Simple Kind of Life (Outro)

"If we met tomorrow for the very first time
Would it start all over again?
Would I try to make you mine?
I always thought I'd be a mom
Sometimes I wish for a mistake
The longer that I wait the more selfish that I get
You seem like you'd be a good dad
Now all those simple things are simply too complicated for my life
How'd I get so faithful to my freedom?
A selfish kind of life
When all I ever wanted was the simple things
A simple kind of life" Simple Kind of Life by No Doubt

THUMP THUMP THUMP!

"Come in!" I grumbled at the loud, intrusive knocks that woke me from my sleep.

THUMP THUMP THUMP!!!

I heaved an exhausted groan and stumbled out of bed as the knocks increased in frequency and volume. I threw my door open only to discover the knocks were coming from the front door. I grabbed my phone and went to it. I peaked out the half circle window on the door and saw it was Corey before I opened it up.

"What are you doing here?" I said, rubbing my eyes, tiredly.

"I need to talk to Sammy. I know she's here. Can you go get her?" Corey asked moving to step inside my house.

"NO!... I mean, you don't know she's here." I said, blocking his path.

He gave me an exasperated look.

"Fine. Give me 5 minutes." I sighed.

He gave me a confused look when I came back in a sweatshirt with Justine.

"Sammy's here because she doesn't want to talk to you so I have to respect that. I want you to tell me what's going on. I'm not going to get in between the two of you, but you can help me decide if I'm team Corey or team move on." I said while closing and locking the front door. He followed me as I walked down the steps with Justine.

He pretty much told the same story Sammy said he told her. He had a few drinks at a party, Tori kissed him, he stopped it and told Sammy the truth.

"I thought we were passed it. Then she broke up with me outta nowhere. I'm guessing by the silly string on Tori's car we're not passed it." Corey finished.

"Broken trust is hard to move on from; especially when she found out you hid some of the history you had with Tori after the kiss." I remarked, pulling on Justine's leash to get her to keep walking.

Corey looked down, ashamed. "It's hard enough being a recovering alcoholic. My past with drugs is not something I wanted to share with her."

"I get that. Do you get why it's hard for her not to trust you?"

"We were rebuilding trust. We spent every free moment together and talking. I was completely honest with her. I thought we were on the right path. I asked her to move in with me-"

"What? What did she say?" I blurted out, shocked. I stopped and Justine caught up to us on the leash.

"That... That she had to think about it." Corey said, slowly. It hit us at the same time.

"You said you were willing to wait right?" I confirmed with him.

He nodded.

"You have to pull back. If you keep pushing, she's gonna keep running." I told him.

He nodded again.

"I'll try to talk to her." I promised him before we turned to go back to my house.

When I got back home, Sammy was still sleep and Jordan was in the kitchen making coffee. I fed Justine and she ate most of her food.

Sammy emerged from the guest room around 10am, holding up a bandage dress and gold stilettos.

"This is what I'm wearing. Sofia and Amber are wearing gold too so we can match. Amber's on her way over here." Sammy told us.

"That's gold?" Jordan asked, looking at the dress. I was confused by the color as well.

"It's rose gold, close enough." Sammy replied

"Ok." I said. "Have you heard from Corey at all?" I asked.

"Why would I hear from him?" She asked instead of answering.

"I don't know. Tori's car... I thought he might have tried to reach out."

"I wouldn't know- I blocked him on everything." Sammy replied. "Do you know what you're gonna wear today?"

"No idea." I said, letting her change the subject.

We spent the rest of the morning searching my closet for something for me and Jordan to wear. Jordan paired her rose colored skinny jeans with my white dress shirt with thin gold vertical stripes. Amber came over and showed us her wide leg gold sequin shorts with a nude halter top. I decided to borrow the nude maxi dress Jordan decided not to wear.  I had enough gold accessories to stay within the theme without looking too matchy and it matched my nails perfectly. When I texted everyone the address for the day party and about us all wearing gold, Rocky called back, moaning and questioning whether we were too old to dress alike.

"Similarly! Not alike!" Sammy protested.

"Same damn thing." Rocky rebutted over the speaker phone.

"Are you coming over here Rocky? I have major news..." Amber cooed to us.

"I wasn't planning on it.

"Fine. I'll tell you now. Serena and Ethan broke up!" Amber said bluntly.

"What?" I exclaimed, concerned.

"When?" Jordan asked too.

