Friday night was spent with the tree watching Mal's show, and the girl couldn't help but feel a sense of dread when thinking about leaving them. She spent so many years living alone, and even though she always made a point of hanging out with other people regularly, Mal loved having a place to go and be alone, but living with Ben and Lonnie was different from when she used to have roommates.
Mal used to live with some friends, but while she liked spending time with them whenever she needed to vlog or film brand deals, she felt awkward because none of them put much of their life online. Then she moved with another group of friends who did vlogs, which made her feel overwhelmed about always looking cute if they were filming, and she appeared in the background or how she always spent time doing collaborations or sharing ideas for vlogs. After months of that dynamic, Mal realized that she wanted to disconnect from everything at some moments, so she needed a space of her own to manage her schedule easily.
With that in mind, Mal started to save more money every month and produce more content until she finally was able to move to a place of her own. She moved around a couple of times after her first solo apartment until Mal found what she thought would be her place for at least a couple of years until it flooded. However, now living with Lonnie and Ben, she couldn't deny that having the house to her own most of the day and still having company at night, someone to hang out on weekends whenever she wanted to stay home, and even grocery shop with her was lovely.
Lonnie looked at her phone and stretched while announcing that it was almost one am and she would go upstairs to her room. Mal told her that they would see her in the morning so they could all go out to eat brunch and spend some time together before her trip on Sunday; Lonnie nodded and went on her way. Then Mal turned and kissed Ben and then told him that she was going to bed too, the boy nodded, and they made their way together and said their goodbyes. After Ben went into his room, his phone beeped, and he saw a text from Lonnie telling him to come to her room. Ben made his way there, and before he could knock, the girl opened the door, signaling him to get inside.
"Are you ok with me joining you guys tomorrow?. I know Mal is leaving on Sunday morning, and you had to work extra hours this week. I thought you two would spend tomorrow alone, trying to have as much alone time as possible. Lonnie motioned Ben to sit on her bed and looked concerned for her friend.
"I thought that too, but she wants to spend time with both of us, so I'm ok with that. Lonnie, our relationship is new, and maybe she is rethinking the entire situation. I don't want to pressure her or tell her who she needs to spend her last day in town with. So, please come with us and let's try to have the best day we can, ok?" Lonnie could see the sadness in Ben's eyes about Mal's decision, but she knew the boy wouldn't say anything to Mal, so she agreed to go out with them. Then Lonnie asked Ben if he wanted to watch an episode of one of the reality shows they used to watch together, and soon both friends were falling asleep with the episode playing.
Hours later, a knock on Lonnie's door woke the friends up; it took them a couple of seconds to realize they had fallen asleep and that Mal was waking them up. They exchanged looks hoping the girl didn't find it weird that they fell asleep together in the girl's room. Ben stood up and opened the door, saying hi to Mal, who looked confused to see him in Lonnie's room; the boy purposely opened the door, showing Lonnie standing next to the bed checking her phone.
Mal told the boy that she had gone looking for him earlier and didn't find him, so she knocked on Lonnie's door to ask her about him. Ben nodded and explained that they fell asleep watching an episode last night and were just waking up. Ben noticed Mal looked at him weirdly and nodded, telling him that she would get ready so they could all go out to brunch. The boy followed her and asked Mal if she was annoyed about him falling asleep in Lonnie's room, apologizing at the same time for the incident, but she just shook her head and closed the bathroom door leaving him standing in the hall. After Mal was done, Lonnie took a shower, and by the time he was getting in, the girl announced she would meet them at the rooftop restaurant because her friend had come to pick her up.
Ben shook his head, knowing Mal was upset with him and that she was putting distance between them. Lonnie had explained what happened before the girl left, she noticed her texting and looking mad, but Mal was very short in her answers and announced she was leaving. "You can ask Ben to take you. I bet you two prefer to go together."
Lonnie knew that Mal had a reason to be mad, but the way she was acting annoyed her because, in the end, Mal knew that Lonnie was with Jay and that Ben was falling for her. If she wanted to make the last day she would spend with the boy uncomfortable, that said more about her way of handling things than what happened that morning. Ben made his way downstairs after getting ready, and Lonnie could see how defeated the boy looked, which only angered her more; she told him that she understood Mal had a reason to be annoyed or even mad, but the girl wasn't acting correctly.
Ben argued that she had a right to be mad and that he would try and talk to her when they got to the restaurant. When both noticed that they didn't know what rooftop restaurant they were supposed to go to, they sent Mal a text, and after a while, they called, and the girl didn't answer. Ben suggested checking her IG, but they noticed then that she wasn't posting, so they decided to go to the only place they remembered her mentioning but once there, they realized Mal wasn't there. Lonnie was angry now, and Ben was starting to get annoyed; they were both hungry and decided to go to a place they liked while still calling and texting Mal.
