The door swung open and Justin and Lance looked up, startled. Chris stormed in, a scowl on his face.
�Chris? What�s wrong?�
Justin hesitated before asking. Chris grunted and sat down on a chair. Lance and Justin looked at each other in confusion.
�Hey, what happened?�
Joey and JC walked into the room. Having heard the racket the door made, they decided to check it out.
�Chris is back.�
I thought he was with Chloe.�
The guys all exchanged worried glances before turning back to their older friend. He refused to meet their stare, finding the hotel carpet with gum in the rug fascinating.
�All right, spill it.�
JC said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. Chris glared at him.
�Nothing happened.�
�B.S. What happened?�
Chris sighed and raked a hand through his hair. He looked up to meet four expectant faces.
�We got into a fight. I asked her what happened, and she wouldn�t tell me. I pointed out she told Mike, and she said that�s different, I can trust him.�
Silence followed. No one knew how to react. Chris bit his nails, his foot tapping on the carpet.
�Well�I�m sure she didn�t mean it like that. You saw how that guy affected her.�
Justin consoled, patting his friend on the back. Chris shrugged.
�You should go talk to her, Chris. I mean, you just walked back into her life. You can�t expect her to trust you completely yet. She said Mike was like a brother. She has reason to trust him more than she trusts you.�
Chris sat in silence, listening to what Lance had just said. He knew he was right.
�I�m officially screwed.�
�What did you do?�
�I�I left. I told her I didn�t want to hear anything else.�
�Well Christ Chris!�
JC threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. Chris looked at him, ashamed. He knew he shouldn�t have left. But his anger got the best of him.
�What do I do now?�
�Talk to her.�
�Now?�
�Yes. Go. She needs you.�
Joey grabbed Chris� arm and pulled him up. Chris grunted in protest as he was pushed out the door.
�And don�t come back till you make up!�
Joey laughed and locked the door. Chris grumbled and scuffed his toe into the carpet. Sighing miserably, he started the walk to Chloe�s room.
~*^-^*~
Chloe couldn�t believe it. She wouldn�t. She looked up at the door, praying for Chris to walk back in and say he was sorry. That he didn�t mean it. She bit down hard on her lower lip, drawing blood. Between sobs and hiccups, she managed to pull herself off the floor and to the couch.
�Why. What did I do God? What did I do?�
She began to cry harder, drawing her legs up on the couch and wrapping her arms around them. The emptiness in her heart was terrible, almost impossible to ignore.
�This hurts more than what Frank did to me.�
She whispered brokenly, staring at the wall across the room. A knock on the door startled her out of her moment of self-pity. She sucked in her breath, hope filling her. Wiping the tears from her cheeks, she went to the door. The knock sounded again. Mustering up all her courage, she yanked the door open and gasped.
~*^-^*~