Run, Girl (If You Can) Chapter 167 - Never Have I Ever

Everyone was riding the high after the pole dancing class and was acting giggly and tipsy without even consuming any alcohol yet. They all headed back to their homes/hotel rooms to shower and change into the matching 'bachelorette party' pajama sets that Lydia's maid of honor got for cheap in bulk before the next part of the night began.
The pajamas were pink button-up short sleeved tops and shorts patterned with lemons and little white flowers. In addition to the pajamas, each bachelorette was given a little plastic tiara to wear.
The nail artist friend of the maid of honor's took turns working through all members of the party as the other games were going on. Keeley's turn didn't come until the game 'Quiz the Groom' was going on but since she wasn't needed to participate anyway it wasn't a big deal.
Collin's sister had asked him all of the questions earlier on and Lydia had to see if she could guess his answers correctly.
"What is Lydia's worst habit? What would she say is yours?"
Lydia thought it over for a minute. "Um…I always take too long to get ready so we're frequently late. His is not matching his socks."
"Ding ding ding! We have a winner!"
The game continued with questions such as "What would your fiancé say is her most embarrassing moment?""Where was your favorite date together?" and "What nicknames do you have for each other?"
They were all perfectly normal couple things and Keeley grimly thought that she and Aaron had always been so out of sync with each other that they wouldn't have been able to play a game like this if she had been able to have a normal bachelorette party hosted by friends.
Had they ever really known each other at all? How had she ever married someone she didn't know properly? No wonder it ended up the way it had.
She wanted to brush away the tears that were forming but her nails were still wet. She couldn't ruin the nail artist's hard work. They were painted pale peach with little mint green flowers on them.
Once they were done, the artist had her stick her hands under a machine that dried them instantly and shooed Keeley off to rejoin the party right as the next game was starting.
'Never Have I Ever' was played by going around the room asking questions as statements, such as 'Never have I ever been out of the country.' Anyone who had been out of the country would have to drink a shot.
Lydia was up first. "Never have I ever been stuck in an elevator."
Keisha drank a shot but she was the only one. Elevator malfunctions weren't that common.
"Never have I ever done something I regret," Collin's sister said confidently.
She was the only one in the entire room who didn't take a shot. What kind of life was she leading?! Everyone had regrets. Goodness knows Keeley was drowning in them.
"Never have I ever had a one night stand." A few of the women took shots with red faces.
The game continued. Keeley was a fairly cautious person so despite living twice she didn't have a lot of the life experiences being named. She only drank two shots total until someone said "never have I ever kissed someone I didn't love."
She threw back a shot. Aaron had kissed her more than once in this life long after she had stopped loving him.
"Never have I ever gotten drunk." Another shot for Keeley.
"Never have I ever watched Keeping Up with the Kardashians." And another one.
"Never have I ever received a gift worth more than $500." Yet another shot. Who was picking these questions? It was like they were specifically targeting her now.
Her head started to hurt. If this game didn't end soon she was going to have a wicked hangover in the morning.
Thankfully, the others were getting restless too. They decided to put on facial masks and watch Lydia's favorite chick flick rather than continue the game.
The movie followed a group of bridesmaids who were trying to break up the bride and groom because the bride-to-be had tricked her fiancé, who was originally one of the other bridesmaid's beloved boyfriend, into marrying her by pretending to be pregnant after a one night stand.
It was a pretty funny movie and the couple who actually loved each other got to be together in the end. If only real life worked out that way more often.
How many people actually got to be happy with the one they loved? How many brides out there were looking forward to what they thought would be the best day of their lives and would eventually get abused or left behind by the one they trusted most?
What about Lydia and Collin? They met during her freshman year of college and had been dating ever since but even being together that long was no indication they would stay together forever.
Keeley hadn't always been this pessimistic. She just didn't believe in love or marriage anymore. Her first instinct used to be to believe that people who loved each other would stay together. She had seen too much of the ugly things the world had to offer to think that way now.
Aaron, Aaron, Aaron. It always came back to him. How much different would her life have been if she didn't pester him until he agreed to spend time with her way back then?
She would have gone to NYU and met her friends like she did in this life, gotten her PhD, been in a relatively happy marriage with a normal guy, and had a few kids.
If he had been nothing but a desk mate for a couple months everything would have turned out so differently. She doubted whatever force had caused her to be reborn would have even bothered because there was no point in bringing people back who don't have regrets.
Keeley would have lived and died as a perfectly ordinary person, just like she wanted.
Even if she got rid of Aaron once he was married off to Lacy or whatever socialite his parents picked for him she would never be able to get rid of her memories or regrets. Was true happiness even possible in this life while she was haunted by his shadow?