When they were making their way to the restaurant, they saw Mal and her friends eating on an outdoor patio near Ben's office, and then both of them were mad. Lonnie took a picture and sent it to Mal taking advantage of the red light. The second it turned green, Ben moved on, but still, Lonnie saw Mal checking her phone and the surprised face she had and hoped the girl would realize that she was doing things wrong. Ben parked the car, and Lonnie could see how mad he was; the boy couldn't help but lean over the steering wheel and groaned out of frustration. He apologized to Lonnie, and the girl told him not to worry and that maybe it was better if they did something different, so they decided to pick something in Starbucks and then go grocery shopping.
Lonnie's phone rang while they were in line at Starbucks, and the girl answered, signaling Ben that she would be back soon. Outside Lonnie asked Mal what she wanted, not caring to have a pleasant conversation with the girl. At first, Mal was offended, but Lonnie wasn't in the mood, so she told the girl that what she did to Ben that morning wasn't right; it was ok to be mad even though there wasn't a reason to ignore him was wrong.
"You know nothing happened, but you want to act this way. You are leaving tomorrow, and you should be spending time with him, but you wanted me there from the start, and then you completely ignored us and went out with your friends. Stay with your friends Mal." Lonnie ended the call and made her way inside just as Ben's turn came up, so they ordered and stepped to the side, waiting for their food. The girl took the opportunity to share with Ben the call, and the boy nodded, understanding the annoyance she felt but still sad that Mal didn't want to talk things out with him. His phone rang, and a second later, he was listening to Mal asking him if they wanted to join her and her friends to eat; after taking a deep breath, he said no and wished her a nice day.
Lonnie put her hand on his shoulder, and after they picked their order, they walked towards the grocery in silence. Once again, their phones beep and they saw a message from Mal asking them where they were; Ben sighed and just texted that they were grocery shopping and put his phone away. While they were going over their usual list, Lonnie shared their location with Mal, and soon after, the girl was there with an apologetic look on her face. Ben looked at her and asked her how her morning was, and Mal felt bad and asked the couple if they could talk after they finished buying the things. Lonnie told them that she would continue to buy the groceries, but they should take some time to speak, and she promised Ben to call him before paying so he could check the list and pay his half.
Ben nodded and walked out of the store with Mal by his side in silence until they found a bench and sat down. After a couple of minutes of silence, Mal turned to look at Ben, admitting that she avoided them that morning. "I was mad even though I knew that nothing happened; the fact that you spent the night with her made me feel like the third wheel. I thought we were all going to sleep, and suddenly you just wanted to spend time without me, and if that was the case, well, I decided to give you all morning."
"That wasn't the case; Lonnie asked me to go to her room because she wanted to know if I was ok with her coming with us today. She thought we would spend more alone time because we couldn't during the week. I told her we should do what you wanted, but I was sad, so she tried to distract me. Look, I understand what you are saying, but assuming things and ignoring us is not the right way to act, Mal. I apologize for how I made you feel it wasn't my intention, and I'm truly sorry for it; I should have told you how I felt after you invited Lonnie to brunch with us." Ben stayed quiet for a couple of seconds and then told Mal that still, he didn't think the way she acted was justified. It was close to two, and the morning was gone, so there was no point talking about it. "We need to get better at communicating if we want things to work between us, especially now that you are leaving for a month."
Mal nodded but said nothing; Ben sighed and looked at his phone, noticing that they were there for a while, and there was no way Lonnie wasn't done. He stood and told Mal that he needed to go back and helped Lonnie with the shopping asking her if she wanted to join him or she had another thing planned. The girl hesitated her friends were waiting for her in Miranda's apartment in case the conversation with Ben didn't go well; Mal knew she overreacted that morning and now wondered what to do. Ben decided for her and said goodbye to the girl making his way back to the grocery store.
Mal sent a text to Miranda telling the girl about her conversation with Ben and decided to meet the boy and Lonnie back in the store. However, when Mal made it there, the friends looked annoyed, and after she said hi, Lonnie showed a screenshot Jay had sent her of one of Mal's friends telling him that he should know his girlfriend was spending the night with Ben. Jay, of course, rolled his eyes at the DM because Lonnie had already ranted about the entire situation while waiting for Ben to get ready that morning. Still, the boy didn't like people talking nonsense and sent the screenshot, so they knew what was happening and asked them if he should be civil or tell the girl his opinion about her DM.
Ben looked at Mal and shook his head, clearly trying to stay calm but finding it difficult; he didn't like that things had escalated to the point Jay and Lonnie were now targets of dumb people due to something that was a misunderstanding. "Can you tell your friends to stop?. Just made them stop."
