Tempted By The Wrong Brother

The first time Johnny broke my heart, he was seventeen. He didn’t even know he had done it. That was the worst part. I stood beside him beneath an old oak tree, watching him stare across the football field at Vanessa Brooklyn.

She was beautiful.

Everyone knew it.

Even I couldn’t deny it.

She had that perfect long blonde hair, enchanting smile, tiny waist, and the kind of confidence that made people turn their heads whenever she walked into a room.

Johnny had been staring at her for almost an hour. And I had been staring at him.

Vanessa was walking along the field with a group of her friends. One of them looked at Vanessa and nudged her, grinning mischievously. Then Vanessa looked back, her eyes observing Johnny.

“She is looking at you,” I whispered.

Immediately, Johnny’s face lit up. “Really?”

I nodded, biting down the aches growing in my heart. If only his face could light up like that when he sees me.

He straightened his shirt, ran a hand through his messy brown hair, and flashed me the smile that had made me fall in love with him in the first place.

Then he asked the question that shattered my broken heart. “You think I should ask her out?”

I forced a smile. “Definitely.”

He grinned. “Thanks, Bella.”

And then he stood up, grabbed his bag and walked away from me. I sat there in silence as he spoke to her. I didn’t protest when I saw Vanessa sitting in my spot beside him in the cafeteria during lunch break. Didn’t complain when Johnny forgot to drive me home because he had a date with Vanessa. And I didn’t come in between them when Johnny announced to everyone that Vanessa was his girlfriend.

I kept my distance. I was too close for Johnny to seek my advice and far away for him not to see how much I wished he was mine.

That was how it had always been.

Johnny saw Vanessa.

Everyone else saw Vanessa.

And somehow, nobody ever saw me.

—-

I dropped the hot cup of coffee in my hands once it began burning into my flesh. I should stop thinking about him with Venessa. Finally, they weren’t together anymore. After a decade of being in a toxic relationship, Vanessa had left Johnny for good. Dumped him, if I was to be specific.

Vanessa had never been good at commitment. Always nagged at Johnny about wanting to enjoy her youth and exploring the outside world. By exploring she meant seeing other men if I may add. And whenever he caught her cheating, Johnny would come to cry on my shoulders. Lamenting on how much she hurt him. And I would be there, giving him the comfort he longed for. But after that, he always returned to her.

But this time was different. Vanessa told him she was done with him and had even relocated overseas. It had been a year since I last saw Vanessa. It had been a month since Johnny last spoke about her. I ran my hand along the brim of the coffee mug. Maybe he was finally over her.

I was going to use this chance to tell Johnny how I had felt about him. I had dyed my hair blonde just the way he liked it. Wore that red lipstick he couldn’t stop staring at when Vanessa wore it and practiced her perfect enchanting smile that always left him in a trance.

I took a deep breath. If everything went well tonight, Johnny would finally be mine

“Bella!”

I blinked, looking up. “Hmm?”

Johnny walked toward my table, waving his hands at me. He was still wearing navy-blue scrubs beneath his white coat. His dark hair slightly rumbled from what I assumed had been another long day at the hospital.

A decade had passed since high school.

Ten years.

And somehow, one look at him could still make my heart forget how to behave. He got to me and took a seat, his eyes noticing my face.

“Are you coming from somewhere?” He nodded at my face and laughed. “What’s with the makeup?”

I dropped my hands from the mug and fidgeted with it. It was best to confess about my feelings now before I got too nervous.

“Johnny, there is something I want to tell you,” I said, rubbing my hands together. “I like you.“

“Waiter!” Johnny looked at a waiter passing by and gestured to him. “I want the same coffee she is having.” He said once the waiter stopped by his table.

The waiter nodded and left.

After that, Johnny arched his brow, looking a bit lost. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch what you said last. What do you want to tell me?”

I swallowed and pressed my fingers deeper into my thumb. It took me a hell of a courage to utter it once. I didn’t think I could say it twice.

“I… um…”

I inhaled deeply, picked up my mug and gulped down the hot coffee. Coughing as its liquid burned down my throat.

“Jeez, Bells.” Johnny collected the mug from my hand. “What’s wrong with you? You want to choke CTt yourself?”

“I’m okay.”

He brought out a napkin and stretched it towards me. “Clean the side of your mouth. You have some bit of coffee there.”

My cheeks burned in embarrassment as I collected the napkin. I dragged it down my face at a rough pace, avoiding his gaze.

“So Bella, are you busy this month?” He asked, looking curious. “You know with lecturing and all those academic works?”

I stopped what I was doing and looked at him. “The school is on break so there isn’t much stuff to do,” I answered.

He smiled. “Great.”

Something warm spread through my chest as I watched him smile at me. Maybe this was it. Maybe after all these months since Venessa had been gone, Johnny finally could see me more clearly.

He reached for his coffee and took a sip.

I stared at him, my chest tightening in anticipation. “Why did you ask?”

“I need you to help me with something.”

Instantly, my smile faded. “What?”

He paused for a minute and dropped his coffee. Then he pulled his phone from his pocket and turned the screen toward me. A picture of a ring flashed in my eyes.

Not just any ring.

A wedding ring.

“I’m getting married.”

Instantly, my stomach dropped.

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. The coffee shop seemed to disappear around me. The voices. The slow soft music. The clattering cups. Everything faded. I stared at the picture. A beautiful diamond ring sat inside a velvet box. Then I looked at Johnny. He was smiling at me. Not the casual smile he flashed at me earlier. This was different. This was the smile of a man who believed he had finally found his happiness.

“To Vanessa?” I whispered.

His eyebrows pulled together. “How did you know?”

Because who else?

Because for ten years, Vanessa had been the beginning and end of every conversation.

Because every time she broke his heart, he came running to me. Every time she ignored him, he called me. Every time she made him cry, I was the one holding the pieces together. And every time he was ready to give up on her, she smiled at him once and he went running back.

I swallowed hard, the hot coffee settling down in my stomach like hot burning coal.

“It isn’t hard to figure it out,” I said. “You’ve been talking about marrying her since high school.”

He chuckled.

“Yeah.” His eyes dropped to the ring. “I know she isn’t perfect, but I can’t see myself marrying anyone else.”

I almost laughed. Not perfect?

Vanessa had cheated on him multiple times. Dumped him three times. Once on his birthday. Once through a text message. And once because she said she needed to go out there and find herself.

Johnny had spent months being miserable after that last breakup. And I have been there every single day. I brought him food. Stayed up late listening to him talk about missing her, wanting her back and wishing he was good enough to keep her. I had even skipped an important exam review because he called me crying at two in the morning. And then Vanessa returned and he took her back.

Of course he did.

Because Johnny loved Vanessa.

And I loved Johnny.

That was the problem.

“So…” he said, leaning forward. “Will you help me?”

“Help you with what?”

“The wedding.”

I almost choked. “The wedding?”

“Yes.” His smile widened. “I want you to help me plan everything.”

I stared at him for several seconds. “You want me to plan your wedding with Vanessa?”

“Yes.” He gave her a pitiful look. “Come on, Bells. You know you are the only one I have. There is no one else I can go to help me. Please, Bells. Do this for me.”

I looked down at the table. Something inside my chest cracked at his words. He didn’t know. After all these years, he still didn’t know. I had spent my entire youth loving this man. I had watched him date other women. I watched him fall in love. I watched him get his heart broken. Watched him pick Vanessa over and over again. And now he wanted me to help him marry her.

I forced myself to smile. “Of course.”

His entire face brightened. “I knew I could count on you.”

Of course he could. He always did. Afterall, I was his best friend.

And that was the problem.