Bethany was on the warpath today. When I entered work, I saw her at the downstairs gym pushing herself hard. I usually saw her there when I came in as I loved a good morning workout.
Our workplace had a full-sized gym complete with showers, and they had plans to add a play center for kids. It showed us as employees that they were starting to think of us.
Bethany was, as my coworker Justin put it, 'ultimate eye candy' she was hot on all levels, but she was dating this idiot named Steven from the time I saw the guy at one of our family nights that he didn't deserve her.
"Hey," I said as I passed Beth's office.
She looked up at me and just smiled.
I walked inside and looked at her screen, we usually helped each other with programming, so this wasn't an invasion of privacy.
"Not to rain on your parade," I said as I noticed some lines of code that she had messed up on.
"Fuck me," Beth said as I pointed the line out.
Beth shook her bright blonde hair and erased the line.
"I can help if you want?" I asked politely.
"Sure," Beth said as she stood and let me sit down.
I sat in silence as she paced back and forth.
I knew Beth was bursting to tell someone what was going on, so I just gave it time as I worked on her coding.
"He cheated on me," Beth blurted out. "With some goth chick."
"Are you sure?" I asked.
I knew from experience that sometimes women saw things that weren't there. Beth looked at me with a death stare as if she remembered what had happened to me.
"I am not like Alicia," she shook her head as she sat across the table.
My ex-girlfriend Alicia thought I was cheating on her because I worked late. She slept with my then-best friend Logan to get back at me and got pregnant.
When I showed her all my time sheets, she started crying and begging for me to take her back, but I didn't even think about it. What was done was done.
Beth pushed her phone across the table.
"I got one of my guy friends to follow him," she said. "That's what he found," she said, folding her arms.
I looked at the pictures, swiping to see the following image. One after the other, it showed Steven leaving work with a pale-skinned woman with dark black hair and black attire. They went back to what I guessed was his place.
"So, they might be just working together...." I started to say. "Never mind," I said as the following picture showed them kissing. "That could be trespassing," I said as I saw that whoever was taking the photos was close to the house.
"Trespassing?" Beth yelled. "They fucking slept together!"
'Yup,' I said to myself as I saw the following few pictures, voyeurism at its best.
I pushed the phone back across the table. I had seen enough of Steven's body for one day.
"What did he say?" I asked.
"Nothing," Beth replied. "I sent all the pictures to him in an email, and a text, and he hasn't replied."
"Then you know the answer," I nodded.
"All because I said I would think about it," Beth said as she sat back down.
"Think about what?" I asked.
"He proposed last week," Beth said. "I said I would think about it."
"That's been going on longer than a week," I said as I stared at the phone.
"What?" Beth asked.
"You don't just go from, let's go to your place and fuck, to trying, well that," I said, pointing at the phone.
Beth looked at me with tears in her eyes.
"I'm sorry," I said, shrugging. "I thought you should know the truth."
I didn't know many girls that would do what the girl in the pictures was doing without a lead-up. No girl was like yeah, shove it in my ass, and then I will suck your cock afterwards, not on the first-time basis anyway.
"He always wanted to, well you know, with me and I told him, no," Beth said, folding her arms again.
"The number one reason why most guys cheat is because their women won't do something another woman would," I shrugged.
Beth shook her head.
"Sometimes you can be a little too blunt," she smiled as she stared at me. "You know there is something called subtlety?"
"Sorry wasn't installed at launch," I smiled back at her. "Maybe it will get installed in a new patch?"
"Doubt it," Beth nodded. "Thank you."
"It's what I am here for," I said as I stood up.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
'Did you hear? Beth is single!' Justin texted me later that day.
'Yeah,' I replied.
I didn't want to tell him any more details. Telling Justin anything was like putting it on the electronic boards in the middle of times square.
I also knew the vultures would circulate; I was sure Beth was getting all kinds of texts from guys on her social media accounts and work expressing their condolences and trying to get in the line to be her next boyfriend.
'You hear anything about her moving on?' Justin sent.
'What about Hazel?' I asked about his girlfriend.
'Time for an upgrade, if you catch my drift?' Justin sent back with a smiley face.
"Typical,' I replied.
Hazel was a good girl, not in the same boat as Beth looks wise, but she was a good, down-to-earth girl who put up with a lot of Justin's bullshit.
