The Heart I Married For

Hazel POV:

The silence that fell over the table was absolute. Todd's mouth hung open, and Bianca's face was a mask of stunned disbelief. The air crackled with the aftershock of my words, so out of character for the quiet, compliant Hazel they all knew.

Just as Bianca was sputtering, trying to form a retort, a figure appeared behind me. "What the hell is going on here?"

Alex.

His voice was cold steel. He took in the scene-me, soaked in a red, sticky mess, and his friends looking like they'd been slapped. His eyes landed on Bianca, a flicker of concern crossing his face before turning back to me, his expression hardening into disapproval.

"What did you say?" he demanded, his voice low and menacing.

"She told you to go fuck yourself, Higgins!" Todd blurted out, a nervous laugh escaping him. "And she called Bianca cruel!"

Alex's glare was glacial. "Apologize to her. Now."

I almost laughed. "Apologize? For what? For telling the truth?"

He grabbed my arm, his fingers digging into my skin. "Don't make a scene, Hazel."

"A scene?" I echoed, my voice dangerously calm. "You mean like your girlfriend tripping me and having her friend douse me in a drink? That kind of scene?"

Bianca's eyes widened. "I did not! She's lying, Alex!"

Alex's grip tightened. "Apologize."

I looked from his angry face to Bianca's triumphant smirk. He would always believe her. He would always choose her. It was a pointless, pathetic little drama, and I was suddenly so tired of my role in it.

I pulled my arm from his grasp. "No."

His eyes widened in genuine shock. It was the first time I had ever defied him so directly.

Bianca seized the opportunity, her voice taking on a tearful quaver. "Alex, she's scaring me. Can we just go?"

He hesitated, torn for a fraction of a second. His gaze flickered between me and her. That flicker was everything. He was actually considering me. But habit, and years of obsession, won out. He let out a frustrated sigh.

"Fine," he snapped, turning his back on me and wrapping a protective arm around Bianca. "Let's go."

As he led her away, I saw the briefest flash of relief on his face. He was glad to be escaping the confrontation, glad to be retreating to the familiar comfort of placating Bianca.

The party resumed around me, the incident already becoming a piece of juicy gossip. I was left standing alone, sticky and humiliated, but also strangely liberated.

Todd, emboldened by Alex's departure, decided to continue the fun. "Alright everyone, let's play a game! Never Have I Ever!"

A cheer went up from the table. I should have left. But something held me there. A need to see this farce through to its bitter end. I sat down in an empty chair, a silent observer.

The game started, filled with predictable boasts of promiscuity and wealth. Then, it was Bianca' s turn.

"Never have I ever," she said, her eyes finding mine across the table, "been with someone for their money." She took a delicate sip of her champagne, the challenge hanging in the air.

I didn't drink. I just stared back at her.

A few rounds later, it was Todd's turn. He grinned, clearly enjoying himself. "Never have I ever had a password that was someone else's birthday."

A few people drank. Then Todd looked directly at Alex's empty seat. "Higgins would have to drink to that one. Poor bastard's had Bianca's birthday as his password for everything since high school. 0-8-1-4."

August 14th. My blood ran cold. My own birthday was in August, too. August 18th. For four years, I'd seen Alex type in his password, always assuming that '0-8' was for me. Another delusion. Another piece of the fantasy I'd constructed, crumbling to dust.

Then it was Bianca's turn again. She was drunk now, her malice sharpened by alcohol.

"Never have I ever," she slurred, her smile venomous, "slept with a man who was in love with someone else." She looked directly at me. "Your turn to play, Hazel. Or are you going to sit there like a ghost all night?"

Something snapped. I reached across the table, took the shot glass in front of me, and downed the fiery liquid in one gulp. Then I picked up the deck of cards from the center of the table.

"My turn," I said, my voice clear and steady.

I drew a card. The question was simple. 'Who is the person you love most in this world?'

Everyone at the table smirked, looking at where Alex had been sitting. They all knew the answer. The pathetic Mrs. Higgins, obsessed with her husband.

I looked at the card, and then I looked at each of them, my gaze lingering on Bianca. I felt a slow, cold smile spread across my face.

"Dale Heath," I said, the name a sacred thing on my tongue. "The person I love most in this world is Dale Heath."

And then, looking directly at Bianca, I added, "I have never, not for a single second, loved Alexander Higgins."