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Amy bit her lip tentatively as she sat up in bed. Holding her breath, she turned to ensure that Adam was actually still asleep. According to his breathing, which was slow, deep and regular, he was.
Relieved, she gently rose from the bed, making certain not to make any noise as she padded across the room. She felt around for a pair of shoes, then slowly exited through the ajar bedroom door. A quickly glimpse at the digital clock on her way out told her it was three-eighteen in the morning.
As soon as she was out in the hallway and away from the bedroom, she allowed herself to audibly sigh. If he'd woken up, he would have questioned and no doubt stopped her. But she had to go and see him, had to talk to him.
Amy held her breath once again as she unlocked and opened the front door mere moments later. She hoped the slight creaking sound wouldn't waken Adam.
She hurried in a brisk walk a few doors away to what had at one time been her house. And as she was at the door, just outside, a horrid thought suddenly occurred to her... What if Torrie was in there with him, spending the night? Damn it, she hadn't thought about that earlier, only about how badly and urgently she needed to speak to her estranged husband.
Sighing resignedly, the redhead nonethless rang the doorbell. It was a chance she had to take. Maybe if he saw her alone, without Adam, he would actually give her a chance to voice her concerns. For crying out loud, it wasn't as though Jay were in love with Torrie - they'd only just started whatever it was they had. Amy could hardly call it a 'relationship.' Instinctively, she knew all it was was sex, and two people who were heartbroken and bitter, respectively, who were trying to make themselves feel better. That was all there was to it, and Amy would bet her entire life savings on it.
She could suddenly detect the sounds of shuffling from within the house. Jay was right on the other side of the door, mumbling either to himself or to her. And then, the locks were turned and the front door open.
Her husband looked disheveled and as though he'd been woken out of a deep sleep. He squinted at her for a beat, then rolled his eyes.
"Oh, it's you."
Amy ignored that and stepped over the threshold.
"Jay, we need to talk," she insisted as she shut the door behind her. "I'm sorry to come over at such a crazy time, but..."
He stared at her, knowing exactly why she'd done that at such a wee hour of the morning. He pursed his lips together, arms crossed, refusing to voice it.
The redhead looked around cautiously as they entered the living room. Jay switched on a lamp and sat heavily on the couch, burying his face in his hands.
Tentatively, the redhead sat on an adjacent armchair.
"Are you... alone?" she asked.
The blond man raised his head to stare at her.
"Yeah, I'm alone." He frowned, suddenly unsure about her question. "Why do you care?"
Because I wanted to talk to you and not be interrupted by a certain someone."
Jay sat back, rolling his eyes again. He shook his head and crossed his arms, sighing.
"So, you're here and I'm up. Go ahead and talk."
Amy licked her lips nervously, surprised that he was being as civil as he was toward her. She'd half-expected him to turn her away, yell, or even throw her out once she made it into the house. He seemed a bit more resigned to what was at this point as opposed to just flaring up in a rage as he'd done when she and Adam had first broken the news to him.
"Well," she began, "I know we went wrong, but-" She stopped speaking abruptly as she realized the man had interrupted. "What?"
"You went wrong, Amy," Jay said sternly. "You did that, not me."
She stared at him in silence for a beat and then nodded.
"I went wrong," she corrected, wondering how long he was going to make her grovel. "As I was about to say... Jay, we may be broken up and about to get divorced, but that doesn't mean I don't still care about you."
He let out a derisive little laugh.
"Oh, that's priceless," he spat. "So, you still care about me, huh? Do tell!"
"It's the truth, Jay," she answered in a calm voice. "No matter what I've done to hurt you and betray our marriage vows, it's the truth. And that's why I want you to consider not seeing Torrie."
He shot his head up and glared at her.
"What? You have got to be kidding me, Amy! What do you care if I date her, all things considered?"
The redhead held her breath for a beat. She knew he would react this way about this. But for his own good, she was going to at least try to convince him to stop seeing Torrie. He was a good guy, and the platinum blonde was all wrong for him.
"You're dating her? I thought it was just a rebound one night," she said. "That won't fix anything, not in the long run."
"Oh, can it!" the short-haired blond shouted. "You know, me and Torrie, this is none of your business, Amy!"
She nodded, then said, "I know... but as I said, I do care about you. She's a manipulative, sneaky snake... You deserve better, Jay."
"What I deserve better than is you!" he yelled, bolting up from the couch. He marched to the front door and opened it. "Get out, Amy... Get out now!"
Sighing, the redhead calmly rose and did exactly as he ordered. She'd tried and failed... and that was all there was to it. There was nothing more she could do.
"I hope you reconsider what I said," she told him as she stepped outside.
He didn't reply and instead opted to slam the door. She heard the locks turning back into place and walked back to Adam's house.
Dejectedly, Amy realized her good intentions would probably have the exact opposite of the desired effect.