My December

Don't Waste Your Time

Don't Waste Your Time
It's over, it's over, it's over...

It seems you can't hear me
When I open my mouth you never listen
You say stay, but what does that mean
Do you think I honestly want to be reminded forever?

Don't waste your time trying to fix
What I want to erase
What I need to forget
Don't waste your time on me my friend
Friend, what does that even mean
I don't want your hand
You'll only pull me down
So save your breath
Don't waste your song on me, on me
Don't waste your time

It's not easy not answering
Every time I want to talk to you
But I can't

If you only knew the hell I put myself through
Replaying memories in my head of you and I
Every night

Don't waste your time trying to fix
What I want to erase
What I need to forget
Don't waste your time on me my friend

Friend, what does that even mean
I don't want your hand
You'll only pull me down
So save your breath
Don't waste your song on me, on me
Don't waste your time

You're calling
You're talking
You're trying
Trying to get in
But it's over, it's over
It's over, friend

Don't waste your time trying to fix it
So save your breath
Don't waste your song on me, on me
Don't waste your time

You held me
You felt me
You left me
But it's over, it's over, it's over
You touched me
You had me
But it's over, it's over
It's over, my friend
Don't waste my time
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Word Count:963

Prudence knew something was wrong when Tera said they needed to talk. Whenever one of them wouldn't enclose details over the phone, it was very important, and usually bad.

She waited in her cold, empty kitchen for Tera to knock on the door, a feeling of dread settling in the pit of her stomach.

Her front door opened, and Tera walked in, looking rather...guilty actually.

What did Tera have to be guilty about? Tera never did anything wrong.



~*~



Tera walked through Prudence's dark living room, making her way to where Prudence sat in her brightly-lit kitchen.

What she was about to tell Prudence was no longer relevant. It no longer mattered whether or not her friend knew, and may only serve the purpose of ruining their friendship, but Prudence had to know- simply because it killed Tera not tell her.

Tera took a seat in front of Prudence and could already tell that Prudence knew she had bad news.

Good, Tera thought. She's prepared.

"What is it?" Prudence asked, looking down at her hands beneath the table-top.

I should just say it, just come out and say it.

"Do you remember that time about a year after you and Jeremy started dating, you broke up because you thought he was cheating on you?"

Tera watched as Prudence's back straightened, and she looked Tera right in the eye. "Yes."

Maybe this had been a bad idea.

"He didn't cheat on you."

Prudence looked confused. "I know. That's why we got back together."

Tera waited, trying to keep her nerves calm. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe Prudence wouldn't even care now that Jeremy had done something much worse.

"While you and Jeremy were broken-up," Tera pushed on. "He convinced me to sleep with him."

Prudence looked shocked for a second , and then lifted her eyes to Tera's again.

"He was angry with you for breaking up with him on the basis of a false accusation and I agreed with him just to make him feel better, but then he started crying and kissing me and telling me-" She stopped. Prudence didn't need to know the last part; it would only make everything worse.

But Prudence wasn't going to let it go, apparently. "Telling you what?" she demanded.

Tears streamed down Tera's face and caught in her throat. "That he always wanted me."

"Instead of me, right?" Prudence shoved back from the table.

Tera did the same. "You know how low my self-esteem was back then, Pru." Tera's voice rose in desperation as Prudence stormed into the living room. "He told me I was beautiful and made me feel good about myself, and I just couldn't help it!"

Prudence yanked the door open. "Yeah, he has that effect on a lot of women."

She looked at Tera with hurting eyes and Tera knew she'd made a mistake. Why had she thought this was a good idea?

Tears still flooding her eyes, Tera walked out of her best friend's apartment and into the rain that had been pouring down all morning. She turned to make a final plea for their friendship, but Prudence had already shut the door.



~*~



The second she slammed the door closed, Prudence slammed her fist into the door. Why her? Why had this happened to her? Did she deserve this?

God, she wanted a drink.

No. No, she didn't.

She scrubbed her hands over her face and went straight to the kitchen to get her phone.



~*~



Kyle went to Prudence's apartment as soon as he hung up the phone.

When she opened her front door, Kyle knew by looking at her that she was in pain. He couldn't stop thinking about what she said over the phone- that she wanted a drink. He couldn't let her fall back into her old drinking habit. They'd been too strong for too long.

He pulled the Wal-Mart bag he had in his hand out in front of him so Prudence could see it. "I brought ice cream."

They sat in her living room, her sprawled on the couch and him cross-legged on the floor, eating bowls of chocolate chip ice cream.

Prudence told him what happened between her and Tera, and he listened.

And when she was finished, he asked, "Prudence, why don't you look at it from Tera's point of view?"

Prudence looked at him with a shocked expression. "How is her point of view any better? She knows that when she did was wrong"

Kyle nodded. "I'm sure she does, but she didn't tell you the truth to hurt you, she told you the truth because she felt that your friendship was important enough to her to be completely honest with you."

Kyle watched as Prudence pulled her knees to her chest and rested her chin on them. "But apparently our friendship wasn't important enough to her then to refrain from doing it in the first place."

"Prudence, when did this happen?"

Prudence looked at him for a second, then up at the ceiling in thought. "Back in college, I guess. We were eighteen, so about ten years ago."

Kyle thought about how much he'd changed in ten years. "She was young and dumb, Prudence. She made a mistake."

Prudence opened her mouth to answer, but a knock at the door stopped her.

Kyle waited on the living room floor as she opened the door.

Tera stood on the other side, tears streaming down her face and clothes wet from the storm that had started again after he arrived. Tera didn't even have even to say anything before Prudence wrapped her arms around her friend.

Kyle smiled at them from where he sat.

When they pulled away, Prudence's clothes were as wet as Tera's.

The girls laughed, and Kyle went to get them towels and more ice cream.