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I can’t feel bad about that. I won’t allow him room in my head or heart to hurt me again. He’s not my problem anymore.
“I do,” I say.
“Okay.” He mutters unintelligible words for ten whole seconds in which I could have been listening to Taylor Swift’s poetic masterpieces. What a travesty.
Justin clears his throat, seeming to come back to himself. “You need some space. I get it.”
“No, Justin. I’m done. Plain and simple. I’m sorry. I hope you find the woman you’re looking for.”
“But I’m looking for you!” he nearly yells.
I don’t appreciate the tone of his voice so I punch the end button. He immediately calls back, but I let it go straight to voicemail as I park in front of my place of employment. The neon green words mocking me to “Curl Up and Dye”.
And so begins another day in Amelia Quinn’s unfulfilled life.
That should be a movie title.
There are several people here, already undergoing different kinds of treatments. But my friend and coworker, Leah, is sitting alone at the bright pink upright desk that boasts a picture of a skull with open shears in an X beneath it.
“Hey girl,” Leah greets me when I fail to greet her first. “How was the date Friday?”
“I wish I could tell you.” I open the door to the color room and she follows me. “I’m not really sure, since I stole someone else’s.”
She runs a hand through her platinum-blonde hair. “That sounds like an interesting story.”
“It was… something.” I press my key into my locker and twist. Whatever this place was before it became a salon didn’t cut corners on security. I feel like I’m trying to break into a bank vault with how many different ways I have to shimmy and nudge the door. It finally pops open and I shove my purse inside. “It was mostly just a case of stupidity. Star of the show: me.”
“Ah, come on, I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.”
I consider this. “Well, it did end with a kiss.”
Her brows furrow. “I thought you met the wrong man.”
“I did.” I pinch my lips together attempting to ward off the heat crawling up my neck.
She shakes her head, a huge smile growing on her face. “Okay, you’re so coming out with me tonight and you’re going to teach me how to do that.”
“How to kiss strangers?”
“Yes. If that’s what it takes. Karaoke and kissing strangers sounds like the perfect Monday night.” She pouts her perfectly plump bottom lip. “Please? I’ve been in a rut since my last boyfriend dumped me.”
I’ve only known Leah for about a month, which was about two months after she broke up with said boyfriend, but I’ve heard enough about Johnny to know he was a piece of trash and ruined the poor girl’s self-esteem.
“Let’s do it.” Karaoke could be exactly what I need.
Karaoke is not what I need. I need an Excedrin.
I take off my baseball hat—I’m not sure why I wore it in the first place—and down my water.
This karaoke bar has got to be the hottest place in Phoenix right now with all the bodies crammed in here like sardines. The lights are too bright and too flashy, and I’m sweating in places I didn’t know could sweat.
Apparently, I’ve turned into a grumpy old woman at the ripe age of twenty-eight.
I turn around, looking for Leah, but find one of her friends instead. Derek. He looks like he barely graduated high school and has the acne and glasses to prove it. He’s been glued to my side since I got here. I thought it was only going to be me and Leah until a group of ten welcomed us into their sweaty, under-deodorized underarms.
“Can I get you a drink?” Derek asks, pushing his glasses up his nose.
I study the shaving cuts on his jaw and the shoes that look two sizes too big for his body. “I don’t know, can you?” I didn’t mean to sound so rude. It was a legitimate question.