Something Blue - Emily Giffin [32]
"Okay, Darce. Let's get outta here," Marcus said. "I'm not in the mood for a reunion either." He pointed behind me at the staircase leading to the ground floor. We had an easy escape route. Clearly, we hadn't been spotted yet. Dex and Rachel were cheerfully chatting away, completely oblivious to the furniture-shopping coincidence of the century.
I wanted to turn and walk down the stairs, but I couldn't make myself go. It was like watching a gruesome scene in a scary movie. You don't want to see the girl get decapitated, but somehow, you always part your fingers to sneak a peek. I hid behind a bookcase and pulled Marcus down next to me. We watched Rachel and Dex stand and wander over to another couch, slightly closer to us. This one was boxier than the first, and as far as I was concerned, the better choice. Dex studied it and then made a face. It was too modern for him. I translated what had just transpired for Marcus. "See, he doesn't like clean lines. See?"
"Darcy, I don't give a shit about the couch they buy."
"They buy?You mean you think it's a joint purchase?"
"They buy. He buys. She buys," Marcus said, as if conjugating a verb in French class.
"Does she look good? Do they look happy?"
"Come on, Darce. Let's just go," he said.
I kept staring at them, my insides churning.
"Tell me," I demanded. "Does she look prettier than usual? Thinner maybe?" We watched Rachel and Dex return to their boring, brown couch. She sat and reclined smugly. Then she looked up at Dex and said something. His back was to us, but I could see him nod, run his fingers along the back of the couch. Then he stooped to flip through a book of color swatches on a coffee table next to the couch.
"Do you think they're moving in together?" I asked.
"How the hell should I know?"
"Did he say anything about that when you talked?"
He sighed. "I told you ten times every word of that conversation."
"He's just replacing our couch then, right? She's just helping him, right?"
He sighed harder this time. "I don't know, Darcy. Probably. Who cares?"
"Look. Don't lose your patience with me, mister," I said. "This is major." I thrust a finger toward them and then studied Dex and Rachel more, taking in every little detail. Three weeks ago, they were the people that I knew the best. My best friend and my fiance. Now they seemed like strangers or estranged loved ones whom I hadn't heard from in years. As Rachel turned her head, I noticed that her hair was layered a bit at the bottom, a radical departure from her usual blunt ends.
"Do you like her hair like that?" I asked Marcus.
"Sure. It's great," he said dismissively.
I gave him a look that said, Wrong answer.
"Okay. It sucks. It's hideous."
"Come on. Look at it! Tell me your honest opinion!" I was feeling frantic, wishing that Claire were with me. She'd find something to criticize. Sneakers. Hair. Something.
Marcus thrust his hands in his pockets and glanced over at Rachel. "She looks the same to me."
I shook my head. "No. They both look better than usual," I said. "What is it? Is it just that some time has passed?"
Then, just as Dex sat down beside Rachel, it hit me. Dex was tanned. Even Rachel didn't have her usual white glow. The realization slashed through my heart. They had gone to Hawaii together! I gasped. "Omigod. They're tan. She went on my trip to Hawaii! She went on my honeymoon! Omigod. Omigod. I'm going to confront them!" You hear people say that rage can be blinding, and I learned at that moment that it was true. My vision became blurry as I took one step toward them.
Marcus grabbed my arm. "Darce—do not go over there. Let's just leave. Now."
"He told me he was going to eat those tickets! How dare she go on my honeymoon!" I was crying. A couple standing near our bookcase bunker looked at me, then over at Dex and Rachel.
"You told me he offered them to