It was time. My black boot tapped lightly against the sidewalk outside the coffee shop downtown. How much longer do I need to wait? Normally, I am the one running behind. But I am always on time. It was funny because no matter how far behind in schedule I thought I had gotten, I was always on time to my destination.
I ran a hand through my thick dark hair, tousling the strands across my back as I sat a little straighter and adjusted my top once again down. The white top I chose to wear showed just the right amount of cleavage and hugged my luscious curves tightly in the right places, but it had found its way untucked from my jeans as she had waited for her date to arrive. The day was just warm enough that I had taken my black leather jacket off when I had arrived at the coffee shop and it was hanging on the back of my chair swaying in the gentle breeze. With an exasperated sigh, I took a sip of my cooled down coffee.
He was never late. It was one of the things that made him a good fit for me, he made me want to do better all the time. Jared always paid the bill, never pressured me, and even though he wasn't bad in bed, there was still something about him being almost too nice that made me feel wrong for being bored dating him. Him being late was almost the most interesting thing he had done lately. Patience is a virgin, or whatever it is they say, right?
A tingle on the back of my neck gave my spine a quick shudder, I quietly glanced around each of my shoulders expecting to see someone staring at me. But no one was even noticing me and my lonely table, they were all equally entertained by the coffee and company they brought. A second shudder went through my body as I couldn't shake the feeling of there being eyes on me.
Just then Jared sat down at the table, a small gasp escaping my lips at his sudden appearance, but I quickly smiled and brushed it off hoping he didn't notice that he scared me. A short assessment tells me that he didn't notice at all and he actually barely was looking in my direction. He was fidgeting at his navy blazer sleeve and he didn't immediately greet me. Something wasn't right.
“Hey Veda,” His smile tugged at his boyish face, and he leaned across the table to give me a gentle kiss on my cheek. His simple blue eyes looked around for the waitress and he fixed his already perfect brown hair that was slicked back with gel. Veda Evermore, that’s me. Why doesn’t it feel good to hear that though?
“Hey Jared,” I say the unasked question heavy in my voice.
“Hey Veda,” He said again. I resisted the urge to point that out to him. I lifted my cold coffee to my lips to take a generous swallow of the brown liquid giving him enough time to gather his thoughts. “Veda, we need to talk.” Ahh there it is. I’m getting broke up with.
“Well, you asked me here for coffee this afternoon,” He had asked last night before he normally texted her goodnight for the evening. They had been dating for about seven months and saw each other at least twice a week since the beginning of their relationship. So, it wasn't too out of the norm when he asked me to go to coffee the next day. “So, you can talk.” I breathed in through my nose preparing myself for what he was going to say.
“Veda, there is so-”
“Jared!” Jared was interrupted by a familiar voice from behind him.
My eyes flickered up from his face to meet the face that had said Jared’s name. Brittney was dressed in her short pink skirt and matching pink plaid sweater blouse, blonde perfectly curled locks pushed back with a barbie pink band. And her makeup was perfectly placed on her face with a smile, as she waved a hand in our direction, approaching the table quickly, her light pink heels happily along with her.
She was someone that I graduated with from college. We took a semester together in Drawing 1, but I think she only went for the chance to get to see a dude’s naked ass. Brittney was very disappointed when she found out you had to make it to Drawing 2 for that to happen. I was nice enough to help her out a few times and she kind of never left me alone. She did hook up with a few of the volunteers in the class though. Since we graduated over a year ago, she started to invite me out to the bars with her and I couldn't tell her no even though I didn't consider us the best of friends, it was nice to have a girl that wanted to go out with me on occasion and just spend some girl time. When we did go out she would point out how badly I needed to find a man, until I found Jared.
“Did you tell her? Oh Veda, I really wanted to have a talk, just us girls. But Jared thought it would be better if he just broke it off with you first before we told you. I hope you’ll understand that, it was just love. We tried our best to fight it, but we just couldn’t. It’s been going on for a couple of months now. And I am just so excited to be starting a little family with him. I think we would just make the cutest babies.” Brittney was practically hanging on top of Jared. Who was about three shades darker than he was when he first sat down, he cleared his throat and half chuckled awkwardly. He stood up to put one arm gently around Brittney’s waist. She looked up at him, her eyes twinkling expectantly, to which he gave her a kiss on her lips. I swear I could see his eyes glance in my direction for a millisecond.
Suddenly an image I didn't want was forcefully put into my head of her wrapping her skinny legs around him, an expensive pink heel dry humping him in public. PREGNANT?!?! Why didn't I see the signs? They should have been obvious! We only had sex 3 times in 8 months!
“Britt, baby, I hadn't told her that I was in love with you, yet.” The gentleness that he spoke to Brittney with was enough to make her puke. It wasn't like she had loved Jared, but to cheat and to cheat with her “friend”? And he got her pregnant? That disgusting rotten fucking pig. NO that’s insulting to PIGS. He was lower than the pig shit their cute little bodies rolled around in.
“Veda, I really am sorry. I didn't want it to be like this, but we are so happy. Please understand.” Jared finally turned to me after what felt like forever when it was really only a few moments. Understand? He’s begging me to understand? I hope he understands when I tell everyone he has a little dick and couldn’t give head.
Now it was finally my turn to speak, “No, really it's not a loss on my end at all. You guys really
deserve each other. You’ll make the greatest babies.” My mouth dry, my throat thick, and my voice laced with a bitterness I hoped wasn't too obvious with my sarcasm as I said it.
