End of All Time

VERONICA

~“You shine so bright when you’re on your own,”~

~“Racing fast to bring you back home,”~

~“Turn off the lights and watch your glow…”~

~– Stars of Track and Field~

***

Amy was in tears, and I was at a loss for what to do.

I’d just gotten home from work to find her in the living room, her face hidden in her hands, her body shaking with quiet sobs.

As her friend, I knew I had to be there for her. I sat down next to her. She jumped a little, sensing my presence, and before I could offer a comforting hug or say anything, she whispered, “We broke up.”

I wasn’t shocked. Their behavior that day at Fiddle had hinted that something was off with the “it” couple.

But that left a few unanswered questions; where had Amy been for the past couple of weeks since my breakdown at Fiddle? What led to their breakup?

Amy lifted her head and her hazel eyes met mine.

“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice shaky, “sorry I didn’t pick up your calls. But I just… I couldn’t…”

A sharp pain hit my heart as I realized I had created another problem for myself.

“You couldn’t deal with my drama at that moment,” I said flatly.

She nodded and fresh tears spilled from her eyes.

“I’m s-sorry,” she stuttered, “I… I just…”

“It’s okay, Amy,” I said, pulling her into a hug. “Why don’t you tell me everything? I’m here to listen.”

Besides, focusing on someone else’s messy life might be a welcome distraction from my own. I didn’t think I could keep overthinking everything without going crazy.

My friend and roommate took a deep breath before she let go of me and looked down at her hands.

“It started with the try-outs in Chicago,” she said softly.

“What happened there?” I asked.

Amy’s laugh was bitter.

“What didn’t happen there?” she said, her voice heavy. “The judges were blown away by Nick’s performance.”

“Nick was over the moon, talking about moving to Chicago and kick-starting his career while transferring from our college to the University of Chicago. He was so excited, so happy, that I didn’t have the heart to ask him…”

She bit her lip, and pain flashed in her eyes.

“You wanted to know if he thought about you in all of this,” I said, understanding now what was wrong. “You wanted to know if he even considered taking you with him.”

My friend nodded once.

“I didn’t ask him there, and not even after we got back home. But then, he was talking about it with one of his fraternity brothers, and I found myself asking him out loud, ~What about me?~”

She choked on another sob and started crying again.

It was the sound of her heart shattering.

I grimaced. “What has he decided?”

“He’s moving to Chicago,” Amy whispered, “and he said he didn’t want me to come.”

Now I was seriously pissed.

What was Nick thinking? He loved Amy! It was always so clear in the possessive way he acted around her, in the way he looked at her, in everything! Why was he being so dumb?

“I’m going to talk to him,” I told my friend, my hands clenched.

Amy’s hands shot up and she looked at me, confused.

“No Veronica, please don’t. He’s made his choice to let me go. I don’t need you to fight for me just because I can’t do it myself.”

“You don’t understand, Amy,” I grimaced. “I’ve never done anything like this for my friends, and you all have helped me so much. I need to repay this huge debt somehow, and if getting you and Nick back together is the way, then so be it.”

“It’s not about you!” she yelled, her eyes wide and almost scared. “It’s about me! I don’t want to make up with the jerk! I just want to wallow in self-pity!”

“Well, the pity-party is over now,” I scowled, “which reminds me, where have you been all this time, if you were fighting with Nick?”

“At my sister’s,” she said quietly.

Amy had an older sister named Angie and their relationship was strained, to put it mildly. The fact that she went there showed just how messed up Amy was right now.

I pulled out my phone and dialed Nick’s number. Amy started crying again, and I walked into the kitchen so she wouldn’t hear me talking to her ex.

After a few long rings he answered with, “Hey, Nix.”

“What’s your problem?” I asked him, my voice sharp. “Your girlfriend is here crying her eyes out because her boyfriend, apparently, dumped her for no reason.”

“That’s none of your business,” Nick snapped.

“It became my business the moment she told me about it,” I told him, “and don’t try to dodge my question. If you really love Amy Foster, you should haul your stupid ass over here and explain yourself to her!”

“You don’t know anything, Veronica!” he yelled at me, angrier than I’d ever heard him. Good. It meant he still cared about my friend.

“Oh, but I do know,” I said calmly, “I know you chose your career over your girlfriend, and when she offered to join you on this exciting new journey, you just pushed her away!”

“Because I can’t take her!” he said, and his voice cracked, revealing his despair. “She belongs here, with her family and friends.”

“I can’t take that away from her just because she’s in love with me! She can’t throw her whole life away for me when we’re just dating!”

“So, what’s the holdup?” I asked, my patience wearing thin. “Get over here and tell her that, because she sure as hell doesn’t know!”

“But I laid it all out for her!” he argued back.

“Amy’s a woman, which means she only heard the part about you not taking her with you, regardless of the reason,” I shot back.

“Just get your ass over here and hash it out with her! If you truly love her, you’d do that!”

Without waiting for his response, I ended the call. I then went back to the living room and held my friend as she sobbed on my shoulder.

No more than fifteen minutes later, the doorbell chimed.

A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth as I went to open the door and let Nick in. He looked wild, angry, and frustrated, and when he saw Amy’s state, his face was filled with pain.

~Good.~

“Amy,” Nick began, and my friend’s head snapped up, her eyes wide as she looked at him. “Amy…”

Nick’s voice cracked, and then he was rushing to Amy’s side and pulling her into his arms.