"I'm not sure. I just found out. Serena was planning his birthday party so I took the weekend off but I hadn't heard anything about it. I asked Will and he asked Ethan and they're Dunzo! Apparently they were on a break and decided to make it permanent!" Amber gushed while smiling.

Jordan got up and left the room.

"Why the fuck are you so happy about it?" I asked Amber, standing to follow Jordan.

"Not about the break up, allthough Serena is no fun to hang out with. I now have that whole weekend, no kids." Amber danced around. I shook my head and left after Jordan.

I found her in my "study" resting her head on the desk.

"Jordan, don't stress out until you talk to Blake." I comforted her, rubbing her back.

"I'm not stressing out. I know it's over." Jordan replied, wiping her face.

"You don't know that until you talk to him-" I tried to tell her.

"He wasn't over her. I knew it when we started hooking up but I was fine with it because I wasn't over Derek. What I feel about Blake now, I never felt about Derek. I thought maybe Blake felt the same way but obviously he doesn't."

"How do you know that?"

"I know!"

"You're jumping to conclusions. I did the same thing all the time and most of the time I was wrong. Trevor was extremely patient with me. Blake doesn't seem like the patient type."

"It doesn't matter. We're over." Jordan said, with finality.

When we went back downstairs, Jordan traded her skinny jeans for one of Sammy's little mini skirts. As we did our hair and make-up, Jordan and Sammy looked at Mitch's, the boot camp instructor, Instagram and picked out his hot friends.

I excused myself, pulled out my phone, and sent a text to Blake attaching the address to where we were going.

Me: If you want to stay with Jordan, meet us here before she does something stupid.

Blake: Who said I don't want to be with her? What are you talking about? Why isn't she answering her phone?

Me: Just be there!

I knew I was meddling and should stay out of it, but I couldn't let Jordan screw up her relationship without having a simple conversation with Blake. That went for Sammy too. I was not going to let her hook up with some random guy when she needed to be working things out with Corey. Simply put, they made me interfer when I really didn't want to.

The day party was at a Japanese restaurant in Uptown Dallas. It had a huge bar towards the front with lounge seating and tables towards the back. Since Sammy invited her new friends, we opted for lounge seats at the bar. The playoff game was playing on multiple TVs while music played from speakers.

I did a quick scan for Monica as we were seated. We hung out outside of work a handful of times, but I didn't feel comfortable enough to call and ask if she was coming to the restaurant.

We were looking over the menu, sipping on signature martinis and munching on wasabi nuts when Mitch and two of his friends showed up. They joined us and Sammy, Staci, Amber, Sofia and Jordan entertained them while Rocky focused on the menu and I tuned into the game.

"I've never been crazy about sushi, now that I can't eat it, I'm craving it. What are you eating?" Rocky asked me. She looked gorgeous in a black and gold dress, her braids piled high in a bun, her skin glowing and make-up flawless.

"I don't think I am. I'm not in the mood for Japanese food." I said, finishing my drink.

"Have you eaten it recently?" Rocky asked.

Not since before Trevor and I broke up.

"No, I'm just not in the mood." I replied.

A waitress came over and everyone ordered food to share besides Rocky who ordered beef teriyaki for herself.  I just asked for more wasabi nuts.

"Sake for everyone?" Mitch offered.

"Not everyone can drink Malcolm." I told him.

"It's Mitch." Sammy told me.

"I'm fine. Drink mine for me." Rocky encouraged me, smirking.

The waitress came back with a round of sake and Mitch made a toast.

"To new, beautiful friends." He said before clinking glasses with Sammy. Everyone cheered and drank up.

"That was sweet. Thank you Michael." I said, grabbing Rocky's sake.

"Mitch." He reminded me.

"My bad." I said before downing the drink. I saw Jordan's eyes widen in shock as she stared behind me. I turned to see Forrest and Blake. It was about damn time. I started to get worried he wasn't coming.

Blake's face tightened when he saw Jordan sitting next to one of Mitch's friends.

"Can I borrow her for a minute?" Blake said, holding out his hand for Jordan to take it. She shot me a glance before she took his hand and followed him out.

"Took y'all long enough." I moved over to the space Jordan vacated to let Forrest sit by Rocky.

Forrest sat down and put his arm around Rocky before kissing her on the temple. I smiled at them, happily. "He wanted to wait until halftime." Forrest explained.

"Oh, so football is more important than his girlfriend?" I raised my eyebrow.

"Have you been watching the game?" Forrest smiled at me.

