Silver Bodycon Dress

“H-How long have you been standing there?” Taylor gulped.

“How could you!” Jamie turned and left the room.

Taylor ran after Jamie, out into the hall. “You must’ve misunderstood me.”

Jamie stopped. “I’m pretty sure I didn’t.”

“That was… That was just a friend.”

“Sure it was.” A beat.

“How long has this been going on?”

“How long has what been going on? Nothing’s been going on, Jamie.” Taylor straightened up. “Stop being so paranoid.”

“So you were just going to meet this friend at home alone? At this hour?”

“They’re having trouble sleeping. I’m just trying to help. You’re being insecure.”

Jamie started pacing. “I’m being insecure? Are you fucking kidding me?”

Jamie threw their hands in the air. “They had to call you over if they can’t sleep? Come on. Listen to music, take a pill, go for a damn walk. Make it make sense!”

“You’ve gone to a friend’s house when it was late, too. What’s the big deal?”

“That was my best friend, Tay. And her father had just died.”

“And you were trying to help. I didn’t accuse you of anything, then.” Taylor sneered.

“That was completely different, and you know it.” Jamie collapsed on the couch, looking deflated.

Taylor sat down and traced a hand along Jamie’s cheek. “Come on, baby. You know I’d never cheat on you. You’re my one and only.”

Jamie sighed. “I… I don’t know.”

Taylor gently placed a hand on Jamie’s thigh. “Trust me, baby.”

The clock ticked loudly, painfully slow. “O-Okay. I’m sorry.”

A kiss on the cheek. “That’s my baby!” Taylor returned to the bedroom.

Jamie’s shoulders slumped. Maybe Taylor was right. I’m just too paranoid.

**

“Baby. Baby!” Taylor called from the shower.

Jamie rushed in. “What is it?”

“Could you grab me a towel?”

“Fine.” Jamie went into Taylor’s walk-in wardrobe, clothes all neatly arranged by colour, the nicer ones hung up in plastic.

As Jamie reached for a towel from the top rack, a high stack of sweaters fell over.

“Damn it.” Jamie made to bend down to pick them up, but saw something in the darkness at the back of the wardrobe.

A phone.

Was it Taylor’s? Why is it back here?

Jamie looked back to the bathroom. Taylor was belting Evanescence, a little out of tune.

The phone lit up. Jamie pulled it out.

There were texts. One after another.

I miss you.
I love you.
Last night was amazing.
When can I see you again?

Jamie read the messages, heart pounding. Again. Then again. What the fuck is this?

“Hey, baby? Can I get that towel? Today, please?”

Startled, Jamie threw the phone back on the rack, hastily stuffed the sweaters on top of it. “Yeah, yeah, coming!” But Jamie’s voice broke.

Handing the towel to Taylor through the door, Jamie took a deep breath. Stay calm. “Here.”

“Finally. Thanks.” Taylor snatched it off Jamie’s hands.

Jamie turned to leave, gripped knuckles turning white, as Taylor continued singing off-key.

**

Taylor opened the front door. A pile of Jamie’s bags sat by the entryway, silently judging.

“Jamie? What’s going on?” Taylor stormed in.

Jamie looked up from the couch. Their eyes locked. “You tell me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Tell me I’m imagining things.”

Taylor remained silent.

“Go on. Tell me again that I’m being paranoid.” Jamie’s arms crossed.

“Well, you are! Obsessing about that again? I told you, that was a friend!” Taylor’s voice rose, becoming screechy.

“If it was just a friend, why do you have another phone? Why are you texting someone else ‘I love you’?”

A pause. “What did you say?”

“I found your other phone. The one you’ve been using to talk to your friend.”

Taylor’s eyes narrowed. “Have you been going through my stuff?”

“No, I was just—”

“That’s a violation of my privacy!” Taylor’s jaw tightened, hands curled around the vase on the coffee table.

CRASH. Glass shattered, flowers and water sliding down the wall to the ground. “How dare you?”

Jamie cried out. “Stop that! You—”

“How can I trust you now? You’re an asshole!” Taylor’s eyes were wide, hands flailed.

Trust.

Jamie took a deep breath. “Seriously? Wow. Just… wow.”

“Wow, what?”

“You’re turning this on me? Like it’s my fault?”

“You shouldn’t be looking through my things. So what if I have another phone? It’s for work. If you’re going to be so fucking suspicious all the time…”

The rest of what Taylor said was lost on Jamie. It didn’t matter, not anymore.

Jamie stood up abruptly. Taylor’s eyebrows raised.

“I’m done, Tay. Really done.”

“Oh, come on, Jamie. You always make it so fucking difficult. Let’s just talk.”

But something in Jamie’s eyes made Taylor shut her mouth. “I-I… Jamie?”

Jamie made his way to his bags.

He thought of all the laughs, the jokes, the good times together. Their plans for the future.

He shook his head.

“Goodbye, Tay,” he said, without looking back.

He didn’t know if she cried or tried to stop him. He didn’t care. No more.

As he opened the door onto the porch and to his freedom, he heaved a huge sigh and looked up at the starry sky.

I did it.

He wondered when she’d realise the holes he’d cut in all of her clothes—including her favourite silver bodycon mini dress.

He smiled. Feels fucking good.

-THE END-

(C) Copyright Lisa Kwan 2026

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Part of my creative writing project. For this piece, wanted to specifically work on dialogue writing technique. Started with a random first-line dialogue:

"H-How long have you been standing there?"