Three Strikes Ch. 16

"You should call. It'll be fun," he said before walking away.

I looked at the napkin in disbelief, then turned around hoping Shane had watched the whole thing unfold. In my mind, I hoped he was jealous, worried...or something. Both because deep down I wanted him to feel those things toward me, and also, I wanted to pay him back for spreading lies about me. Unfortunately for me, he wasn't paying attention. He was, however, laughing with Aaron and an unknown character.

I decided to order one more drink while I thought my way through a plan to get back at Shane. Evidently, watching a hot blonde approach me had changed the barkeep's feelings of pity because he wasn't as generous the second time around and I had to buy my own drink.

My ego had taken a huge hit. I'd never had to buy my own drinks before, never. I glanced down at my outfit and knew I'd better get used to it, no one was going to buy me drinks dressed the way I was. My mind quickly returned to Shane and the fact he'd put so much effort into making sure no one took me home that first time at the club. Handing out condoms because I had an STD! Gender transformation! He'd really covered his bases.

If I would've found out that information at any point before the prior week, I probably would've lost my shit. I knew, for a fact, I'd have made a bigger scene than I did the night I dumped him, but where I was (or I should say, we were) I thought it was kind of cute. I was confident he hadn't done it to be malicious, he'd only wanted me for himself. The more I thought about it, it was kind of romantic. Not in the Nicholas Sparks romantic romance sense, more of a quirky RomCom situation. Nicholas Sparks would've never had his sexy lead sit alone in a bar wearing diabetic socks and Dwight Schrute glasses.

I glanced at Shane again, only to find him still engrossed in conversation and therefore, not noticing me. For months, he'd always been watching me, allowing his eyes to linger longer than they needed. Ever since brunch, there'd been a drastic decline of lingering gazes, which was probably the reason I became so excited every time I caught him watching, laughing at, or teasing me about my outfit (all three times it had happened).

I grabbed my drink and decided to make my way back to the table. I didn't realize how intently I was watching Shane as laugh with Aaron and the mystery guest until Shane, who suddenly appeared to be rushed and anxious, spoke in a secretive manner only meant for his two friends.

I was curious about what was going on when suddenly, Shane pulled the UNSUB toward the dance floor. Aaron laughed as he waved them off and, after watching them for a moment, returned to the table. I on the other hand, stood there feeling disappointed. Shane wasn't mine. I'd let him go and now he was dragging another man to the dance floor. I knew firsthand what would happen after dancing with Shane. The thought of what had happened between us ever happening between him and someone else was a. unexpected punch to the gut.

I felt clammy and nauseous as I brought my drink to my lips and noticed my hand was shaking. I stretched my fingers and gently shook my limbs in an unsuccessful attempt to control myself. For some reason, I couldn't tear my eyes away from Shane and the UNSUB. They were dancing, nothing like the way Shane and I'd danced, which was a relief, but they were smiling and laughing. It was clear they were having fun together and it was a bit unnerving.

Although we'd shared moments like that—quite a few of them when we were happy—most of the time we'd known each other has been less than cheerful. The default setting in me blamed Shane because he'd been a jerk from the beginning, so it was his fault.

I watched Shane dance happily. There was a carefree nature about him that was rare. I'd only seen it once or twice during our short romance and I doubted many had had the pleasure of witnessing it. I was jealous and angry because someone else was the reason for it when it should've been me.

It was at that moment, when I was watching Shane and wanting to blame him for my pain and everything that had gone wrong, that I'd experienced a brutal blow to everything I'd ever known as true. It was a terrible, unflattering montage of my life. Clips and glimpses from my childhood to present life revealed parts of me I'd never wanted to acknowledge (for obvious reasons). As much as I'd wanted to, I couldn't blame him for the demise of us, I could only blame him for the slow start. It was me, I was the saboteur. I had a gift for making mountains out of a molehills and manipulating any situation so I was the victim.

I usually dumped my partner before he could grow a pair and stand up to me. In my mind, I was a victim while in the relationship and I was justified when it finally ended. I was the epitome of a terrible person and I had done the thing I always did, to Shane.

I should've forgiven him when he brought brunch, but in the deep dark recesses of my subconscious, if I'd forgiven him, then I would've lost the upper hand.