"I have! Denver's defense is tearing Tom Brady apart!" I said, thrilled.

"I know you're excited. They won't be at the Superbowl so you don't have to worry about them ruining the experience for you." Forrest said, enviously.

"And I know you're still jealous I'm going..." I dragged out.

"You're going to the Superbowl?" The guy Jordan abandoned asked me.

"Yeah, my dad got me and my brother tickets." I explained.

"Who are you routing for?" Mitch asked.

"Anyone but New England Mitchell."

"Just Mitch." He grunted, clearly agitated.

My phone beeped and I pulled it out like I was too busy to be concerned about his name.

Monica: Are you still coming to the day party?

Me: Yeah! We're actually already here

Monica: We have a hibachi table in the back. Make sure you drop by.

"Monica and her friends have a hibachi table in the back." I told Rocky.

"Sorry. It's way too much effort to stand up." Rocky declined.

I tried to catch Amber's eyes, but she was wrapped up in conversation with Sofia and one of Mitch's friend. I looked at Staci knowing Sammy wasn't going anywhere.

"Nope. I don't hang out with girls skinner, taller and prettier than me. Monica is all three." She grinned.

I laughed at her. "When I get back we're gonna talk about why we're ok to hang out."

I got up and went to the back of the restaurant by myself. There was a row of hibachi tables and I searched until I saw Monica.

"Hi." I greeted her brightly with a smile.

"Hey Lily. You look pretty." Monica hugged me.

"So do you." I complimented her. She did look beautiful in a cream blouse and a royal blue skater skirt.

I said hi to everyone I knew at the table; Monica introduced me to everyone else.

"This is Uriel. He works with the audio and visual team for the Mavericks." She began, stopping on a guy that looked familiar. He stood up to offer his hand and he was freakishly good looking and tall. He gave me a knowing smile as he squeezed my hand. I didn't acknowledge it because I had no idea who he was. I racked my brain, trying to remember if we met at a volunteer event or Monica's Christmas party, but I wasn't sure.

"Senior editor. I worked hard for that title." He corrected her looking away from me as he sat back down. We sat down too.

"You worked hard for other titles, but we don't call you out on them." Trent added.

Uriel laughed, and I finally remembered where I met him. It was at my birthday dinner- He was the guy I invited to my table to have cake. He had an infectious laugh- the kind that made you wanna laugh with him even if nothing was funny. That, coupled with the blue martinis kept me laughing the entire time I was talking to him until Forrest called me bae and he left.

"Uriel, this is Lily." Monica concluded.

"Good to see you again." I finally flashed a knowing smile back at him.

"We've met?" Uriel asked, confused. I blinked, stunned he didn't remember me.

"Dez nuts?" Tobey, a guy I met at the Christmas party, nudged him.

"Uriel wasn't at the Christmas party." Monica said looking over at me.

"No. We met before that. In Plano, Blue Martini lounge back in December." I said.

"Did we?..." Uriel made a gesture, holding his thumb and index finger together in a circle. He took his other index finger and poked through it. They all cracked up while I blushed.

"N-no." I stammered, my face heating up more at my failure to speak. "It was my birthday. We had cake." I explained.

"Oh... ok. Nice." He said, dismissively.

"Yeah." I said quickly, my face flamed when I finally cut my loses and turned away from him. I made conversation for awhile longer to make it seem like I wasn't fleeting in embarrassment before I fled in embarrassment.

When I got back to the bar, Dino and Mia made it from work. After I greeted them, I asked about Jordan and Blake.

"They left together. What about Madri Gras for my free weekend?"Amber grabbed me excitedly as I sat beside her.

"Madri Gras? Doesn't it stand for Fat Tuesday?" I asked.

"There are parades and events all month long leading up to it. I was trying to talk Rocky into going to Shreveport with me for one. My stepdad is part of the krewe next week. It's a family tradition." Forrest explained.

"Lily, you've never been to Shreveport. We should all go." Rocky suggested. A look of disappointment passed Forrest's face briefly. I caught it and knew he wasn't trying to plan a group trip.

"That sounds like a kid friendly version of Madri Gras. I'm into beads, booze and boobs." I declined

"I'm talking about New Orleans!!! It can be a long weekend since I'm off. I've always wanted to go." Amber planned.

"You're off because of Ethan's birthday, remember? Maybe we should just take over his birthday party and celebrate it with him." I pointed out.

