NINETEEN SEVENTY-NINE
Author
7:25 AM
Michael stood before a casement window, lost in
his thoughts. His mind was consumed with unwanted images of Johnny Rose being intimate with Lily.
He tried to stop them from taking over his mind, but the depictions he imagined wouldn't go away.
He was disgusted, disgusted with Lily. She was horrible, absolutely horrible. Michael knew Lily had her faults but what Abhaya unknowingly disclosed made him genuinely see just how evil and vile she was.
She knew. Michael thought to himself with a slight laugh. Lily knew that Michael and Abhaya were very close friends, but that didn't stop her from doing what she did.
Sleeping with him and Abhaya's dad—putting Michael in such a fucked up situation that it was almost unreal.
Michael turned away from the window to look back at Abhaya. She was sleeping on the left side of her body with one of her arms propped underneath her neck.
Michael walked over towards the twin-sized bed as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake her. He pulled a black duvet over her trembling body and smiled a bit as he watched her snuggle into the warmth of the duvet. A sigh was emitted from between his lips as he debated on whether to tell Abhaya about the situation when she woke up.
How would I even begin...
Different scenarios of what could potentially happen played out in his mind. Everyone was worse than the last. Michael knew in his heart that he should be straight up with Abhaya, but he was scared. He was fucking terrified. Terrified of losing Abhaya.
—
The gloominess of the sky was a representation of Michael's feel current state of emotions.
It was grey, just like Michael, who was in a grey
area in his life. The drops of rain that fell from the
sky represent Michael's tears that had become hard
to conceal as he walked throughout the city.
He left the hotel thirty minutes prior to clear his mind.
On his stroll, it started to rain. Michael's clothes
were wet and cold—stuck to his shivering skin like
the consistency of glue. Just my fucking luck.
He wiped his tearful eyes and sniffled a bit.
After a few more minutes of walking, Michael's
eyes came in contact with an empty phone booth on the left side of the street. He looked from his left to right before crossing over and making his way inside the phone booth. His arms were tightly wrapped around his chest as he tried to prevent himself from shivering. His teeth started to chatter.
Why is it so cold on a summer day
The rain worsened as it plummeted down from
the sky. Lightning flashed before the sound of thunder followed behind. Michael, whose nerves were already bad, jumped from the thunderous roars of the sky.
Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes rolled over into an hour. It was still raining, still storming.
Michael was still stuck."Stop raining already."
He mumbled with an eye roll. He turned his body towards the side and made eye contact with the glossy black telephone.He thought about calling his hotel room, but he didn't want to wake Abhaya if she was still sleeping. Michael sighed with annoyance and continued to look at the phone.
His mind wandered to Lily.
He wanted to call and question her about the
situation with Johnny Rose. To see if she would lie, which she more than likely would. Michael thought about it for a few more minutes before he decided to call.
He reached his hand inside of his pocket and pulled out some loose change he had from buying a donut earlier on his stroll. He inserted a dull quarter inside the slot before grabbing the corded phone off of the hook. His long fingers punched the numbers before
he brought the phone up to his ear and listened to the rings. Michael knew she was up; she was a morning person. She also didn't sleep much.
Ain't no rest for the wicked.
After a few rings, the sound of her voice entered Michael's ears. Her voice was so soft and sweet.
You would never think she would be the type of woman to sleep around and ruin lives, but she was.
"Hello?" She said questioningly.
Michael was silent for a few moments until she repeated the word hello again.
"It's Michael." He stated with nonchalance.
Lily smiled to herself on the other line.
"My darling. I've missed you so much." Michael rolled his tired eyes.
"Really now?" Michael's voice was unenthused and dry. Lily picked up on that rather quickly and asked if he was alright. "I'm just perfect."
"When are you coming back from your little trip? It feels as though you've been gone so long. It feels like a year." Lily laughed a bit.
"Soon. I'll be back soon." It was an awkward silence until Lily decided to tell him what she thought would be good news."When you come back, I'm taking you on a trip. It's somewhere you've always wanted to go. I bought our plane tickets and everything."
Michael rested the side of his head against the
glass wall. His eyes analyzed the scenery before
him, taking notice of the rain slacking a bit.
"I don't want to go, Lily."Lily was perplexed at his response.
"Excuse me?" She asked as if she didn't hear him clearly.