I noticed the glasses slipping down my nose around the same time I noticed my shorts were falling uncomfortably low. For the first time in a long time, I considered myself the biggest loser. Not because of what I was wearing, but because of how I was feeling.

I turned away from Shane because my newly found self-revelation had made watching him too hard. I wanted to go home and wallow in self-pity over the things I'd royally screwed up during my life.

Over Shane.

I pushed my glasses up, hitched my pants to a more comfortable position, and pushed my way through the bar. I was nearly to the door when I was grabbed by both arms and carried backward; my feet dragging helplessly as Drew and Aaron laughed and talked amongst themselves.

"Bitch be crazy if he thinks he's leaving."

"A bet is a bet and you can't leave until your keeper says it's okay and I doubt Shane said you can leave."

They deposited me on one of the empty chairs then grabbed the others for themselves. I sat at the table and quietly observed my friends as they interacted with each other until Shane finally returned. His smile was brighter than ever as he sat on the seat furthest away from me, not that there weren't closer ones available. Everyone seemed excited by his return, I couldn't remember him ever having such an animated welcome.

"So? How'd it go?"

Aaron's question wasn't meant for everyone to hear and I doubted anyone did since they were back to whatever they'd been doing prior to Shane arriving, but I heard it.

Shane smiled.

"Perfect. I couldn't have picked a better one. He's super into it and, although he's a little wild, he had me laughing the whole time."

They smiled at each other as Aaron gripped his shoulder and shook him in a congratulatory manner. Aaron asked him something, which I couldn't hear, and Shane responded by enthusiastically nodding before replying. Aaron was pleased enough by the response to discreetly pump his pull his fist in victory, almost elbowing poor Nick, who sat on the other side of him. I felt the full blow, metaphorically, in the middle of my gut.

I wasn't sure what was going on but I didn't like it, and I didn't feel like sitting there; pretending like nothing was bothering me.

"Refill?" I offered weakly, when no one responded, I quietly slipped out of my chair.

I felt like Eeyore as I sluggishly made my way to the bar. Poor Donovan. I looked and felt like a loser. I had to buy my own drinks, everyone at the table was in their own little group, and no one seemed to be inclined to talk to me.

Not one guy hit on me all evening. I looked like a loser and most of them probably thought I was a Trans slut with STD's. I stood at the bar and, as I'd expected, no one approached me...not even the barkeep.

I stared across the room, while waiting, and saw the UNSUB blatantly flirting with another guy. I was fixated on them as they kept touching each other until the UNSUB pulled the other guy super close and kissed him...big time! They were still kissing when the barkeep, clearly annoyed because I wasn't ready for him, finally got my attention.

I quickly ordered my drink then went back to watching UNSUB 1 and UNSUB 2 play grab ass with each other. I was angry at UNSUB 1 for doing that to Shane, who was clearly happy about whatever was starting between the two of them. Who was I trying to kid—I was fucking happy.

I paid for my drink and practically skipped back to the table. The smile was quickly wiped from my face when I noticed we had a yet another guest at our table. It just wasn't my night. I had a feeling there wasn't any chance I was going to get ahead. At least no one else was over enthusiastic about Davis joining in on our fun, especially not Shane. I took the last free seat, which happened to be next to him.

"Donovan. It's nice to see you again," Davis lied through his teeth. He wasn't happy to see me.

"You, too," I lied my ass of in return.

An Eeyore moment—of course I'd get to spend the rest of my evening next to Davis, of-fucking-course. I looked around, in an effort to find someone else's conversation to join, but there was none. I was stuck in the desert alone—death by Davis.

"I saw Shane dancing with someone," he offered, as if this was brand new information.

"Why? Didn't you know he's a decent dancer?" I said, a little edge in my voice.

He laughed.

"Not at all, I actually imagine he dances quite well, among other things (he quietly mumbled the last words). I was just surprised it wasn't you is all. Every day, he's too busy to meet with me because he has plans with you. I've never understood the appeal, myself, especially after you dumped him the way you did, but (he stirred his drink as his word trailed off) whatever..."

What was that fool talking about? I hadn't done anything with Shane for weeks. Plans with him every day? I looked at Shane, only to find him and his friends staring at me with slightly panicked faces.

