Whirlwind

I didn't know if I really wanted to know what Farrah wanted. I don't even know why I even asked him. I guess my curiosity got the best of me. I mentally braced myself for the answer, even though I had a theory what it was. Although, thinking it was one thing, I don't think I want to hear it out loud.

"I'm not sure if you'd really want to know," Taylor said. He sighed. "She wants me to be with her and never see you ever again."

"I see," I said, softly. It was all I could muster up. What can I say? Farrah had some mental problems, I mean, if she forces a guy to be with her, then he's going to end up resenting her. But then again, this situation was extremely farfetched that I didn't know whether or not to believe that he did help Ricky accidentally burn down the McNeely house or if he was just making one big, elaborate excuse to be with Farrah. "What are you going to do?"

Taylor couldn't look at me. He stared off into the distance. He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. I had a feeling that I knew what he was going to say.

"I don't know, Court," he said, sadly. "I really do love you. I think I have to do what she says because it's not just me in this situation, it's Ricky too. I can't let her turn him in. If it was only me, then it would be a different story."

Now, I'm convinced that this was just one big elaborate excuse to be with Farrah. I just wish he'd stop telling me that he loved me. If he really did love me, he would have been up front about the McNeely fire. Frankly, if he was telling the truth, I didn't need to be put in the middle of this situation. Farrah wins, she gets what she wants. Oddly, I'm actually ok with it.

"You do what you have to do, Taylor," I told him. I hugged him. "I'm going to go home now. I'm sorry this didn't work out. I hope you and Farrah can find some happiness together."

Henry opened the passenger's seat for me. As I got into his car, I saw Farrah walk outside and wrap her arms around Taylor. She smirked at me and mouthed "I win". Taylor looked devastated, like he wanted to push her away and come after me. Maybe one day, Taylor and I will find each other again.

"Are you going to be ok?" Henry asked me, when we pulled out of the parking lot.

"I think so," I told him.

**********************************************************

It was May 1st, two weeks passed since Taylor and I broke up. I kept myself busy with work and school so I wouldn't think about it. Today was no exception. After I clocked in, I immediately attacked the large pile of clothes from the fitting room, ignoring Cody who was on the register.

"Hey, Courtney, I'm going to to my lunch," he told me. I gave him a slight nod. I tried not to talk to him if I could, due to my loyalty to Zoey.

Zoey started her shift an hour after I came in. She was practically glowing, sporting a gigantic grin that could have made Reese Witherspoon jealous. The girl's day out we had last week turned out to be amazing and we became closer friends, making plans to get dinner after work tonight.

"Hey, hun, what's going on with you? You're glowing!" I asked, smiling. It was nice to see her so happy after Cody was such a jerk to her.

"Omg! I had such an amazing date with Adam!" she gushed. She paused. "Wait, is it weird to talk to you about it?"

It was a little bit weird, but I figured that I could handle it. As long as I didn't get any in depth details, that is.

"No, it's fine," I assured her. "Why would it be weird?"

"Well, you just got out of a relationship and Adam's your friend," she explained. I shook my head and motioned for her to continue on with her story. She grinned. "Yeah, so.." She talked about how Adam was such a gentleman to her and how he took her to the new Chinese restaurant that opened last week. My mind wandered off while she was talking.

"So, do you think you can talk to him?" she asked, poking me in the ribs returning me to reality.

"Talk to him about what?" I asked.

"About what he thought about our date, silly!" she said. I didn't have the heart to tell her no. It was really obvious that she liked him.

"Sure, I'll talk to him for you, Zoe," I told her.

Let's just hope it's not as awkward as I think it will be.

Whine and Dine

Henry and I were making an attempt to hang out more and have a stronger friendship before we both went to college. Since I had the day off of work, we decided to check out this mom and pop restaurant, that was more of a grill, which was just out of town. Apparently, they serve the best steak there and is highly recommended by a bunch of reviewers. I was excited to go check it out. I tried inviting Sarah and Justin, but they were busy as usual. I can't really blame them, they are planning their big day.

"This place better be good if I'm going through all this trouble for a steak," Henry joked, breaking through my train of thought. Brittany had taken the car out today, so Henry had to come pick me up and drive to the restaurant. I felt bad that he was going through all this trouble.

"Man, if you're going to whine and complain during the whole ride, I'll drive," I smirked, knowing full well what the answer is. Henry would never allow me anywhere near the drivers seat. His truck was his precious baby. I think he would actually drop dead then allow anyone to touch his truck. I don't understand his obsession with the truck, but more power to him.

"Hell no, Court," he said to me, making a face. "No offense, but you're not the world's best driver."

"That dog ran in front of my car! I had to brake suddenly so I wouldn't hit the poor thing!" I exclaimed. Then I grumbled, "It's not my fault that people let their dogs run around without a leash."

Back when I first had my license, the group and I decided to go celebrate my new found freedom by getting a pizza. There was a guy walking his dog on a semi-busy street, and the dog went crazy running onto the street. Just my luck, he had to go in front of my car. All I have to say is thank goodness no one was behind me when I braked. If that wasn't enough, the owner gave me a really dirty look like I had intentionally tried to kill his dog.

"Ok, Courtney, whatever you say," he said, disbelievingly. He smiled at me. He pulled into a parking lot. "We're here!"

Surprisingly, the restaurant was really close to town. The parking lot was full, it took us about 5 minutes to find a spot. I silently thanked the couple who walked out of the restaurant.

When we went inside, I was in awe of how cozy the place was. The interior was decorated like a sports bar, with pictures of the local sports teams, memorabilia, signs, and a bunch of really cool posters. They had a chalkboard telling us what today's specials were. The greeter was really friendly, informing Henry and I that we have a 10 minute wait ahead of us. There was a wonderful aroma of food in the air and I was ecstatic when the greeter called Henry's name and sat us in our booth.

We both ordered the steak, mine well done and his medium well, and I can say is: WOW. The steak was cooked perfectly and was seasoned with bold spices that complimented each other without overpowering one another. They even made the vegetables taste amazing! My only complaint of the steak was that there wasn't enough. I wanted more when I was done with it.

Henry and I gushed over how amazing the steak was while we split the bill. I turned to leave when Henry stopped me.

"Hey, isn't that Taylor over there?" he asked me, pointing to a table. "What's he doing here?"

I looked over to where he was pointing. Indeed, it was Taylor and he wasn't alone. It was a female companion. Her back was towards me so I couldn't see her face.

"I don't know," I admitted. "Let's go." We walked towards the exit and I managed to get a clear look at who Taylor was with..