"I was about to give up on you.”
“You knew I’d come.” She sat down next to him and sighed heavily. “Talk to me.”
“Where do I start?”
“Why Gigi?”
“I saw her with you that first night at the club. I didn’t give her much thought till I saw her again a few days ago. I knew you would come to see me, but you certainly couldn’t have come at a better time. I wanted to hurt you. I wanted to make it easier for you to hate me.”
“Why do you want me to hate you? Hating you won’t change things.”
“You’d be surprised how much hate can do. Hate turned me into the person I am today. I hate my family, my friends, everyone I used to know.”
“And yet they still love you.”
“Love dies eventually.”
“I don’t understand why you wanted me to hate you.”
“You made me feel powerless. I had to take that power back.”
“That wasn’t my intention. I was trying to help.”
“You couldn’t help. Nobody could. I finally realized how fucked I was and things kind of exploded from there.”
“So you seduced me because of some sick need to feel powerful.”
“It wasn’t sick. It was beautiful. You were beautiful-- helpless and trembling before me. But that wasn’t all. I had to take something from you. You wanted to know how I felt, and I showed you.”
“Take something from me? What? The only thing I’ve lost since I’ve met you was--” The revelation made her eyes widen and she became speechless.
“It’s amazing what a phone call can do. I knew once they questioned you about it, there would be no doubt in their mind. You have too much integrity to lie about something so serious.”
Leila’s eyes began to fill with tears. “You told them? You did this all to me for some sick pleasure? I risked EVERYTHING for you because I wanted to believe in something that I’d never had. You manipulated me for your own pleasure!”
“I knew the moment I saw you that you would give up everything for me.”
“And I did,” she whispered.
“You love with your whole heart. You care too much. That’s your weakness. That’s your demon.”
“You played on that weakness.”
“Yes. I had to show you.”
“So now you’ve ruined my life and I’m supposed to thank you or something?” Her voice was becoming increasingly angry, but she tried to hold back.
“I didn’t ruin your life. You ruined your life. I just helped you play the game.”
“This wasn’t a game. My life isn’t a game. I tried to help you.”
“But you couldn’t help me. I realized it far before you could. I was already too far gone when I came to you. And one day it was like a light clicking on in my head. I decided I was going to be the life of the party again.”
“I still don’t understand why.”
“You wanted to see into my world. And now I’ve given you a small glimpse. Your world has been turned topsy-turvy. You’re unsure of everything right now. That’s how I wanted it. I wanted you to see. And in the process, I had to turn your love into hate.”
Leila was breathing heavy and crying, her face buried in her knees. She took several deep breaths and tried to compose herself. Several minutes passed without either of them saying a word. A strange calmness overcame Leila as she stood up and looked down at him.
“That’s just it, Justin. I don’t hate you. All these horrible things you’ve done, and I still love you.”
She reached down and grabbed his hand, pulling him to his feet. She wrapped her arms around and held him for a brief moment, remembering back to when she first met him.
“Why did you want me to come here?”
“To say goodbye. I’m leaving. This would be easier if you hated me.”
“Where are you going?”
“Where I should have gone a long time ago.” A sad expression covered his face.
“Then this is the end, Justin. This is our goodbye.” A single tear fell down his cheek as he listened to her words.
“Goodbye, love.”
Leila turned to go back down the stairs. She realized Justin was not following, and turned around to see what he was doing. To her surprise, he wasn’t there. Her heart stopped for a moment and she couldn’t believe how strangely quiet it was. That is, until the woman on the street screamed. Leila peered over the edge hoping somehow she had imagined the whole night. But there he lay. She ran down as fast as she could until she reached him. She knelt down and stroked his blood-soaked hair. This continued for several minutes until the ambulance arrived. But she knew it was too late.
She stole one last look before they took him away. The look on his face offered a strange sense of comfort. His eyes were open, still an astounding blue color, and he was almost smiling. He looked so peaceful.
