Moving On Out

"She sounds like a nightmare." Jess sympathized, her eyes glued to her phone.

The situation with Ashley had not improved at all. In fact, I was starting to think she came in every morning just to make my life at work miserable. We had a nice little chat about dressing appropriately for work that ended in her throwing a fit (I kid you not, it was an actual temper tantrum) that left me speechless and Spencer uncomfortable. The end result was that she dressed even worse. I actually saw her ass crack the other day because her jeans were so low cut she didn’t even have to bend over to show it off (Ps: JEANS! On a Wednesday! In the office! I can't even). If anything needed to be scheduled she forgot about it for sure, not to mention that she had forgotten to page people in and made them wait for an unnecessary 30 minutes. I was getting exasperated and she'd only been there for four days.

"She is!" We were eating dinner, but Jess had not put down her phone. "Okay, tell me what's going on?"

She looked up for the first time and pushed her food around her plate. "I've been talking to Rheece." I figured as much but remained silent so she could continue. "He wants me to move back in…."

I choked on my food and coughed to try and cover it up. "Really?!" I silently chanted to myself that I need to be supportive.

"Well, I've seen him a few times and he has changed." It was news to me that they had seen each other, and even more news that he had changed. " It might be a good idea to give it a try."

"Has he been to some sort of program? Like detox, or AA meetings, or like an anger management program?"

"He doesn't need to. He says he doesn’t want to drink anymore and he's been so sweet to me every time he talks to me."

I groaned inwardly. "Jess, are you sure he is ready for this? And more importantly are you sure you are ready for this?"

She nodded and pushed her half-empty plate away. "I'm sure."

"Okay, well maybe just take a couple days to think it over and then make your decision." I got up and grabbed our plates.

Jess stood up to help clear the table. "Well, that’s the thing. He's on his way over to pick me up."

The dishes I was holding clattered in the sink. "WHAT?! You told him where I live?"

"He…he wanted to come pick me up. I wasn't….I didn’t think…" Jess stuttered.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I couldn't help myself. Her getting back together with Rheece was one thing, telling him where I live was another. "He threatened me and he's threatened you too. And you tell him where I live?! So next time he has an outburst or starts drinking he'll know exactly where you are. And next time he sees me as a threat, he'll know exactly where I am too!" I practically yelled. Koda tucked tail and hid under the kitchen table.  Jess looked like she was ready to tuck tail and hide too. Her face was beet red and her chin quivering.

"I'm going to go get my stuff." She said, her voice shaking. I couldn't even feel bad for her.

"He hasn't changed, Jess." I said quietly, putting the dishes under the sink.

She looked fiercely at me. "Yes, he has."

"I think you're making a huge mistake, but that is yours to make. I don’t want him on my property, I don't even want him on my street. If I see him anywhere around here when he shouldn’t be here, I will call the police."

She nodded, turned on her heel and headed upstairs. I crawled under the kitchen table to calm down Koda, then finished the dishes and sent Chris a text.

S: Jess is moving out. Rheece is coming to get her…

C: She told him where you live?????????

S: Yup. Not impressed :(

C: On my way home from work, I'll come straight there.

S: Thanks, I'm making you a plate of food. XO

Jess stayed upstairs and was still upstairs when Chris arrived. He sat down at the kitchen table with me while I poured myself a generous glass of wine. A few minutes later Jess came down, bag in hand.

"I'm sorry, Skye." She said, not meeting my eyes. "I really do think Rheece has changed for the better, and if you can't support that we can't be friends anymore." Back to square one. She fiddled with her engagement ring that she must have just put back on.

"Don't do this. Skye has been nothing but supportive of you and now you're cutting her out of your life, exactly like Rheece would want."

To my surprise she glared at Chris. "You don't know anything about me, so you can't judge me in this at all."

"If you're the kind of person that turns their back on their friend for someone who is nothing but shitty to you, then I don’t think I want to know you." Chris said calmly.

I've never seen Chris mad before, but I could tell he was not impressed. "Jess, I think it's best if you leave. Good luck."

She nodded and walked out the door. We watched her carry her bag down my short drive way to her car. Seconds later a black BMW pulled up behind her car and Rheece got out. They talked for a minute before he glanced towards my house to where we were in the window, looked me directly in the eye, and slowly shook his head, his eyes never leaving mine. A chill ran down my spine and Koda growled. They got into their cars and that was the last we saw of them. Or so I hoped.