How to Deal ā Chapter 3
Fox watched on as Whitney sang her song at the Blue Note. She was so lovely and she had a beautiful voice.
She enchanted him.
"Why is it that I always find him staring at her?" Theresa thought to herself as she peered over at Fox.
She looked over at Chad and hoped he wouldn't break his promise to propose to Whitney tonight. With Whitney out of the way things would go back to the way they should've been.
"Ahem." Theresa cleared her throat as she sat down next to Fox.
She winced as the look that Fox had for Whitney quickly changed to a look of annoyance as he turned to face her.
"For someone who supposedly hates me, you're eager to share conversations." he replied tartly as he took a sip of his drink.
"You're my best friend." she simply responded.
"You know what? I'm so tired of this fake act that you're putting on! One minute you want nothing to do with me, the next you're sorry for what's happened between us and now you want to be buddy buddy!" Fox yelled angrily. "Which one is it going to be tomorrow, Theresa? Huh? Don't keep me guessing!"
A shocked Theresa took the unexpected tongue lashing that Fox was giving her. Maybe it was a bad idea for her to even speak to him.
"I don't even know what I feel anymore, Fox!"
"Why are you telling me this?" he asked unmoved.
"I-I don't know." Theresa said, confused by the way he was acting.
"You don't know a lot of things right now, do you?" Fox laughed.
"Iā"
"Who are you? Cause you're not the girl I once knew." he hesitated. "Wait, let me guess. You don't know."
"Have you ever stopped to think about how I feel?" Theresa said quietly.
"No because I don't know how you feel, remember? You haven't decided yet what it is your feeling!"
"I'm confused, hurt, angry... all at the same time. How else did you expect me to take this Fox? You thought that I'd just look past the fact that you led me on to believe I was the woman you were in love with, that I never had feelings for you after all you've done for me? How can you just throw everything that we had away so quickly when the woman you're in love with doesn't even love you?" she argued.
"I'll tell you if you can tell me how you can sit around and scheme to get back a married man who has told you time and time again that he's committed to his wife. How can you just try everything you can to break marriage vows between two people that they made before God and everyone in this town?" Fox quickly replied.
Theresa took a deep breath as she prepared to answer his questions. "At the time I thought Ethan and I were meant to be, just like you think you and your mystery woman are meant to be. I'm just trying to help you from destroying your life by pursuing her when she's taken."
"And I should follow your advice when you're still after Ethan?" Fox hissed.
"Ethan and I are over." Theresa said.
"Oh really? So I guess after you tried to use me as bait to lure him in and you realized it wasn't working, you gave up all hope. Why, doesn't that line sound familiar?"
"I didn't use you as bait!" Theresa defended herself.
"Unbelievable!" Fox spat angrily.
"What?" she asked.
"You were telling me just a few days ago that you used me."
"I was hurt and angry-" Theresa was cut off before she could explain herself.
"Right, when Ethan told you it was over between you and him. So you turn to me, someone who's totally available, someone who Ethan looks down upon... Hey! Someone who has been compared to Ethan his whole life. So then you use me. When you're with me you think of him, when you sleep with me you dream of him. Of all people that you could have used me to get back at, why Ethan? You knew what I thought of him, but so what? Ethan and you were "meant to be. The ends justify the means, right?" Fox said as he went into a fit of rage.
Theresa shook her head as tears fell down her face. "No, that's not how it was."
"That wasn't? Why do you keep lying to me?" he yelled.
"At first I thought I would get Ethan back if I started a relationship with you-"
"I knew it! I knew it!" Fox shook his head.
"But," Theresa continued, "after awhile I forgot about Ethan, I didn't care about making him angry-"
"-Because you fell truly, madly, and deeply in love with me and realized that we were meant to be." Fox completed her sentence sarcastically.
"Not that exaggerated, but somewhat." Theresa admitted.
"Bull!" Fox shouted.
"I fell in love with you Fox and that's why I'm so confused and hurt because I thought you felt-"
"Stop it Theresa!"
"-The same way about me."
"Do you ever stop? I am not going to take another second of your lies! You are scheming, manipulative... you're destructive." he berated her.
"It's not a lie when I say that I love you." she answered in a hushed whisper.
Fox carefully looked Theresa in the eye. "I do not love you. I never did, I never will. I love her."
"Her." Theresa repeated as her tears blurred her vision. "When you were with me you thought of her... when you slept with me you dreamed of her... I wasn't good enough. I couldn't reach that pedestal that you held her so highly upon."
"She is everything any woman could dream to be." Fox said quietly as he turned his back to her.
"Whitney." Theresa said, barely letting the name escape her lips.
Fox froze as he heard Theresa say her name.
"Is her name too precious and forbidden for me to say?" Theresa cried.
Fox turned around and looked at her. "You know?"
Theresa nodded. "I heard you before I fell off the cliff. You said it was her you loved."
Fox looked down, not knowing what to say.
"What? Are you too ashamed of what you've done?" Theresa asked. "Using me to get to my best friend. The person who's so perfect that I just have to be like?"
Fox still had nothing to say.
"It looks like we're in the same place." he finally said as she stood up to leave.
"No." she said softly. "I've realized that he and I will never be. When will you?"
Realizing Fox wasn't going to respond Theresa walked away. Just as she was making her way for the door, she heard Chad announcing that Whitney had accepted his proposal.
For some odd reason she didn't care that this meant Fox could never be with Whitney.
Was everything she had worked for in life even worth it?
Theresa took a deep breath as she pushed the door open.
"I've got to get out of this place before I damage my life even more."