"Then I saw dressed like that you (his eyes raked up and down my body with disgust) so it's no wonder your boyfriend was finding other meat."

Boyfriend? I looked at Shane again and, once again, he and his friends looked worried. Aaron's eyes were especially wide as he gently shook his head no. Warning me?

I decided not to comment on the boyfriend issue since I didn't hate the word. I ran my hands down my chest, smoothing the fabric of my ridiculous outfit, and shrugged.

"Oh, I don't know. Shane picked it out."

I managed a smug smile. His feelings for Shane were obvious and it brought me pleasure to prove him wrong, even if it wasn't. He quickly turned his head toward Shane and gasped as he pointed at him.

"You dressed your boyfriend (he pointed at me) like that (he waved his hand up and down my body)!"

There was that word again—boyfriend. Then it dawned on me, and I smiled at the realization, that Shane had probably told him we were still dating as an excuse to keep him away. I could work with that.

They still looked worried and now I knew why. They didn't want me to ruin his little ploy. I shot them a wink to let them know I was on board. They didn't seem calmed by it, if anything, their agitation increased. I figured I needed to voice my support to let them know I wasn't going to spoil anything.

"He's a jealous boyfriend so he dressed me like this to keep other guys away."

Davis didn't look convinced so I got up and walked around the table and planted myself on Shane's lap. I wrapped my arm around his neck and kissed his cheek.

"What are you doing?" His voice was tense.

I smiled brightly at him.

"Saving you from Davis. What does it look like?"

The evening had been pretty shitty, but things appeared to be turning in my favor. I was going to be Shane's faux boyfriend, prove to him that he still wanted me, and by the end of the night, he was going to be eating out of my hand, again.

"I'd prefer you didn't." He turned his attention to the group and announced, loud enough for everyone to hear, "Actually, we're not dating anymore—"

He was ruining everything by announcing our split, so in a panic, I excitedly interrupted him.

"We're engaged!"

Shane's body went rigid and I watched everyone try to hold a straight face as they watched the drama play out. In a rash attempt to stop him from setting the record straight, I might've made it worse.

"Donovan—" He started, but I quickly cut him off.

"We weren't planning on announcing it, yet, but I guess this is as good of a time as any, since all of our friends are here!"

I pleaded for help from my friends, who looked as if they'd rather watch me drown myself. Oliver finally took pity and started to clap until, finally, the others finally joined in. I didn't miss the glare Shane had sent his friends, who unapologetically smiled at the show.

"Oh, that's wonderful news," Davis lied through his teeth.

Since they were on a roll, their clapping turned to over-the-top congratulations and tips for planning the wedding. Aaron even tried to convince Shane and me that we could probably find a place to do it that night or stop by the courthouse on Monday and do a quickie.

I looked at Shane and smiled, innocently.

"We talked about eloping, but we want our families there. Isn't that right, baby cakes?"

I wanted to tell him he could put his arms around me, his hands were hanging limply at his side, but I didn't know how to do it discreetly, so I grabbed his hands and wrapped them around my waist as I burrowed deeper into his lap.

"Stop," Shane spoke softly into my ear.

"Relax, pookie."

I kissed the top of his head and squeezed him tight. Davis looked as though he wanted to murder me, which made me smile even brighter. I was enjoying the closeness when Nelly grabbed my attention from the other end of the table and waved me over.

"I'll be right back, stud muffin. Don't miss me too much."

I affectionately rubbed my nose against his before making my way to Nelly.

"What are you doing?" Nelly laughed as I got closer.

"Davis thought we were boyfriends. I think Shane told him that as an excuse to keep him away, so I'm playing along," I smiled. I was so proud of myself.

"No, you're going to fuck everything up—"

I had no chance to ask what I could possibly fuck up because we were cut off by a booming presence.

"Hey, babe, sorry I took so long."

The UNSUB, who'd completely forgotten about, was hugging Shane from behind as he kissed his cheek. Shane laughed uncomfortably as he patted the man's arms before pointing for him to sit on a vacant chair.

Drew, Aaron, and Kurt's eyes were wide, like they were watching a magic show and couldn't wait to see what was about to happen. My friends looked at me with pity, except Nelly, who was shaking his head with an "I told you so" look on his face.

"Wait, who's this?" Davis asked.