My roommate froze.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I’m so, so sorry…”

I decided to give them some privacy. I didn’t need to witness their makeup sex.

I left the apartment and headed to Santana’s house. I’d arranged to meet her because I didn’t have a pirate costume, and luckily, she did.

Santana usually stayed at the apartment her parents bought for her, but today she was at her family’s mansion.

It was easy to get lost there, so a maid guided me to her room, or rather, suite. When I arrived, my friend was engrossed in painting her nails.

“Come on in,” she murmured, focused on her nails, as I shut the door behind me.

“Amy and Nick had a fight,” I informed her. “I made the idiot come over and apologize.”

Santana’s green eyes shot up to meet mine.

“You did good,” she said approvingly. “Even the most perfect couples need a little push sometimes.”

She finished painting her last nail and then stood up. “Come. I’ll show you my collection of pirate costumes.”

“You have a collection?” I asked, surprised, momentarily forgetting about Amy and Nick’s drama and my own.

“Of course,” she said, huffing, “sexy pirate costume, shrine maiden pirate, and so on. I needed a variety for different occasions.”

“Ooookay,” I said skeptically. I decided not to probe further, though.

Santana flashed me a grin and pointed at one side of her enormous closet.

“It should be here somewhere,” she told me, “I would’ve looked for you, but I didn’t want to ruin my polish.”

I rolled my eyes.

“I can find it myself,” I told her and rummaged through her stuff until I found what I was looking for. I grinned. “I’m going to be one sexy pirate.”

“This is the best one, so take care of it,” my friend instructed, “and also, this one needs to be worn over sexy undergarments. Trust me, it’ll make you feel ten times hotter.”

“If you say so,” I said, and then remembered I did have extremely sexy underwear. I grinned at her. “Remember what I bought with you when we were at the mall the other day?”

Santana grinned. “You mean when we saw your sexy boss?”

“Yeah, that too,” I said, my grin faltering a little.

Thankfully, she didn’t notice.

“So yes, I do recall something very sexy,” she said, her grin turning sly. “Wear that, and your pheromones will go into overdrive, making every man want to jump you.”

“Let’s hope not,” I said, and then noticed the time. “Can I hang out here for an hour or so? I don’t want to interrupt the make-up sex.”

“Sure,” Santana said. “Want me to do your hair and paint your nails? I’m an expert, after all. You’ll look good for the party.”

My friend was an expert, so I let her doll me up.

***

When I got back home, Amy and Nick were asleep in Amy’s room, naked.

I smiled to myself in satisfaction; finally, I’d done something right. Frey would be so proud.

A sudden urge to call Frey and tell him about what I’d just done washed over me, but I quickly squashed it. Frey wasn’t my father or anything like that.

I didn’t need his approval like some eager puppy, because that would be just sad.

I only had about an hour until midnight and the afterparty, so I needed to get ready. Santana had worked wonders on my hair, styling it into a high, intricate ponytail.

She’d painted my nails black, a color that went with everything. All that was left was my makeup. I applied some peach blush, ripe-cherry-red lipstick, and a bit of eyeliner.

I slipped into the sexy lingerie I’d bought with Santana; the red satin bra with lace edges and a matching red thong with crimson fishnet stockings.

It was incredibly hot, and the contrast between my pale skin and the red color did amazing things to me. It also made my eyes look a little reddish instead of dark, almost black, brown.

Once the lingerie was in place, I put on the three-piece costume, which included a white ruffled top with jeweled ornament front detail, detachable peasant sleeves, and a gold corset that laced up the back.

The look was completed with a four-tiered skirt with a high side slit. Along with the fuck-you black, high-heeled boots I owned and the cool red headband, I knew I looked hot. With everything in place, I also felt hot.

Finally, I put on my big golden hoop earrings, and I was ready exactly at midnight.

I grabbed my things and walked out of the room. In the living room, I found Amy and Nick watching a movie, sitting close together, entwined, and looking completely content.

I smiled at them, and they turned to look at me. Their eyes widened when they saw me, but I didn’t want to hear compliments from them.

“You left out a little detail,” I said, hands planted on my hips, eyebrows raised in question.

Nick got the message and pulled Amy closer to him.

“Thanks for knocking some sense into me,” he said, his smile genuine and grateful.

I nodded, returning their smiles. “I’m glad you guys made it.”

“We did,” Amy replied, lifting her hand to reveal a stunning diamond ring. She blushed as my eyes widened. “We’re not ready to tell everyone just yet.”

“Holy shit,” I gasped, “you two are engaged!”

“I’ve been planning to propose for a while,” Nick admitted, a blush creeping up his cheeks that made him look endearing. “But then the whole Chicago situation happened…”

“In short, we’re moving to Chicago together,” Amy said, her smile stretching from ear to ear.

“That’s… That’s amazing!” I exclaimed, then a thought struck me. “Wait, does this mean you’re leaving everyone here for good?”

They shared a look before nodding in confirmation.

“But it’s not happening immediately, so don’t stress,” Nick reassured me with a warm smile. “Besides, we don’t want you to be late for your party. You look stunning, Nix.”

“I second that,” Amy chimed in, her eyes scanning me from head to toe. “Seriously, girl, stop being so attractive.”

I rolled my eyes at her.

“Enough, Amy. I’m heading out now.” I grabbed my coat and slipped it on over my costume. “Enjoy yourselves, you two.”

“I think that’s our line,” Nick retorted with a chuckle. I laughed, waved them goodbye, and left my apartment, unaware that I was heading into a night that would change everything.