She felt horrible; Mal tried to think why any of her friends would do that. She had ranted about the situation, but Mal was sure that she made it clear that they had fallen asleep and nothing happened, and she told that to Ben and Lonnie. Mal apologized and then decided to go to Miranda's place to talk with everyone that she told about the incident earlier that morning asked Lonnie to send her the DM. Lonnie sent it and said to her that she was telling Jay to do what he wanted, so her friend would get a very long rant from her boyfriend. Mal nodded and turned to look at Ben; the boy looked at her with disappointment, and she knew that things would not get fixed easily between them if she didn't make things straight with her friends.
With that in mind, she asked them if they wanted to join her, and even though neither of them wanted, Lonnie agreed, realizing that it was best to hear what was going to be said about them. They put their groceries in the car and made their way to Miranda's place; they were welcomed by the girl and walked into the living room, where three other girls were seated. Susie noticed Mal's eyes shooting daggers at her; at that moment, Miranda taking in the scene, asked Mal what was going on.
The next couple of minutes, Mal explained the situation and then demanded an apology from Susie; she knew that the DM was ill-written, and Mal wasn't going to let the girl put her in a situation where Ben and Lonnie thought she had told lies about what happened. Susie, who looked shocked, deny written the DM; Mal showed the screenshot, and the girl looked confused; she went to look for her phone to prove her innocence, but she couldn't find it.
Suddenly Susie stood up and went to knock on the bathroom door calling for Josh, the only other friend that shared the brunch with them. The door opened, and the boy got out of the bathroom looking sick, asking the girl why she was baning on the door. Susie asked the boy if he had used her phone, and the boy shrugged and told her that he did. "Look, everyone was so calm about Mal's situation when it is unfair to cover up her boyfriend cheating. Jay has a right to know. I had a right to know when Natalie did it to me."
Ben and Lonnie looked at each other, realizing that this was bigger than they assumed. Susie told the boy that he was wrong; Mal never said they cheated; she was just upset because she felt left out, but he was so focused on his situation that he assumed everyone was like his ex-girlfriend. Susie then told the boy to give her phone back and sober up because he needed to apologize to Mal and her friends for what he did.
Josh was with Natalie for two years, and the day before, he had found out that she cheated on him with one of her coworkers; they had tried to take him out to get his mind out of the situation that morning. However, when Mal came telling the story of Ben and Lonnie, he had immediately felt like there was no way they just slept together and that Jay was a victim like he was of a girlfriend cheating on his devoted boyfriend. When Mal went to talk with Ben, Josh told her that she needed to alert Jay of what happened, but the girl dismissed him because it was evident that Lonnie had already told him.
When they made it to Miranda's, he took Susie's phone and looked through her IG until he found Jay and sent him a DM. Then he had felt sick and spent the rest of the time in the bathroom, so he had no chance to see if Jay answered or what he said. Now that everyone was there confronting him, instead of trying to understand that he was wrong, he focused on Ben and Lonnie standing next to each other and saw red. Without saying a word, he went straight to them called Ben's name, who was looking at Lonnie, and the second he turned punched Ben in the face, then turned towards Lonnie, who punched him and then kicked him.
"Are you ok?" Ben nodded a little annoyed that he didn't realize Josh was coming to hit him, and then asked Lonnie if her hand was ok. "Yeah, I told you I know self-defense. He is lucky you weren't looking, or you would have punched him harder than me; now the kicking is my, especially though." Ben chuckled even though it hurt him to do so. Mal was next to him, offering him ice the next minute, looking concerned and apologizing for the entire situation. Then she gave Lonnie an ice pack for her hand and asked her if she was ok, while her other friends helped Josh stand up while also telling him to get it together.
It took a while for Josh to calm down and for the group to explain the situation to him; even though he was jaded, the boy had to agree that he wasn't in the right and apologize to Ben and Lonnie. He also opened Jay's DM, read what the boy told him, and felt even more embarrassed about what he did. Lonnie and Ben called Jay, explained what happened, and then erased the DM from Susie's account, so the girl didn't read Jay's answer, which was pretty aggressive.
Finally, things were calm; Ben and Lonnie excused themselves, telling the group they would make their way home. Mal also said her goodbyes telling her friends that she would see a couple of them the next day at the airport. They made their way in silence to the house; it was late, and they were hungry; Ben asked the girls if they wanted him to stop at a drive-thru, and Mal asked them if they wouldn't mind eating at a restaurant with her.
"I'm tired, so I can drop you both if you want to go," Ben said, looking defeated, and Lonnie told him they could uber back and asked Mal where she wanted to go. The girl felt sad about the boy not wanting to join them but told them the restaurant's name, and Ben made his way there. Once there, he waited for them to get out, and after a quick goodbye, he drove off.
Mal turned to look at Lonnie and the girl hugged her. "He needs time."
