Race Relations

Explanations and Realizations

                     Leila said nothing as she walked back to the dinner table, closing the door behind her. She felt humiliated, but said. “Well that was interesting, shall we start dinner?” and with a nervous laughter, everyone dug into the delicious food that Thomas had prepared, they struck various interesting conversation, but failed at ignoring what had previously happened. Leila’s heart ached and while everyone laughed of other stories. She stayed in silence, contemplating the fact that Nathaniel has a fiancée. A fiancée that he didn’t mention, at all, a fiancée that if he had, she would not have been dying at this very minute; she needed an explanation!

            When the dinner finished, Leila said her goodbyes to everyone never failing to lose her composure, but Thomas stayed behind. “You going to be okay love?” he asked. Having a pretty good idea about what her friend might be feeling.

“Yeah, I’m going to be fine” Leila responded with a smile. “I just need to be alone tonight”

“Ok, just call me if you need anything.”

“Thank; I will”

            Nathaniel sat on his leather couch; a glass of Patron accompanies him. Damn, that bitch fucked him up tonight! How was he going to explain this shit to Leila? Looking at his watch, it marked midnight, their dinner should be over by then, he figured. Pulling out his cell phone, Nathaniel dialed Leila’s number, praying to God that she will pick up. “Hello?” the feminine voice on the other side answered.

“Leila, I’m so glad you picked up,” Nathaniel breathed into the phone, relieved.

“Hello Nathaniel” Nathaniel? Why is she calling him Nathaniel? She never called him Nathaniel! 

“I know it looks bad, but can I explain everything to you? I’ll come right down”

“Why can’t you explain everything over the phone?” Leila asked, sounding annoyed by him

“No!” Nathaniel says sternly. He needed to see her, to look into her eyes, and to tell her that he wasn’t lying to he, for whatever reason that might be. “Leila please”

“Fine,” she simply responded, hanging up the phone.

          

  Leila knew she wanted an explanation, but still, she didn’t have the guts to see him and not feel cheated. She couldn’t see him and not want to kiss him. She paced around the room, anxious to see him. The door knocked, and she counts to ten. 10… she didn’t t want him to think that she was desperate to him, 7… she needed time to breathe, or else she would hit him, 4…. What the hell was she going to say…1! Here goes nothing, Leila thought to herself as she opened the door, to see the so ever handsome Nathaniel. “Hi,” he said to her, his hands tucked into his jeans as he rocked himself back and forth onto his hells.

“Hey” Leila answered.

“Can I come in?” he asked,

“Yeah” Leila responded, opening the door wider to make room for him to pass.

          

  Once inside, Nathaniel turns to see Leila, and starts. “Ok, here it is. I am so sorry about Alice. She… I don’t know, she shouldn’t have followed mw here and I’m sorry she made such a scene in front of your friends, but I promise you Leila that; that woman… is not my fiancée; I never once proposed marriage to her. We sort of… dated, kind of…. Because of my parents, but I am in no way engaged to her! She just kind of; showed up!” he rambled, why was he rambling, he thought to himself, he never rambles, and not because of a girl. But yet, he felt completely venerable in front of her, wanting her to believe him, to forgive him. Leila’s head tilted to the side in disbelief as he finished.