"He might want to go to New Orleans too." Amber said.

I scoffed. "If you can sell Ethan on beads, booze, and boobs for his birthday, I'm there."

When Sammy got ready to leave with Mitch, I cut in immediately.

"Come with me to the bathroom." I said, grabbing her arm. "We'll be right back Michele."

I heard him grumble but couldn't make out the words as I dragged her away.

"Why are you being such a bitch to Mitch?" Sammy asked, amused.

"I think he has 'roid rage. You don't wanna go hang out with him." I tried to dissuade her.

"He does not and I do wanna hang out with him." She said, freshen up her make-up.

"He might be a psycho killer." I tried next.

"Then it's real important you get his name right so the police can track him down." Sammy grinned.

When the standby you-don't-know-this-guy-he-might-be-a-steroid-popping-psycho-killer didn't work, I told her the truth.

"Corey came by this morning looking for you." I confessed.

Her face froze momentarily before she went back to her lipstick. "What did you tell him?"

"I sent him away- but not before he told me he wanted to move in together."

Sammy looked away from me in the mirror. "That doesn't change anything."

"It changes everything. Why did you really break up with him?"

"He cheated on me. Living together won't solve anything. I don't want to have to constantly worry about what he's doing or who he's with." Sammy exclaimed, putting away her make-up and still refusing to look at me.

"Look, I know you're scared-"

She turned to face me. "I'm not scared. I'm over it. It's that simple." She snapped.

"There's no way you're over it. I can't even eat sushi or try to date without thinking about Trevor. If you loved him, it's never that simple-"

"It is for me. I'll see you in the morning to pick up my things." Sammy cut me off, storming out the bathroom.

I got back to the table in time to see her and Sophia leave. Mitch and his friends trailed them.

I flopped beside Amber, crossed my legs all ladylike before turning to her. "You're designated driver right?"

"Yeah. This is my last drink." She held up a martini. I took it from her and drained it myself, nursing my feelings of failing as a cockblock. I just hoped Corey was able to look past it if Sammy ever realized she messed up.

Forrest and Rocky left at halftime when the Panthers were clearly going to win the game. Monica and her friend Fallon came over and we finally had girl time. Until Trent came with Uriel, saying they were about to head out.

"Happy belated birthday." Uriel told me with a grin.

"Thanks." I gave him a phoney smile as he turned and left.

"What was that about?" Amber asked, staring at his ass.

"Stop staring. It's not that great." I finished my drink.

"Yes, it is." Mia disagreed with me.

"I'm not staring. His ass is worthy of three looks. I'm taking mine at the same time." Amber giggled.

"If you stopped staring at his ass, you would be able to tell he's the guy from my birthday get together." I said, sucking on my alcohol drenched ice.

"No way." Amber smiled, turning back to look at him. " Did you get his number this time?"

"Fuck no. He didn't even recognize me." I said, bitterly.

That caused Mia to burst out laughing. Amber at least had the decency to hold back her laughter. Monica asked me for the whole story and I was tispy enough to tell her. By the end of retelling the story, I was able to laugh too. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe I no longer cared what hot guys thought of me. Whatever.

When I got home, Sammy was in the living room feeding Justine treats and petting her on the couch. I sat down beside her.

"Is McMacPattyWack here? 'cause I'm team Corey and his ass ain't welcomed in mi casa." 

Sammy shook her head. "I had Sofia bring me home. I'm team Corey too. Even after everything, I still am. I believe him. I trust him. I love him. But I don't want to move in with him."

"Have you talked to him about how you feel?"

She shook her head. "I can't. He has this plan. Finish school, start teaching- he even wants to have fucking kids before he's 30. I don't want that. I can't move in with him if that's what comes next. That's not something you can compromise on though is it? It's selfish, but I would hate my life the way he sees it. I don't want him to hate his life the way I want it either."

"That's actually not selfish at all. These are the kind of decisions you have to make together with him. You have to at least talk to him and try. He might be willing to come up with a new plan with you. He can't do that if you won't talk to him." I encouraged her.

"I will." Sammy sighed.

We sat on the couch, deep in thought. I always believed that marriage and kids were the finish line after a long, grueling race. Even when I was younger and thought I would have neither, that didn't stop me from wanting them. I couldn't relate to how Sammy felt that they were complications. They were always the simple things I wanted in my complicated life.

My phone beeped and I looked down at it.

Jake: How long have Forrest and Rocky been dating?

And my life just got further from simple.