“I’m sorry, I just feel that it’s time for a change,” I explain meekly, my hands twisting nervously in my lap in an attempt to keep them away from diving into my hair and creating a Rastafarian look with all the twisting.
“No, I understand,” replies Mr. Karter, leaning back in the black leather chair teetering on its wheels. “We’ll be sorry to see you go, Catherine.”
“And I’ll be sorry to leave,” I hastily add. “I just…” Without even realizing it, I was about to repeat my “It’s just time for a change” line all over again. “I just…I hope I’m able to find such enjoyable work in New York.” I’m such a kiss ass.
“You will,” he says calmly, idly balancing a pen on its tip. “You have a very punchy writing style that is more suited to the city. I think you were somewhat stifled here.”
I shrug. “I wouldn’t say I was stifled. I very much enjoyed my time here.”
“Well,” he says briskly, leaning forward in his chair and bringing it back onto the floor securely, “I wish you all the best, Miss Saunders.”
“Thank you,” I smile and stand up to reach across the desk to have my hand gripped in a formidable shake for at least ten seconds.
“So is Friday your last working day?”
My eyes widen slightly. “Oh…well, I can work for at least two weeks from here. I was just telling you in advance.”
“So when were you planning to leave?”
Jeez, you don’t have to push. Why don’t you just clear my desk for me? “Whenever,” I spit with slightly more viciousness than necessary.
He chuckles slightly, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “I didn’t mean to sound forceful, it’s just so I know when we have to find a replacement.”
“Oh,” I mutter bashfully. “Well, ideally, I’d be working right up until I leave, but I think…” My eyes fly through the glass separator to where Sean sits, calmly tapping away at his computer. “I think personal issues may force me to leave earlier.”
He follows my gaze and smiles. “Yes, Sean will be very sad to see you go.”
My heart jolts at his words. “Excuse me?”
“He was in my office a few days ago discussing a feature and seemed rather agitated. I thought it might have something to do with you.”
“He’ll be very disappointed in me,” I shrug, feeling a wave of guilt sweep over me. “He thinks I’m leaving for all the wrong reasons.”
Mr. Karter coughs uncomfortably and I realize we’re getting into rather personal grounds. “Well, why don’t you organize your affairs and then we can speak about your departure again later in the week?”
I nod and put a hand on the doorknob. “Okay. Thank you for your time.”
“No problem,” he tosses over his shoulder, bending down to search through some files. Why is it the moment I mention I might be quitting he suddenly starts to like me?
Shutting the glass door behind me, I slowly approach me and Sean’s cubicle. Sean stops his typing to look up at me and smile.
“So what did he want?” he asks, leaning back in his chair and scraping a hand through his straight hair.
“Um…” My fingers twist the front piece of my hair. “Nothing important.” I hastily bend down to pick up my purse so he won’t spy my guilty eyes. “Do you want to go to lunch? I really want to talk to you.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Impatiently listening to the monotonous ringing for the last time, I groan and click the off button on my cell phone.
“Is she still not picking up?” asks Trace, turning around and straining in his seatbelt.
“Nope,” I reply, tossing my phone on the dashboard. “She must have gone out for lunch with someone else.”
“Have you tried her office?”
“Yup, but no one picked up. Not even my best friend Sean,” I mutter sarcastically, whirling the steering wheel round to take a left. “I hope she’s okay,” I mumble anxiously, taking one hand off the wheel to adjust my rear view mirror. “She’s supposed to be talking to her boss today.”
“Oh yeah?” says Trace, gazing out of the window at the shivering pedestrians walking by.
“Yeah. Fingers crossed he doesn’t give her a hard time.”
Trace nods and we lull into a silence, our eyes darting around the streets in search of a good restaurant. “Hey,” Trace says suddenly, tapping the window. “Isn’t that Cat’s car?”
Leaning over to peer out of his window, I slowly nod as I see Cat’s Volkswagen Beetle stationed in a small restaurant’s parking lot. “Yeah, it is. Let’s go in,” I suggest, making the decision more or less without Trace’s consent as I pull the car up to the restaurant.
“No, Justin, let’s not. She’ll probably be with her friends from work.”
“So?”
“We shouldn’t disturb her. And I don’t even like sushi,” Trace pouts, pointing up to the sign.
