The Perfect Lie

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Chapter 6 A Kiss, A Mistake, A Breaking Point Part II

Nicolas Herrera

Sleeping, apparently, was not something that was going to happen for me that night.

Gabe, on the other hand, was passed out like a rock in the bed next to mine, mouth open and drool running down his cheek, like some kind of provocation.

That was why I heard the door of the dorm across the hall open a few times, maybe four. It was always quiet, like whoever it was didn’t want to wake anyone, and the click of the lock was followed by hurried footsteps, like they were running.

That’s how I knew it was Bárbara. She probably didn’t want to wake Jéssica, but she was throwing up everything she had drunk.

Usually, it only took a few minutes, then the dragging footsteps came back, the door opened and closed again, and after some time, the process would repeat.

This time, though, it was taking longer.

I looked at the bedside clock, the neon numbers glowing like a bad joke: 3:47 a.m. It had been about twenty minutes since Bárbara left, which could only mean she had drowned in her own vomit in the bathroom and I was the only person who had a clue. Was there such a thing as an auditory witness?

Two more minutes passed and I turned on the lamp by my bed, making Gabriel grumble like an annoyed cat and roll over.

My head felt like it weighed a ton, and I took a moment, eyes closed because of the light, to find my slippers by sliding my feet across the floor until I bumped into them. In the meantime, I heard the front door click again, opening and closing.

I could’ve just dropped back into bed and stopped being such an idiot, but being an idiot was part of my personality, so I stood up even though my whole body protested, grabbed a notepad and a pen from the desk, and went to the front door.

‘Are you okay?’ I scribbled in the hallway light, blinking my heavy eyelids when the motion sensor turned the bright light on all at once. ‘I have some medicine that helps with nausea, if you want.’

I knocked softly on the door, not wanting to wake Bárbara or Jéssica in case they were asleep, and slipped the note under the door.

I leaned my head against the cold wall, waiting for an answer. I was about to give up when I heard footsteps on the other side and the note slid back to my side of the door, folded in half.

‘I’m fine, Nicolas.’

I had never seen Bárbara’s handwriting before, but I doubted it was usually that shaky.

And, of course, the sniffle from the other side didn’t help her lie.

Come on, you damn Don Juan, I thought as I knocked again.

"Barbie?" I called softly, and I heard her rest her arms against the door.

"What is it?"

"I’m not spying on you, but you spent about fifteen minutes in the bathroom…" I whispered against the wood. "I really do have medicine."

"I was in the shower," she shot back. "I think I managed to stop throwing up. I have an electrolyte drink here and…" She hesitated. "You should go to sleep, Nicolas. Isn’t there anyone in your room to keep you busy tonight?"

"Just Gabe," I answered, pausing for a moment. I didn’t have any real closeness with Bárbara Hendler, but I figured after kissing her, maybe she’d give me a little credit if I chose my words right. "Are you really okay? It wasn’t exactly subtle, what happened with Declan."

"That…" she said, followed by a long sigh. "Well, that’s not what I thought was going to happen."

"Barbie, I…" I bit my tongue. It wasn’t my business, of course, but I had gotten involved almost by accident, and I had heard Declan call her a slut for the entire college to hear while she was falling apart in tears. "I don’t know, I know I’m not your favorite person, but I can listen if you want to talk. Just… open the door."

Maybe a full minute passed between my question and her answer. I closed my eyes, resting my forehead against the wooden door.

"Are you still there?"

"I…" Her voice was low and broken. Damn, she was crying.

"Barbie…"

"I don’t look presentable to open the door, Nicolas," was all she said.

My fingers brushed the handle, ready to open it, but I stopped myself.

"Do you care what I think, Bárbara?" I asked, and when she didn’t answer, I sighed. "If it helps, I think it’d be pretty hard for you not to look presentable when you’re ridiculously gorgeous. Unless you’re naked, and I definitely wouldn’t mind if you came out wrapped in a towel… or not."

I could almost picture her rolling her eyes on the other side.

"I’ll come out in a towel and do a striptease for you, how about that?" she asked, dripping with irony. Ironically, it was better than the sadness from before.

"Sorry, I was just trying to make you laugh," I said, shrugging even though she couldn’t see me. "I…"

I started speaking at the same time she did.

"Go back to your room, Nicolas. I’ll be fine."

I sighed, considering it.

But I don’t know, I just didn’t go.

Her breathing on the other side of the door made me stay, because it told me she was still there, waiting for me to stay.

"You’re too good for that guy."

My mouth, of course, worked faster than my brain. But when I realized what I’d said, I didn’t regret it. It wasn’t a lie.

"He is…"

"You shouldn’t have to get his attention by kissing another guy," I continued. "And, for God’s sake, Bárbara, if he had touched you…"

"He wouldn’t, Nicolas."

I didn’t have as much faith in him as she did, apparently, because I was sure he would’ve pushed her if Jéssica hadn’t shown up.

"You still deserve more than an asshole who only comes after you because you kissed someone else."

"Maybe, but I’m in love with him."

There was so much sadness in her voice that I clenched my fist against the door. Bárbara Hendler wasn’t my favorite person in the world either, but that didn’t mean I wanted her wrecked by a guy who was practically eating another girl’s face right in front of her and still thought he had the right to confront her over a kiss.

Did she really not realize she was too good for him?

"That’s a shame," I said, and I meant it. "If I had known kissing you would cause all this shit, I wouldn’t have done it."

"Even knowing I have a crush on you?" she asked. "You invite me to your bed almost every night."

A hint of a smile played at the corner of my mouth.

I guess that was my thing with Bárbara Hendler: she got mad at me, so I told her there was a spot for her in my bed, she got even madder, and I had the time of my life.

I guess if she ever said yes, I might actually be speechless for the first time in my life, but that would never happen.

"You have a crush on me, that’s a fact," I shot back, and Barbie huffed, sounding more like herself than at any other point that day, and my shoulders relaxed a little at that.

"Sure."

"And you said you’d do whatever I wanted if I kissed you, right?" She murmured in agreement, clearly against her will. "So… please, never kiss me again just to make Declan jealous. Not for me, kissing you was great, but… damn it, Bárbara. He’s not worth it."

"It’s not in my plans to kiss you again," she replied.

"Of course not."

"Idiot," she shot back.

"It’s part of my charm. That and slipping notes under doors," I said. If there wasn’t a door between us, she’d probably be glaring at me with those angry eyes.

"Isn’t it too late for you to be this self-centered?" she asked. "Go back to your room, Gabe will probably notice at some point that you’re not cuddling with him."

"He likes being the little spoon," I said, and I could swear I heard a quiet laugh on the other side of the door, even if it sounded a bit off, like it didn’t quite match her mood. "You have a nice laugh, you know that?"

"Yes, I know," she shot back, and it was my turn to roll my eyes. "Thanks for checking on me, but you can go to sleep. I’m fine."

"You’re lying to me, obviously, but I think you need to sleep," I said. "I’m right across the hall if you need me, okay? Just call."

She took a little longer to respond this time. I noticed my eyes were heavy, and every time I blinked, it took a bit longer to open them again.

"Good night, Nicolas."

"Good night, Barbie."

I had taken a step away from her door when I heard my name called softly, so I went back and pressed my ear to the wood.

"Your kiss sucked."

I smiled to myself.

If she could tease me, I figured she’d be okay.

That’s why, before going back to my room, I wrote one last note and slipped it under Bárbara Hendler’s door:

It’s worth a kiss.

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