Fox watched on as Whitney sang her song at the Blue Note. She was so lovely and she had a beautiful voice.
She enchanted him.
"Why is it that I always find him staring at her?" Theresa thought to herself as she peered over at Fox.
She looked over at Chad and hoped he wouldn't break his promise to propose to Whitney tonight. With Whitney out of the way things would go back to the way they should've been.
"Ahem." Theresa cleared her throat as she sat down next to Fox.
She winced as the look that Fox had for Whitney quickly changed to a look of annoyance as he turned to face her.
"For someone who supposedly hates me, you're eager to share conversations." he replied tartly as he took a sip of his drink.
"You're my best friend." she simply responded.
"You know what? I'm so tired of this fake act that you're putting on! One minute you want nothing to do with me, the next you're sorry for what's happened between us and now you want to be buddy buddy!" Fox yelled angrily. "Which one is it going to be tomorrow, Theresa? Huh? Don't keep me guessing!"
A shocked Theresa took the unexpected tongue lashing that Fox was giving her. Maybe it was a bad idea for her to even speak to him.
"I don't even know what I feel anymore, Fox!"
"Why are you telling me this?" he asked unmoved.
"I-I don't know." Theresa said, confused by the way he was acting.
"You don't know a lot of things right now, do you?" Fox laughed.
"Iā"
"Who are you? Cause you're not the girl I once knew." he hesitated. "Wait, let me guess. You don't know."
"Have you ever stopped to think about how I feel?" Theresa said quietly.
"No because I don't know how you feel, remember? You haven't decided yet what it is your feeling!"
"I'm confused, hurt, angry... all at the same time. How else did you expect me to take this Fox? You thought that I'd just look past the fact that you led me on to believe I was the woman you were in love with, that I never had feelings for you after all you've done for me? How can you just throw everything that we had away so quickly when the woman you're in love with doesn't even love you?" she argued.
"I'll tell you if you can tell me how you can sit around and scheme to get back a married man who has told you time and time again that he's committed to his wife. How can you just try everything you can to break marriage vows between two people that they made before God and everyone in this town?" Fox quickly replied.
Theresa took a deep breath as she prepared to answer his questions. "At the time I thought Ethan and I were meant to be, just like you think you and your mystery woman are meant to be. I'm just trying to help you from destroying your life by pursuing her when she's taken."
"And I should follow your advice when you're still after Ethan?" Fox hissed.
"Ethan and I are over." Theresa said.
"Oh really? So I guess after you tried to use me as bait to lure him in and you realized it wasn't working, you gave up all hope. Why, doesn't that line sound familiar?"
"I didn't use you as bait!" Theresa defended herself.
"Unbelievable!" Fox spat angrily.
"What?" she asked.
"You were telling me just a few days ago that you used me."
"I was hurt and angry-" Theresa was cut off before she could explain herself.
"Right, when Ethan told you it was over between you and him. So you turn to me, someone who's totally available, someone who Ethan looks down upon... Hey! Someone who has been compared to Ethan his whole life. So then you use me. When you're with me you think of him, when you sleep with me you dream of him. Of all people that you could have used me to get back at, why Ethan? You knew what I thought of him, but so what? Ethan and you were "meant to be. The ends justify the means, right?" Fox said as he went into a fit of rage.
Theresa shook her head as tears fell down her face. "No, that's not how it was."
"That wasn't? Why do you keep lying to me?" he yelled.
"At first I thought I would get Ethan back if I started a relationship with you-"
"I knew it! I knew it!" Fox shook his head.
"But," Theresa continued, "after awhile I forgot about Ethan, I didn't care about making him angry-"
"-Because you fell truly, madly, and deeply in love with me and realized that we were meant to be." Fox completed her sentence sarcastically.
"Not that exaggerated, but somewhat." Theresa admitted.
"Bull!" Fox shouted.
"I fell in love with you Fox and that's why I'm so confused and hurt because I thought you felt-"
"Stop it Theresa!"
"-The same way about me."
"Do you ever stop? I am not going to take another second of your lies! You are scheming, manipulative... you're destructive." he berated her.
"It's not a lie when I say that I love you." she answered in a hushed whisper.
Fox carefully looked Theresa in the eye. "I do not love you. I never did, I never will. I love her."
"Her." Theresa repeated as her tears blurred her vision. "When you were with me you thought of her... when you slept with me you dreamed of her... I wasn't good enough. I couldn't reach that pedestal that you held her so highly upon."
"She is everything any woman could dream to be." Fox said quietly as he turned his back to her.
"Whitney." Theresa said, barely letting the name escape her lips.
Fox froze as he heard Theresa say her name.
"Is her name too precious and forbidden for me to say?" Theresa cried.
Fox turned around and looked at her. "You know?"
Theresa nodded. "I heard you before I fell off the cliff. You said it was her you loved."
Fox looked down, not knowing what to say.
"What? Are you too ashamed of what you've done?" Theresa asked. "Using me to get to my best friend. The person who's so perfect that I just have to be like?"
Fox still had nothing to say.
"It looks like we're in the same place." he finally said as she stood up to leave.
"No." she said softly. "I've realized that he and I will never be. When will you?"
Realizing Fox wasn't going to respond Theresa walked away. Just as she was making her way for the door, she heard Chad announcing that Whitney had accepted his proposal.
For some odd reason she didn't care that this meant Fox could never be with Whitney.
Was everything she had worked for in life even worth it?
Theresa took a deep breath as she pushed the door open.
"I've got to get out of this place before I damage my life even more."
