Chapter 43 - THE CLIMB

With a long kiss goodbye, Bob drops me off at Paris' house. I did tell my mum that I'd be having a sleepover at her house, so it's only natural I'd come here. Vitali, the nice butler that's been working with the Jackson's for years now lets me in with no questions asked and buzzes Paris to tell her I've arrived. 

Paris comes running down the stairs barefoot in shorts and a tank top, her hair tied firmly with a green scarf. She turns to Vitali and thanks him before zoning in on me. ''Thank God you're alive. I was worried sick because it's like 9:00pm and you said I should cover for you. Your mum called three hours ago but I blew her off and said you were asleep.'' Note to self: call mum. ''Girl, what have you been up to? Are you in any trouble?''

Time for the big reveal.

"I have a boyfriend."

She rolls her eyes. "No shit."

"Wait, you knew?"

Paris is not stupid, and I had my suspicions that she already knew what was going on. 

"Of course I did! I'm your best friend and I take my role as bestie very seriously. I figured with all the times you've been asking me to cover for you, you'd be seeing a guy. Plus, don't think I didn't notice that you had that new relationship glow. Trust me, I've been there and done that. I didn't mention it though because you're not that slick. I knew you'd open up to me when you felt comfortable enough. My assumptions were correct."

I stand there, stunned while she has a smug look on her face. "I'm actually at a loss for words right now."

"I made you speechless?'' she asks surprisingly. "That's a first because you're the Queen of Clapbacks." 

''I am not the Queen of Clapbacks.''

''Yea, you are. The way you handle Mariah and Jason will forever be legendary. I wouldn't be surprised if 'Queen of Clapbacks' is inscribed in your yearbook photo or something.''

She drags me to the main kitchen and hands me a bottle of water. I gulp it all down and she raises a brow. After the night I've had, I need a drink, a long one. "So who's the lucky guy?"

"Now it's time for me to make you speechless. It's Bob Stewart."

"WHAT!"

I put a finger to my lips, cautious that Vitali or her parents might hear us. "Can you be anymore louder?" I chastise. I know it's shocking and a really big deal, but the least she can do is be calm about it. It's not like I said I bombed the earth.

"What? When? Why? Where? How? Which? Huh? What the actual fuck, Mel? You're dating your boss?" She grabs a lemonade bottle from the freezer, unscrews the cap, and drinks straight from the bottle. "You know what? This is not a conversation for the kitchen. There are prying eyes and ears everywhere and these walls talk. We are going to the movie theatre and you are going to start spilling the tea."

...…..

We spend about an hour in the movie theatre, an animated film I've never seen before plays in the background while I fill her in on my relationship timeline with Bob. 

"So long story short, you haven't like given him your coochita, right?"

I blush slightly and hit her with a throw pillow. "Of course not. I'm not like that."

"I won't judge you if you do because your boyfriend is fucking hot. I'm surprised he hasn't had a dip in your fountain.''

I scrunch my nose. ''Well when you put it like that, it sounds wrong.'' She laughs and throws a piece of kettle corn on my nose. ''The conversation has come up a few times though, but he's not pressuring me to do anything I don't want to.'' He's a gentleman like that.

''How sweet,'' she coos. ''At least he's better than all these high school boys. Honestly, it's like the only thing they think about is sex.''

Jason is living proof of that statement.

''Bob's sweet, patient, kind, generous, attentive and literally everything I could ever dream of." I gush. I really do like him and I've told myself that a bunch of times already. He's literally my Prince Charming, even with his flaws.

"Girl, you've got it bad." Paris teases. I nod my head and slouch in the cushion. ''I do, don't I?''

''You do. Reminds me of when I was dating Sean in 10th grade. Of all the boyfriends I had prior to him, he was the one I fell hard for.''

''I thought you said he was a dick?'' I never liked Sean. He used to be at Adelaide and was a football player before his family moved to Arizona. He was a cheater and Paris wasn't his only girlfriend at the time. Paris learned that lesson the hard way when this chick from a grade above us named Nancy Hawkins confronted her in front of the whole school about 'messing around with her man.' She cried for days, even refused to come to school at some point due to embarrassment. 

But it's all in the past now although Paris would never forget it.

''Oh, he was. But at the time, I really liked him.'' Her expression turns dark and I know what's coming next. ''Until I found out he had a whole girlfriend in a year above us. and she embarassed me in front of everyone.'' See, never forget. ''Fucking pig.''

I agree.

''Speaking of pigs, Bob and I went on a date-''

''That explains the slip dress. You look cute by the way.''

''Thanks. So we went on a date and we ran into his ex.''

She drops her bag of kettle corn on the couch beside her, eyes wide open and mouth ajar. ''Say Bible.''

''Bible. It was so crazy and was literally a scene out of a Hollywood flick because everyone stopped and stared. She was rude, annoying and looked like a spoiled, rich bitch. Her name is Patricia and I found out she actually cheated on Bob and had the nerve to justify it.''

''That's just wrong.''

''And she's so pretty.'' I groan. ''I can't compete with her.'' It's not that I want to compete with her, but if I'm putting myself on her pedestal, then I look like a burger. She's tall, leggy, a red head like Paris and naturally pretty. I was almost, emphasis on almost, jealous when I saw her. I can understand why Bob dated her. Hell, I'm pretty sure men worship at her feet that's why her ego is the size of Africa.

No wonder she's a bitch.

I'm still mad she called m her 'replacement.' Why would I even want to be her replica?

''Exactly. Moreso, something seemed off about her. She's like the adult version of Mariah, so that in itself is hazardous, but her aura just seems weird.''

''Hmm. How did Bob react?'' 

''He was a bit flustered, I believe. They semi-argued and talked about what went wrong in the relationship and stuff. It was just really uncomfortable.''

Paris nods and hands me a can of Sprite. ''My advice is you stay away from Patricia.'' That part is clear. ''Since she's a cheater, I wouldn't want to be anywhere near her. Also, since you said her energy is off, it's even more reason to stay away. I personally wouldn't poke my nose into Bob and Patricia's relationship. It never goes well because you may find out things you don't particularly like.''

I'm not really interested in finding out about Bob's past relationship with Patricia, although something is telling me I should. There were threats being made on both sides and Patricia said.

I'm pretty sure the devil has space enough for both of us.

What did she mean by that?

''Give Bob the benefit of the doubt. Has he given you a reason to distrust him?''

''No.'' Except now that Patricia is in the mix. ''He hasn't.''

''Well then, enjoy your relationship and don't think too much about his ex. From your description, she looks like bad news.''

I nod silently, ready to change the subject because I feel a headache creeping in. ''Speaking of relationships, how's Ryan?'' I tease. Paris' cheeks go red and I squeeze them with my hands. ''Oh, fuck off.'' she says.

''Well, don't leave me hanging. I've told you about my relationship so spill about yours.''

''He asked me to be his girlfriend!'' I squeal so loud and hug her. Not to brag, but my matchmaking skills are top notch. ''I knew you'd both be the perfect match.''

She nods vigorously and grins. ''When did he ask you out?''

''At the party. After you ditched me.''

''I did not ditch you. I was giving you and Ryan some alone time so you'd get to know each other.'' I explain.

''That's still called ditching.'' she teases. She lowers the volume of the animated movie then turns to me. ''But I forgive you because it was all for the best.''