FRIENDS and EXES

He felt her before he saw her.
Her arm slid around his shoulder from the back in a friendly embrace as she greeted the group sitting around the bar table. Everyone was happy to see her. Her bubbling laugh as she greeted some of her old friends made him want to look at her face but he resisted. Then her hand slid slowly from his shoulder, up, behind his neck and to the other shoulder as she started to slip away.
Her back was already turned to him and her arm an extension of her lingering presence as she left their table.
He hasn’t said a word to her.
He grabbed her wrist as it lowered behind her but she did not turn to look at him and she kept moving so he automatically stood and went with her. When they cleared most of the crowd and reached the dance floor with her pulling him behind her, she finally turned to faced him and he drew her close and pressed his nose in her neck to inhale her scent.
How long has it been since he had held her like this? How was it possible that she still smelled the same?
“Hi Brady.” He whispered in her neck.
“Hi Chase.”
She looked up at him and raised her brows as he started swinging her slowly to the music. She looked pissed. Her lovely big green eyes were hard and determined.
They haven’t spoken since that day. It’s been over two years since he had lost his best friend, his soul mate and a whole lot of dreams. He had missed her and he hated her and he wanted her all at the same time.
“What are you doing here, Brady?”
He had heard that she was back. He didn’t ask. He was told without fishing for it. That’s how it’s always been. Everyone thought it was nice informing him of what she was up to. Brady did this, Brady was there, Brady did that, Brady phoned… Yeah well, she never phoned him. He wanted to forget her but was reminded of her almost every day.
“I… um…” She sighed, dropped her head and waited and then looked at him again. “What are you doing? What do you want, Chase?”
He smiled crookedly. She was going to fight him. He knew this and he had a lot to say. He’d had this conversation in his mind over and over again.
“What B? You stroll in here, greet me with your arm around my neck and I haven’t seen or heard from you in two years and…”
“You never called me either.”
“You fucking got married Brady….To James…. my best friend… just like that.”
“Yeah…. and we are divorced now.”
“I heard…. What? Married life with tons money not worth it in the end?”
She leaned back and he could see the hurt in her eyes.
“You … son …of a …Bitch!”
She pushed him away and turned to the dark hallway going to the back of the bar but he grabbed her again and pushed her to the wall. This wasn’t going the way he wanted it to. The way he always saw it playing off in his head was easy. Say what he wanted to say all these years and get the hell out. Yes, he wanted to hurt her but as soon as he saw her pain he wanted to make it better and kiss it away.
“Brady… wait.”
“Fuck you Chase… You have no idea what you’re talking about!”
He could feel the anger gripping his shoulders and he tensed up.
“Don’t I? Well, let’s see…. How about this? We were friends. Best friends. I fucking trusted you and our relationship changed… it was going somewhere. Finally. I placed all my reservations aside and told you that I loved you and you…. You told me that you loved me. Then I heard you were getting married….