"Well, congrats to you both," I added, my words dripping with venom, as I became bolder with my emotions settling in on the hurt that I know I did feel, "may your love be as fleeting as your loyalty.” With that I got up from the table, grabbed my jacket and spun around on my heel. Eager to get away from the two of them in all their obnoxious gloating. I didn't realize I had started to cry until a teardrop fell into my cleavage and I wiped at my cheeks furious at myself.
My heart was hurting from the loss of a dream I didn't even have with a mindless man that betrayed my trust. It all felt very fake. And the tears fell harder. At this point I wasn't even crying from the loss of my sucky relationship. I was crying for losing so much time with someone that was never going to go anywhere and the reality that I was probably happier on my own. But that somehow didn't make me feel any happier. I wanted that everlasting love that withstood the tests of time. I don’t love him. But I didn’t deserve this. I deserve a love that even time itself would stop and admire the way that the pieces fit perfectly together.
A woman’s and a man’s holler, “Watch out!” made my head snap up.
The thrum of an engine was loud in my ears. My eyes caught the headlights of a dark colored car. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as my senses heightened, every nerve in my body tingling with panic. With a surge of adrenaline, I realized the driver wasn't slowing down – they were barreling straight towards me recklessly with a very clear sign that they were not going to stop.
A guttural scream tearing from my throat, I launched myself into action instinctively, my muscles coiling like a spring as I propelled myself out of harm's way. The rush of air whipped against my skin as the car hurtled past, its metallic frame grazing perilously close to my trembling form that had fallen to the ground when jumping out of the way. A distinctive buzz in my ears and my head felt a little dizzy. My ass felt sore from the fall. I lifted a hand to wipe the tears stained on my face. I could have gotten myself killed crying over a little dick.
The world erupted into chaos – bystanders gasped in horror, their faces twisted with shock and disbelief. As the adrenaline slowly left my veins, I found myself trembling. I almost got fucking run over. I almost got FUCKING RUN OVER. Taking a very deep breath through my nose, I looked up at the older man rushing over to me.
The older gentleman's face was etched with worry, leaned over to my side, “are you alright, ma’am?” His eyes were bright for his age. And it could have just been the adrenaline still pumping through me but he looked a little too good for a man that could easily be in his 80s. And he moved very quickly coming over to me. I shook my head trying to release the fog of the moment. I did NOT get ran over.
With a grimace, "Well, I'm not roadkill yet, so I'd say I'm doing just peachy," I huffed.
The older man gave a short smile and gently helped me to my feet, “Thank you, I think I'll be alright. Shows going on everyday of my life, you’re lucky to catch it when you do. Otherwise I'll be planning a stand up amatur night next week at the same time, same near death experience.” I half laughed, voicing my thoughts out loud to the crowd that already started to go back to their mindless day. The air around the older gentlemen seemed to shimmer in the afternoon sunlight.
“Please try to be more careful, ma’am.” The man’s eyes focused on my face, and his words felt like an echo for a warning that I needed to understand.
But I didn't understand. I would be more careful though, “I will do my best.” He nodded his head solemnly, his hand giving my arm a slight pat where he had helped me up and then he turned away disappearing with an older woman.
A shiver of fear and adrenaline still coursed through my veins, mingling with the nagging sense that something far more sinister was at play. Ignoring the concerned onlookers, I pressed on, weaving my way through the now-thinning crowd with a newfound urgency. My nerves now were scattered from all the excitement and I really just wanted to get somewhere where I could put them back together again.
With a sigh of relief, I finally reached my beat-up old Honda Civic that had seen better days. Its faded blue paint job was peeling in places, and the driver's side door had a tendency to stick, requiring a firm shove to open. But despite its less-than-stellar appearance, the car had never let me down, chugging along faithfully from point A to point B. I can't believe I almost got run over. I opened the door, with a thankful tug that it didn't stick this time, and shut the door behind me.
The tears came harder this time, faster, and I let them. I needed to let it out. It was ok to mourn things not going according to plan. It really was not my loss, I didn't even know if I wanted something super serious with Jared. The betrayal still hurt either way. And logically I knew that his cheating didn’t make me any less of a woman. My head fell to the steering wheel between where my hands gripped the crochet cover that I bought off of online. I should have listened to my mom when she told me that he seemed too nice. Or when her grandma asked how the sex was and I just said it was ok, and they both shook their heads at the same time. A mental eyeroll helped the crying slow down and I was left sitting in my car, contemplating how my life got to this point. I lifted my head from the wheel and started the car. I wanted to go to the falls.
But first I wanted to go tell my mom and hear her tell me she was right. I pulled out of the parking spot and headed off towards Rosewood, my home. Rosewood was my grandmother’s maiden name. And the name she kept when she married my grandfather, and she always made sure to say that it was a good choice for her since her husband left her with a newborn baby to “chase skirts” and never came back. I could see the long driveway appearing to me in the distance.
I turned onto the driveway. It was my childhood home, and it set itself on the edge of the town of Madison and Hanover and pushed back off the road with a long drive up a hill to the main house. And the house was beautiful, its drive was lined with trees and wildflowers that bloomed naturally every year without fail.
The tall white pillars on the front of the house encased a front porch that had wooden rocking chairs sitting next to a matching outdoor table. It had a basement, a first and second floor-with six rooms between them, and an attic. Rosewood had once housed a lot of families into one home. The house was on a fair amount of land that didn't have another neighbor that could be seen past the trees. Even though I knew there were other houses further into the woods around Clifty Hollow.