but the best for you. But Tyler? Tyler's not it" he shook his head in disbelief.

"Again, I don't think-"

"I love you- but I think you're making the wrong decision" Jason cut Tayla off, who looked at him with her own disbelief. "Have you forgotten what he did to you? That he broke us up? That he broke up you and any other guy you dated?" he reminded her, not that she needed reminding. She flinched upon listening to hearing it; she had indeed not forgotten about it. It was something that plagued her mind and her dreams what seemed like almost constantly. Most of the time she was able to forget the thoughts of betrayal from Tyler when remembering all the good he did for her; how happy he made her; how in love she was.

"See? You can't even listen to me say it" Jason rolled his eyes. "Don't you see? He can't be trusted! If he did that to you with no remorse,-"

"Stop right there." it was Tayla's turn to interrupt Jason. "He is remorseful. He regrets it every day of his damn life. It still tears him apart" Tayla near yelled, before realizing where she was, and what time is was.

"Or he just pretends to be" Jason pointed out, and Tayla instantly rolled her eyes, sighing heavily.

"Tyler and I would have ended up together anyway, so it doesn't matter" Tayla said, regretting the words as soon as they came out of her mouth.

"So our relationship was a lie? So you would have eventually left me for him? So you're just as shitty of a person as he is?" Jason raged on, now not caring whether or not if he hurt Tayla. He loved her; he thought their relationship was meant to last before Tyler interfered.

"I'm not saying that, I'm saying-"

"Did you cheat on me with him?" Jason asked, not wanting the answer. Was their relationship a lie?

"No! I loved you" Tayla said through gritted teeth. "I was torn up when you left. When I saw that note, it felt like my world came crashing down" Tayla told him, shaking her head. But I was more torn up when I left Tyler Tayla wanted to add, but refrained.

"I don't know that I believe you" Jason affirmed, looking angry.

"Why does it even matter anymore?" Tayla asked, exasperated. "We're not together- I've moved on; I can only assume you have too-"

"It matters. It matters that what we had apparently didn't mean anything to you. It matters that you're making a huge mistake here; it matters that you're blinded by Tyler- for whatever reason I'll never understand" he rolled his eyes, and Tayla narrowed hers. "Tyler is bad news- there's nothing good about him. The only reason I ever even pretended to like him was because I love you" he confessed, and Tayla felt a rage boil inside her.

"That's nice" Tayla nodded, unsure of what she wanted to say. Jason sighed, the anger leaving him for a moment. "So, what is the point of this conversation? I'm becoming rather confused" she genuinely had no idea why he was being so persistent.

"Look, I'm not trying to tell you how to live your life-"

"Yes, you are. That's exactly what you're doing" Tayla rolled her eyes. "And I'd appreciate if we ended this conversation right here" she demanded, feeling her emotions beginning to get the better of her.

"You deserve better. You deserve someone who isn't going to lie to you, to deceive you, to do anything in their power to get what they want. You need someone who puts you first. Who always has your best interests in mind. I'm telling you, you're making a mistake. I just don't want to see you get hurt again" Jason rambled, but the words weren't sticking with Tayla.

"It seems like Tyler did me a favour" Tayla scoffed, feeling an overwhelming sense of anger. "Have you been seeking me out, thinking we'd get back together? And did you honestly thing, running into me here today, would change my mind?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. When she received no response, she continued.

"I'm happy, okay? You need to accept what happened. You need to move on. Did what Tyler do hurt me? I won't deny that; it'd hurt anyone. But I know Tyler. We've been building the trust back slowly, but it's there. I love him, he loves me, and that's all that matters. Everything else is none of your concern. I can date what I want, and I'm allowed to make my own decisions" she ended, looking at Jason with disgust.

"I won't be here for you when he hurts you again" Jason called after Tayla, who began to walk home without even walking to get her tea. "You're making a mistake!"

"Good! I don't want you around" Tayla called back, rolling her eyes, and feeling incredibly emotional. "And no! I'm not!" she added as an after thought. So far, coming home wasn't anything like she had anticipated. First her sister, now Jason? "What else could go wrong" she grumbled to herself, suddenly feeling a chill go down her spine.

Tayla tried to keep her head up, however; things were going well. Her and Tyler were getting along better than ever, they moved back in together, and her job was one which she enjoyed; why should she let someone like Jason get under her skin? It was Christmas time; try to enjoy it.