The Good, the Bad, and the Gwen | ✔️

11 - Bat Shit Crazy

"I am going to kill that son-of-a-bitch!" Sully and I exchange bewildered looks as Hartley paces in front of her house, a lit cigarette dangling from the corner of her lips. "Who the hell does he think he is?"

"Who're you talking about?" I ask.

She stops. "Nick, of course!"

Now I'm totally confused. "I thought you and Nick are currently 'off again'," I say, using air quotes. "That's what you said."

She rolls her eyes and blows a stream of smoke toward the sky. "We are. But that doesn't give him the right to see other people!"

"Actually, that's exactly what it means." Sully chuckles loud enough for me to hear but not Hartley. And it's a good thing, because she doesn't appear to be in a chuckley sort of mood.

"How could he do this to me?" She stares at her neighbor. "I need your car."

He shakes his head. "You don't have a driver's license."

"I have my temps."

But Sully's not phased. Living next door, I guess he's used to her outbursts. "That's not the same thing and you know it."

"I guess you'll have to drive me then." Hartley stomps off in the direction toward Sully's SUV, pausing briefly to look over her shoulder. "Are you two coming, or not?"

"And where, exactly, are we going?" Sully gives me another look before following after her. Oscar must sense the excitement. He dances around our feet, tugging at his leash.

Hartley doesn't bother to turn around. "Melanie saw Nick with Skyler Malone at that new Cajun seafood restaurant by the country club." She spits this information out as it's sour on her tongue. "Skyler Malone of all people. That tramp has slept with half of the wrestling team! Probably the football team, too. He could have at least cheated on me with someone decent!"

"He's not cheating on you," Sully reminds her. "You broke up with him. Remember?"

When we reach Sully's car, Hartley whips around to face us, her bottom lip trembling. She takes a long drag on her cigarette and exhales. "But we always break up, and then we get back together again. That's the way we work."

By the look on his face, I can tell Sully's conflicted. "What do you plan to do if you find them?"

"Easy." She doesn't miss a beat. "First, I'm going to kill Nick, and then I'm going to kill Skyler."

"The last time I checked, murder's still illegal in Louisiana," Sully says, letting out a breath. "You'd be thrown in jail for the rest of your life."

"I don't care if they send me to the guillotine!" A shimmer of tears gather in the corners of her eyes. "My life isn't worth living if Nick's not a part of it."

"Are you serious, right now?" I can't keep the shock from my voice. There are few things worse than watching your best friend make a total fool of herself. "You've barely mentioned Nick this entire week, and now you're acting like him going out with What's-Her-Name is the end of the world!"

"Her name's Skyler."

"You're missing the point!" I scowl. "You're not actually going to confront them, are you?"

"Hell yes, I'm going to confront them! Nick and I have a very complicated relationship, Gwen. I wouldn't expect you to understand. It's not like you've ever been in one before."

Her comment stings like a slap in the face. I wait a beat, try to squash the hurt from creeping in. "Maybe not. But one thing I do understand is that it's not normal to chase after an ex-boyfriend when he's on date with another girl. You're acting like a stalker."