“Stop whining, bitch,” I laugh, opening my door and hearing Trace mutter a few disgruntled words under his breath as he hops out of the passenger’s seat.
Calmly putting my keys into the pocket of my pants, I open the door of the restaurant and keep it held for Trace as he continues to grumble.
“I mean, what is the advantage of raw fish? Would you eat raw poultry? Would you go to KFC and ask them to give you a bucket of uncooked flesh? No, so why would anyone--”
“Oh my god,” I whisper, cutting Trace short.
“What?” he questions, following my gaze to look for the instigator of my outburst.
Cat and Sean sit huddled together in a dark corner of the restaurant, deep in conversation. She nods at what he says and lets out a little laugh, as though he was her boyfriend…
What the hell is going on? Cat was only saying a few days ago that she was actually beginning to dislike Sean. She said he was too judgmental and close-minded, but she didn’t really expand on it and when I asked about it, she just got pissed. I think it had something to do with me, but she probably just didn’t want to make me feel bad about it. I didn’t mind in the slightest, of course. She had found a flaw in Sparkly Eyes’ personality; I couldn’t have been happier.
So what is she doing with him? How long have these cozy lunch dates been going on for? I can picture it all perfectly…a stressful day recording hard-hitting news, flirtatious comments being exchanged over the buzz of computers, accidental touches, little “brushes of the hand” as he tenderly gives her her morning cup of hot chocolate…all leading up to little lunch appointments and rendezvous’ in the copying room when they think no one’s watching…
“She’s cheating on me!” I exclaim in a hushed tone. It’s like having my gut brutally ripped out of my stomach to just see them together.
Trace snorts, his voice teasing. “Justin, are auditioning for some soap opera role or something?”
“This isn’t funny, Trace!” I snap, feeling a churning sensation in my stomach as Cat sips her wine delicately. I was about to march up to the table and scream obscenities at them both, but Trace calmly puts a hand on my shoulder, holding me back.
“Sure it is,” he grins, casting an eye over the rest of the quiet restaurant. “All she’s doing is having an innocent lunch with a co-worker, and already you’ve dreamt up a six week affair in your mind.”
“Do you think it’s been going on that long?” I cry, moving behind a plant slightly so that I can spy on them.
“Justin!” Trace snaps, delivering a heavy punch to my shoulder. “Calm the hell down! You don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“Trace, look at them!” I justify, pointing an accusing finger in their direction. “They look like a couple!”
“So do we,” Trace snorts.
“Now is not the time for gay jokes!” I retort, moving a leaf slightly to get a better view of the them. “Do you think they’ve slept together?”
“Justin, do you know how crazy you sound?”
“I should have known. She was complaining about Sean…it must have been to throw me off the scent…” I think aloud, trying to pinpoint every Sean comment Cat’s made in the last few days.
“Justin!” Trace barks incredulously. “I’m going to have to slap you if you don’t calm the fuck down! He’s her co-worker, for God’s Sake. Of course they’ll have lunch together sometimes.”
“But why doesn’t she answer her cell phone? She must be ignoring me!”
“Justin, seriously,” says Trace sternly, jerking me to face him. “You may think you’re quite the detective, but it’s really annoying.”
“Do you think I should try calling her again? You know, to see whether she ignores it when she sees it’s me?”
“Justin, I could truly kill you right…” he trails of mid-sentence and frowns, staring over my shoulder. “Hey, what’s wrong with her?”
Spinning around, I squint to see Cat’s facial expression become exasperated and she shakes her hands about wildly, as though she’s defending herself. Sean replies, his face set in a frown as he angrily jabs the table with his finger. Cat closes her eyes and leans back in her chair, biting her lip as though she’s about to cry.
“What’s he said to her?” I whisper behind my plant, seeing Cat’s watery eyes avert their direction to the window, staring at the small gaggle of cars.
“Whatever it was, it upset her,” Trace replies, frowning as he stares at them. “Stupid bastard.”
“But what could they be talking about?” I question, pulling a branch up and trying to get a better view. “She looks really upset.”
“Probably how they’re going to break the news to you that they’re getting married.”
