Chapter 292: Disgusting
Daniel and I rolled up to the hotel entrance together, and man, you should've seen Louis's face. He was totally floored. Even Mindy kept giving Daniel these confused looks, and when she glanced back at me, it was like she was silently scolding me.
I scratched my nose, debating if I should spill the beans.
But hey, it was Mindy and Louis's engagement bash, and people were starting to show up. Couldn't be rude, right? So I figured I'd save the explanation for later.
I played it cool, tossed out my congrats, and strolled past the happy couple. Even after I was a good distance away, I could feel Mindy's death glare aimed at Daniel.
They were probably thinking the same thing I was: after all the wild stuff Daniel had pulled, he had the nerve to show up here. Seriously, Daniel had no shame.
Louis snapped out of it and hurried over, guiding Daniel and me to the table where our old high school crew was hanging out.
Louis's slightly ticked-off look said it all—he didn't want Daniel here, but what could he do? Couldn't exactly boot him out.
A bunch of our high school buddies were already there, cracking up over old embarrassing stories. It was like a mini-reunion, and everyone was stoked to relive the good ol' days.
As I walked up, one of the guys winked and joked, "Hey, you two made it! Daniel's still a looker, and Jane, you're still a knockout. So, when's the wedding and baby shower? Don't forget to invite us!"
Everyone burst out laughing.
After graduation, a lot of us lost touch. The guys here were mostly the ones I hadn't kept up with.
Surprisingly, Daniel didn't act all annoyed or distant like he usually did. He just gave a faint smile, didn't say much, and took a seat.
There were only two seats left next to each other. He grabbed one, so I had to sit next to him, which felt kinda weird.
Back in high school, we all got along great. But once we went off to different colleges, we drifted apart, leaving those good times behind.
Taking advantage of Louis's engagement party, everyone was hyped to reconnect on Facebook. Someone even started a group chat, saying we should hang out more since we were all in the same city.
The vibe was awesome, with everyone laughing and chatting. I got caught up in it, reminiscing about those fun three years.
Daniel kept that faint smile and didn't say much. He just sat there quietly, only responding when someone directly mentioned him.
Daniel had always been the aloof type in school, and everyone was used to it. They figured he'd always be like that, so no one really cared.
We were deep in conversation when the guy next to me asked, "Two of our classmates are getting hitched soon. You and Daniel have been together forever; we're all waiting for your wedding invite."
That dude leaned back in his chair, looking all nostalgic, and shot me a sideways glance. "You two were like the perfect couple, killing it in both love and school. We were all so jealous, especially those of us who barely scraped by in college."
He didn't bother to keep his voice down, so Daniel, sitting right next to me, heard every word. Back in the day, when he was head over heels for Zoe, he would've jumped in to set the record straight.
But now? Daniel wasn't that lovesick kid anymore, and his thing with Zoe was ancient history. And I wasn't that timid girl who got publicly shamed for being "shameless."
In that messy, immature love triangle, I bailed early and found my peace.
I figured Daniel would want to clear his name or at least storm off, especially with all the embarrassing stuff he did being brought up at such an important event.
But time changes people.
When that classmate said his piece, Daniel froze for a sec, his face going cold. Just when I thought he was gonna blow up, he casually picked up his water glass, took a sip, and kept staring at it like it was the most interesting thing in the world.
That threw me for a loop.
The guy was still grinning, waiting for my response. He leaned in, his eyes bouncing between Daniel and me.
Wait, when did Daniel and I ever date? Who started this nonsense?
"Cut the crap. I cleared this up in front of the whole class junior year. How can you still think that? There's nothing between Daniel and me; we were never a thing."
The guy thought for a moment, probably remembering that morning when I set the record straight in front of everyone. He awkwardly scratched his nose. "You were serious back then? We all thought you two were just having a spat. Did you really break up?"
Only a few close friends like Lillian and Amelia knew the real deal over the years. So it made sense that the rest were clueless. I thought everyone had forgotten, but nope, they still saw Daniel and me as some couple.
Time to set the record straight again.
I raised my voice so everyone could hear, "I've said it before: Daniel and I are just neighbors. We went to and from school together 'cause we lived close by. We were never a couple. Daniel's girlfriend was Zoe. Everyone knows that, right?"
The table got awkward real quick. Everyone's eyes were darting between Daniel and me, trying to figure out if I was telling the truth.
Daniel kept that indifferent look, like he couldn't care less. Meanwhile, I was all earnest and straightforward.
All of this told our classmates that every word I said was legit, leaving them no choice but to believe it.
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