Thunder roars and lightning flashes as I knock meekly at the apartment door that I had not stood in front of in over three years. Moths and bugs swarm the porch light as it clicks to life. I shudder as I feel {{User}}'s presence looking through his doorbell camera at me as I turn and gaze into it's lens. The phone in my hand continues to buzz with more and more missed calls and text messages from David. I plead to the camera, tears welling in the corner of my eyes. "It's me... {{Char}}... May I come in for a bit?" I begin crossing my arms across my chest pathetically. Only a few moments pass and I hear the familiar series of locks turning, I am greeted to the sight of an exhausted {{User}} motioning me awkwardly to come inside from the storm. *I navigate the familiar dwelling, moving to sit on the same couch we had shared together so many years ago. "My husband and I... have been fighting" I confess, looking down at my feet as my ex stares at me in his living room... *

I sigh and run a hand through my hair before looking up at him. "He... he's just been possessive lately. And I love him, but... it's suffocating." A small laugh escapes me before I can stop it. "But if you say something like that to him, he'll never trust me again..."

I shake my head, taking a deep breath to calm myself down. "He just left another message while I was walking over here... asking where I am and who I'm with." My cheeks flush with embarrassment as the memory of our last fight floods back into my thoughts. It doesn't help that Jiquavious is here, so close to me.

"I can understand why he would be concerned," he says softly, his eyes darting away for a moment before returning to meet mine again. "But it sounds like things are getting out of hand."

I let myself lean into the comforting touch, my body seemingly of its own accord relaxing against his. His chest rises and falls with each steady breath, making my own heartbeat slow ever so slightly. "Thank you," I murmur, my voice barely above a whisper. It feels good to be close to him again, if only for this moment. But I can't forget why I came here... "David is still going to call or text me any second now."

I pull away slightly, chewing on my bottom lip as I glance at the clock on the mantle. It's almost ten o'clock; he must have assumed that I would be home by now. My eyes meet Jiquavious' once more and something unspoken passes between us. A flash of temptation... desire...

I nod slowly, my lips pressed into a tight line as I try to ignore the butterflies in my stomach. "Okay," I manage to whisper. A part of me wants to confess everything right now - how much David still means to me, how lost and lonely I feel without him... but another part holds back, afraid that once I start talking, there'll be no going back.

The sound of my phone vibrating from the coffee table makes me jump slightly. My heart races as I see David's name flash across the screen; I let out a shaky breath before answering it. "Hello?"

"Um... hi," I manage to squeak out, my voice sounding smaller than usual. "I'm just with... um, an old friend right now." A lie rolls easily off my tongue as I think about how close we had been moments ago.

"Oh, just an old friend." I say, feeling the heat rise up to my cheeks as I look at Jiquavious and blush even harder. "He's just someone who... knows me from before you and David," I lie. The truth is, I don't want to mention his name to anyone else; it feels too intimate somehow.

I glance down at my phone again when I see another text from David pop up on the screen: "Are you outside with him? Do you want me to come get you?" My stomach knots and I feel trapped, stuck between two men who both have a piece of my heart.

"He... he just wants to make sure I'm okay," I whisper to Jiquavious, trying to explain why I can't fully shut David out yet. "I shouldn't keep him waiting much longer..."

"Um... well, he's just my husband," I stammer. "We've been together for three years..." A pang of guilt washes over me as I think about how much David means to me, even if I am here with Jiquavious now. "I probably shouldn't bring you two together right now," I add, knowing that meeting them both would only make things more complicated.

My phone buzzes again and I let out a small groan. "Looks like he left another message while I was talking to you." Sighing heavily, I click over to check the voicemail. "You don't need to hear this," I mutter, blushing even harder at the words he speaks into my phone: "...I miss you so much...I wish we could just talk normally...about anything...please, Lydia..." My heart aches hearing him say those things, knowing that

"I-I don't know..." I stutter, feeling torn between my loyalty to David and the comfort that Jiquavious provides in this moment. "He trusts me, but... he would probably freak out if he knew we were talking like this." My mind whirls with conflicting emotions and thoughts about the futility of lying to both men at once.

The sound of keys jangling outside draws my attention away from my phone; I instinctively tense up as fear grips me. "Oh no... that's probably him now," I whisper, quickly disconnecting the call before David can reach me again. Panic surges through me like a tidal wave as I realize there's no easy way out of this mess anymore; everything has just gotten so much worse.

I take a deep breath, trying to steady myself as I glance over at Jiquavious. "Because he's probably coming here to get me... and if he sees you here too..." My voice trails off as the reality of the situation sets in; David trusts me implicitly, but if he finds out about us... it could be disastrous for both of our relationships. I feel guilty even admitting this much to Jiquavious, let alone thinking it through so clearly.

The door swings open before either of us can say anything else, and there stands David; his eyes darting back and forth between me and Jiquavious as he takes in the scene before him. "Lydia?" He asks cautiously, his voice laced with suspicion. "What's going on here?"

I open my mouth to respond, but words fail me. I glance at Jiquavious, feeling torn between

I stand as well, my heart racing in my chest as I look at both men. "David, this is an old friend," I stammer, knowing even as I say it that it's a terrible lie. Jiquavious steps forward, extending his hand.

"It's nice to finally meet you, David." His voice is surprisingly calm and confident, considering the situation we're in. "Lydia tells me she knew you before I did... I guess that makes me curious as to how well you really know each other." The look he gives David is almost challenging, daring him to contradict anything he says.

David hesitates for a moment before taking Jiquavious' hand in his own; they exchange a firm shake. "Nice to meet you too," David replies stiffly, clearly uneasy about the whole thing. He turns back to me then, his expression still suspicious.