'Well?' Justin asked.
'Doubt she is going to go from one cheater to the next,' I replied.
'So, I should dump Hazel, good call, thanks,' Justin said.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I was walking through the grocery store picking up items for dinner when I saw him. I turned and started walking the other way.
"So, you're still giving me the cold shoulder, huh?" Logan said.
"Nope," I said. "Avoiding a confrontation, that's all."
Logan had been my best friend since high school. We ran track together. We played basketball together, I even knew most of his family, and he knew mine. We were more than brothers. People thought we were blood brothers and even said we looked alike. Tall, dark-skinned and the same brown eyes.
Then he fucked my girlfriend and got her pregnant, I slightly understood why she did it, but he was supposed to be my best friend.
"How many times do I have to apologize?" Logan asked. "I wasn't thinking."
"So, we are going with the I fell down and slipped my dick into her, excuse?" I nodded. "Good call."
"No, it," Logan said as he shook his head. "I had a thing for Alicia, and I should have told you, but how am I supposed to say I like your girl?"
"Like that, just the way you said it right there," I nodded. "How much shit have we been through together? We could have talked it out, but no, you went the other route."
Logan sighed as he stared at me. "You're right, I should have," he nodded.
"Key word, should have," I nodded. "Look, I just need space and time, okay, maybe I will work it out, maybe I won't, but right now, I can't."
"Okay," Logan nodded.
We shook hands and went our separate ways. I didn't see myself getting over it, but at least he was sticking around for the baby, unlike some in that situation.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~
"Hitting it hard again," I said as I walked into the gym.
"Yeah, the best way to get it out of the system," Beth said as she was on the rowing machine.
Beth was in shape, from her shoulders to her toes. She had one of those bodies you would see in those fitness magazines. Tight abs, big boobs and a pert ass.
All of that in a red sports bra, black shorts, and a blonde ponytail through the back of a black baseball cap.
I got on the elliptical and started going. We were the only two in the gym at this time of the morning. So, it was quiet.
"Let me ask you something," Beth said as she finished and stood up.
"Shoot," I nodded.
"How long after it happened did you talk to her?" Beth asked.
"Talk or really talk?" I asked.
"Really talk," Beth replied.
"It's been two months now," I nodded.
"Really?" Beth asked.
"We talked about it, she told me the reason, I proved her wrong, she apologized, and I wished her luck with her pregnancy, the end," I said as I pounded my way through the workout.
"So, you don't see yourself being friends, or friendly with her, at all?" Beth shook her head.
"Nope, no reason to," I said. "Actions have consequences," I shrugged. "She chose to not ask me, or tell me what she was thinking, and instead slept, no, fucked my best friend, action one, led to action two getting pregnant, consequence lose me," I said.
"Ah," Beth nodded as she went to the squatting machine.
"Thinking of forgiving him?" I asked.
"Nope," Beth said as she started squatting. "He sent me a text last night asking to meet him to talk about it."
"After or before you posted that picture online?" I asked.
Beth smiled. "After," she said with a grin.
Beth posted a picture of her lying in bed. It was quite a sight to see. She wasn't naked, but she showed enough to know she wasn't fully dressed either.
"I bet," I nodded.
"So, you saw it?" Beth asked.
"Of course," I nodded.
"And?" Beth asked as she stared at me. "Was it too much?"
"What was the reasoning behind it?" I asked.
"Don't know really, never did anything like that before," Beth shrugged.
"Well, there is your answer," I nodded. "If you liked it, then who gives a fuck about the reason behind it or what anyone thinks about it."
Beth nodded. "I like that," she said.
We continued our workout and then headed for the showers.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Heard that you talked to Beth this morning," Justin said as he met me in the cafeteria.
"We work together," I nodded. "It's very hard not to."
"Did she mention anything about my comment on her picture?" Justin asked.
"Not at all," I responded.
"Fuck knew I should have gone with the other comment," Justin said.
Justin was a weaselly man, always in other people's business, but for his bad traits, he had one good quality, he was good at his job, he worked hard, and he always came in, rain, sleet, or shine.
That's what I liked about him. Unlike many others who weren't reliable, Justin was, to a fault, the most dedicated person in the building.
"Look, I am going to be honest with you," I said as we sat down to eat.
"Okay," Justin nodded.
