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At the party before the wedding, everyone was playing that game — the one where you name something you've done that no one else has.
Ruby Henson's male best friend spoke up first.
"I've held on to a pair of Ruby's stockings."
Every face in the room froze, and folded a finger down, embarrassed.
I looked at Ruby, waiting for her to explain.
She didn't even glance my way. Grinning, she reached over and pinched Cole Fox's cheek.
"Oh please. That time I came drinking at your place, I lost the pair I was wearing."
"Did you even wash them? And you kept them?"
"Come on, you're getting married soon, I probably won't get the chance to crash at your place anymore. Call it a keepsake."
Cole slid an arm around her waist, all smiles.
Then he turned and raised an eyebrow at me.
"It was the night of your fifth anniversary as a couple, actually. Ruby drank too much keeping me company, and I figured she couldn't get her own clothes off, so I gave her a hand."
"It's just one piece of clothing. Surely you're not that petty."
...
Ruby acted as if there was nothing the least bit wrong with any of it.
She tightened her arms around Cole's neck in mock anger and dug her fingers into his ticklish side.
"Don't lie, my tolerance isn't that bad. If anything, it was you who couldn't undo your own belt, and I had to do it for you."
Cole squirmed against her, laughing as he shot back.
"Quit showing off. And who was it that got so drunk she couldn't even find the toilet, and Daddy here had to carry you over, huh?"
The whole room burst out laughing.
Someone noticed the look on my face and jumped in to smooth it over.
"Don't be upset. Cole's been running around with girls since he was a kid, we all treat him like one of them. There's really nothing going on between him and Ruby, or you wouldn't be the groom, right?"
"Exactly. Friends keeping a little keepsake is no big deal. It's not worth getting all sour over something this small."
Best friends again.
The day of my fifth anniversary with Ruby.
I'd booked the hotel and the candlelit dinner half a month in advance. I waited from seven at night until the restaurant closed at midnight.
She never showed. She wouldn't pick up her phone either.
She came home the next day reeking of alcohol, and only then said Cole had gotten dumped and asked her out for drinks.
When I confronted her about it, she knit her brows, offended.
"Terry Harding, you're my fiancé, sure, but I can't just drop my best friend for you, can I?"
"There's an anniversary every year. Cole was in a bad place — what if he'd had too much and done something stupid? Could you have lived with that? Stop being so unreasonable!"
But since Cole had come back from studying abroad, we'd gone three years straight without a single anniversary.
He always found some excuse to call Ruby away.
As if the label of male best friend was all it took.
Whatever they did, it could be forgiven.
A waiter came in to change the trash bag — the one holding what Ruby had just thrown up after drinking too fast.
I let out a small laugh, grabbed Cole by the hair, and shoved his head straight into the trash can.
By the time everyone caught on, Cole's face was a sight no one could stand to look at, giving off that sickening smell.
He shrieked and bolted for the restroom outside. Ruby shoved me hard.
"Terry, are you out of your damn mind?!"
I looked at her with contempt.
"What? Doesn't he love your scent so much? Underwear's nothing. This is the real thing."
Ruby glared at me.
"We'll settle this later!"
She ignored the scratch her ring had torn across my collarbone, bleeding, and rushed off to look after Cole.
It was probably the first time they'd seen me lose my temper, so no one else dared say a word.
I couldn't be bothered to stay. I stood up and walked out.
I'd barely made it to the street when Ruby called.
"Terry, where did you run off to now? You made Cole cry. Get back here right now and apologize to him!"
"He brought it on himself. Why the hell would I apologize?"
Ruby must have had it on speaker.
Before she could get another word out, the others all piled on.
"You're going too far here. Cole's known Ruby a lot longer than you have. We've all been friends for years. You hit him, but you're slapping Ruby in the face."
"Right, jealous over every little thing. Ruby, the wedding's in six days. If you don't get your husband in line now, who's going to want to go out with you after this?"
Ruby's voice came, displeased too.
"Terry, I've told you a thousand times, Cole and I are just close friends. Otherwise, would you be the one marrying me? Do you have to humiliate me in front of everyone? Cole would never kill the mood like this..."
"Ruby, this is the ninety-ninth time you've fought with me over him."
I cut her off, calm.
"Last April Fools' Day, he slipped a venomous snake into my bag and I nearly lost half my life. You said he was only joking, told me not to be a poor sport."
"And on our engagement day, he pranked my parents with a trick cup, sprayed chili water and cream all over them. My mother had an allergic reaction and had to be rushed to the hospital. You said he was only trying to warm up the crowd, told me not to be so petty."
"But don't forget — when your family hit a financial crisis and was on the verge of bankruptcy, it was my family, the Hardings, who stepped up and got you through it. For two years straight we handed over most of our own most reliable projects to you. Where was your precious best friend then?"
"Since your male best friend matters that much, let's break up."
