Chapter 0190


    “You both need to listen to me,” I begin, and instantly, Chloe’s eyes sh.


    “No one is going to listen to you,” Chloe hisses. “You need to leave.”


    “Let her talk, Chloe,” Leah interjects, her voice softer than I expected.


    Shooting Leah a thankful look, I take a deep breath and steel myself. “Guys, you need to give Karl


    another chance. He’s helped me so muchtely, and I’m tired of pretending that he’s still just some jerk


    with no feelings.”


    Leah raises an eyebrow. “Helped you? Abby, the guy’s trouble. He’s toxic. He’s—”


    “He’s also put his life on the line for me,” I cut in, my voice urgent. “He almost got himself shot, multiple


    times, over some stupid truffles I needed for thepetition. He’s been here through it all, putting


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    aside his own needs—”


    Chloe’s eyes flicker, but her voice is unyielding. “That doesn’t even begin to excuse everything he’s


    done. He divorced you over bullshit, Abby. And he bribed Adam into breaking up with you. Hell if Adam


    was gay! Karl would have done it either way!”


    “Yes, maybe he would have,” I agree. “And yes, maybe it doesn’t excuse everything. But it addsyers,


    Chloe. Layers to a person you’ve filed away as a simple problem. We all have our baggage, our bad


    decisions. Lord knows I’ve made mine, and you’ve made yours.”


    The room goes quiet, the tension so palpable I could cut it with a knife. Then Leah speaks, cautiously,


    as if testing the water. “So, you’re saying we should just ept Karl because you think he’s changed?”


    I shake my head. “No, Leah, I’m saying that it’s my choice to spend time with him, to see if he’s really


    trying to change or not. What I can’t ept is an ultimatum from my best friends because they disagree


    with my life. That’s not friendship. That’s control.”


    Chloe’s face is unreadable. “And if your choices put you at risk? What then, Abby? Do we just stand by


    and watch?”


    “Would you rather cut me out?” I retort. “Would that make it easier for you? Friendship isn’t just about


    the easy times, the wine nights and the double dates. It’s about the messy parts, too. It’s about


    standing by each other, even when we don’t always agree with each other’s choices.”


    Chloe looks down, her eyes tracing the reddened rim of her wine ss. “This is different, Abby. This


    isn’t just us disagreeing with your life choices. This is us being genuinely worried for you and feeling


    like there’s no other way to make you see logic.”


    “If you’re so worried,” I say, “then ditching me when I need you the most isn’t going to help anything.”


    Leah sighs, stepping closer. “But you can’t me us for wanting to distance ourselves,” she says,


    although I can sense in her voice that she doesn’t even fully believe her own words. “We have our own


    lives to protect, too.”


    “That’s true,” I admit. “I never meant to put your mental health in danger. But don’t make me choose,


    guys. Don’t make me choose between my best friends and a life I need to figure out for myself. And if


    you can’t do that, then maybe we shouldn’t be friends.”


    For a moment, nobody speaks. The room feels frozen, but the ice might just crack.


    Finally, almost imperceptibly, Chloe nods.


    “So, we’re good?” I ask cautiously, hardly daring to breathe. Read at NovelDrama.Org