He stuck out his hand.

"I'm Jordan, Shane's boyfriend."

Shane's boyfriend? My heart sank. I had absolutely no idea what was going on.

"I thought you were engaged to Donovan?"

Shane remained silent as the UNSUB furrowed his brows for a moment before piecing it all together.

"Oh, they were, but not anymore. That's old news."

He was met with zero resistance as he took Shane's hand into his. I was hurt and angry because Shane had a boyfriend and everyone had failed to mention it. Mostly, I was embarrassed and humiliated because I'd pretended to be his boyfriend/fiancé, only to have it blow up in my face.

I looked, and felt, like a bigger loser than I did earlier. Regardless, I'd seen that guy sucking face with another guy not thirty minutes earlier and I wasn't about to go down without a fight.

"If you guys are dating, then why did I see you suck face with another guy when I was getting my drink less than thirty minutes ago?" I spit as I crossed my arms and smirked in victory.

Checkmate.

Both the UNSUB and Shane looked panicked, but the UNSUB recovered quicker.

"There are lots of people making out tonight. I think you're confusing me with somebody else. We've never met, how would you know if it was me?"

"Because I watched you dancing with Shane, earlier!" I blurted out, pushing the falling glasses up.

I couldn't believe the guy was lying about being a cheating asshole. He looked at me with sympathy and nodded.

"It must be hard to see your ex move on."

"He's lying! I know what I saw!" I looked at Shane and gritted my teeth.

"Donovan, stop," he pleaded as he put his arm around the back of the UNSUB's chair.

I was angry. I couldn't believe Shane didn't believe me. I looked at the rest of the group, but it was obvious they had no intentions of helping so I stormed off. I was going to prove to Shane that his boyfriend was a liar and a cheater if it was the last thing I did.

I wasn't perfect, but I'd neither lied nor cheated. I held my pants up with one hand as I searched the bar until I found the guy I'd seen UNSUB (Jordan) kissing and practically ran to him.

"Are you here with Jordan?" I asked while huffing from my frantic search.

He looked me over and smiled at my clothes, but I didn't have time for that shit—I needed answers.

"Yeah, I know, I look like the old guy from UP. Now, answer my question."

"Yeah, he's my boyfriend. What about it?"

I couldn't have gotten a better reply. I let out a loud sigh of relief and pulled his arm.

"Come with me."

I wanted everyone to see my evidence so I shoved him in front of me as soon as we got to the table. I smiled at the group and then moved to, and glared at, Jordan.

I gestured the man, whose name I hadn't asked, toward the table.

"Please point to your boyfriend."

He only stood there, not saying or do anything.

I nudged him.

"Come on, tell them what you told me, earlier."

Frustrated because he wasn't doing his job, I looked at him in annoyance. He mouthed sorry as he stared apologetically at Jordan.

"Uh...I don't know what I'm supposed to do. This wasn't part of the deal," he sputtered after a moment of awkward silence.

"What's going on here?" I asked.

Shane dropped his head into his hands while Jordan cringed. Aaron gripped Shane's shoulder, for support, while the rest of the crew tried to hold back their amusement. Something was off, but I couldn't figure out what it was.

"You guys can leave," Shane finally said.

"I'm sorry. I tried!" Jordan laughed as he got up and walked toward his boyfriend before they left together.

The table was quiet as I tried to figure out what the hell had happened. Everyone seemed to be clued in, except Davis and me, which was terrible because I didn't want to be as clueless as him.

"So, you're not engaged to Donovan?" Davis asked Shane.

"No."

"And you're not dating that other guy?"

"No."

"Then what the hell is going on?"

I was wondering the same thing.

"Honestly, I have no fucking idea," Shane laughed.

Davis shook his head. "This is too weird. I'm out of here."

He grabbed his drink and left without so much as a backward glance or a goodbye—not that I cared. I was glad to see him leave and I didn't want him to look at me after I'd just made a fool of myself. As soon as he was out of earshot, the table erupted into laughter.

"Oh, my God! That was epic!"

"I wish we had that on video!"

"The look on Donovan's face!"

"The look on Shane's face!"

"The look on Davis' face!"

"No! The best was when Donovan tried to storm off while trying to keep his clothes on! I died!"