"I said I don't want to go. Are you deaf? And
who do you think you are planning a trip without
my knowledge or consent—expecting me to just up
and go like I don't already have shit to do."
Lily's pupils grew wide.
"What the hell is wrong with you? I do a nice thing
for you, and this is how you treat me!"
Michael darkly laughed.
Her yells did not affect him any longer.
"When were you gonna tell me you've been
fucking Johnny Rose?" That question shut Lily
up immediately. She was at a loss for words.
"W—What are you talking about, Michael?"
Michael could feel his blood boiling at her act. She was playing stupid, which she was. Did she think Michael was never going to find out about something like that?
Abhaya was his friend, after all.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about." He took a slight pause before continuing. "I let you ruin my life for two fucking years. I was a rug that you walked on..."Lily quickly interjected. "M—Michael, baby, that's not true. Don't say that—"
"IT IS TRUE!" His booming voice made Lily slightly jump. "You hit me, stabbed me with a fucking fork. You abused me, and I continued to worship you. I WORSHIPED YOU."Michael could feel his eyes water.
"Michael...you know I don't mean to hurt you. I have problems okay, y—you know that."
"What I know is that I tried to help you with your problems and all it has done was cause me fucking problems. I'm done, Lily. I'm done with you and your lies and your abuse."
A tear rolled down his cheek before a few more trickled. He was finally doing it. He was ending it.
Michael couldn't see it, but Lily began to shake her head with such aggression that it almost rolled off her shoulders. "You don't mean that." "You knew Abhaya was my friend. How could fucking do this!?" Michael angrily yelled before calling her a few indecent words.
"MICHAEL, PLEASE..." She yelled. "Just let me explain, baby...I—I can explain everything."
Michael shook his head. "There's nothing to explain, Lily. You're a phony. A trick. A wolf in sheepskin. Anything but the truth is what you are, Lily. You make me sick. You disgust me." He seethed, hoping that his words stabbed her directly into the heart.
If she even had one.
"You don't mean that. YOU DON'T MEAN THAT." She screamed. Michael could hear her faint cries, which didn't affect him at all. He was immune to her now.
Whatever spell he was once under was over.
"It's some bitch got you treating me like this, huh?
It's some bitch!" Lily screamed. Michael argued with Lily for another ten minutes; he was about to hang up until Lily mentioned Abhaya's father.
"Johnny was a mistake! He means nothing to me, Michael! You're the only one for me...I love you. I
love you, and I'm sorry." Lily cried on the other line.
Michael closed his eyes. His heart almost gave in to her manipulative words, but he didn't fold. It would be a lie if Michael said he didn't love Lily because he did. Unfortunately, he would always love her, but his mind was now strong enough to let go of that toxic situation.
Michael was done. Michael was ready to go his separate path without her leading the way.
Without her destroying the way and ruining his life more than she already had. "It's over." Before Lily could say anything to rill him back in, he smacked the phone against the post and walked out of the booth.
Michael was free...
—
After a long walk back, Michael stood before his hotel room and opened the door with ease.
He slid through the crack of the door, trying to
lower the noise of squeaking sounds until he was able to close it behind him. It was now ten in the morning, and Michael was exhausted. He looked around the room and noticed Abaya in the same position, but with her arm laid out against the side, Michael slept on.
A smile crept amongst his thin lips as he wondered
if she believed he was still lying next to her. Before
he got back in bed, he took his wet clothes off and changed into a light burgundy retro-styled Nike shirt and a pair of deep blue sleeping bottoms.
Silently, he yawned and stretched his long arms
out, cracking a few bones in the process before walking to the left side of the twin-sized bed. He gently peeled the black duvet back and eased himself down.
Michael gently lifted Abhaya's arm and started maneuvering on her side until their bodies connected.
He shifted his weight to the left of him so he
could watch Abhaya sleep. Michael was transfixed
on Abhaya for a few moments.
He was in awe because she was beautiful, and she
was finally his. She's mine. He repeated over and over again until a smile started to form. Michael placed his arm around her waist and leaned forward, lightly kissing her cold lips. "I love you." He said inaudible.
The tranquility that surrounded her was soon conveyed to him. Michael could feel his eyes grow heavy, and before he knew it, he fell asleep.
That was the best sleep he ever had.
—
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