My eyes widen and I try to stifle a cry as Trace laughs. “Just kidding…but at least we know she’s not cheating on you, because she sure as hell isn’t having a good time.” He begins to giggle like some stupid little schoolgirl. “Oh man, you were being such a fool…”
Punching him in the shoulder, I scowl. “It’s a biological reaction to think of the worst when you see your girlfriend with her slimy ex. It’s natural.”
“And it’s natural for you to jump to conclusions and act like a drama queen…Remember when it was a little windy last week and you said there was going to be a tornado? Man, you were such a--”
Suddenly, Sean slams his hands on the table, making their glasses shake and Cat jump back in surprise as Trace stops mid-sentence. He begins to say something to her, running his hands through his hair in exasperation, and to my great horror, I see a tear roll down Cat’s cheek.
“Oh my god!” Trace gasps as Cat quickly wipes it away. “What is he saying to her?”
“Oh, no fucking way,” I say, pushing the plant out of my way and shrugging Trace’s protective hand off me. “I’m going to kill him.”
Trace doesn’t even attempt to stop me as I weave in and out of the tables, heading towards the corner of the restaurant to where Sean and Cat sit. My blood begins to boil as they continue to talk, Cat defensively shaking her head and inching back in her seat slightly with a timid look on her face.
No one, and I mean no one, intimidates my girlfriend, or ever worse, makes her cry. Especially not some southern kid who thinks he can get through life by using big words.
It’s about time I gave Sean the ass-whooping I’ve always wanted to.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
“I just don’t understand sushi,” I laugh, my eyes grazing over the hard-to-pronounce names such as Oshi-Zushi or Nigiri-Zushi. I don’t want to sound uncultured, but what the hell?
Sean smiles. “It grew on me when I traveled to Japan a few years ago.”
He went to Japan? The most interesting place I’ve been was France when I was twelve, but I got flu and ended up strapped to a bed with a red nose that would rival that of Rudolph’s. “Oh really?” I pause, trying to use this as a hand to guide us into the topic of moving and exploring new horizons. “Traveling is, um…good, isn’t it?” Oh, fantastic opening, Cat.
He glances up from his menu and raises an eyebrow at me. “Yes, I suppose it is.”
“I think traveling is very important in the maturing of a person’s being, don’t you think so?”
“Definitely. Hey look, we could get raw squid.”
For someone so smart, it’s taking him quite a while to catch on. “I think I need to travel more, wouldn’t you say so?” I push desperately, ready to slap the menu over Sean’s handsome head if he doesn’t pick up on one of my clues.
He looks up to see me gripping the table tightly, staring at him intently. “Are you alright?”
“Oh Jesus,” I mumble, leaning back in my chair and running a hand over my eyes in frustration. “Fine, thank you,” I smile weakly.
He puts the menu down carefully, frowning at me. “Are you sure? What was it that you wanted me to talk about?”
“Um…” Why can’t I just tell him? Just say as proudly as I can, ‘I’m leaving Tennessee to follow Justin around as he makes some weird album about love and self discovery’ or whatever pop stars sing about nowadays.
“Cat, is something wrong?” he asks, reaching across and patting my hand.
“I’m leaving,” I blurt out, causing him to frown.
“What?”
Staring at him for a moment, I slowly admit, “With Justin.”
A brief look of surprise crosses his face, before it fades into slight pain, as though I’ve just slapped him. “Really?” he whimpers in a wounded voice.
“Yeah,” I reply, my eyes darting around nervously. Looking at the faux Japanese decorations hanging all over the restaurant is far more interesting than staring into his hurt eyes. He looks like some little kid who has just been told that The Smurfs were actually a drug dealing Mafia group set out to corrupt children.
“Why?” he asks.
Sighing, I lean over and take a sip of wine, my throat suddenly feeling parched. “Because I love him,” I admit. “And I need to do this.”
“What? Just because he asked you to?” Sean spits angrily, his hurt looking being replaced by a deep frown. “Shit Cat, I didn’t know you were stupid.”
“I’m not stupid,” I whimper pathetically, staring down at the flower designs on the table cloth.
“Then why are you doing this? Are you going to stop working completely?”
I vehemently shake my head quickly. “No, of course not,” I reply exasperatedly. “I plan to look for work just as soon as I can.” I sound like some little chubby kid asked whether they’ve stolen anything from the candy store. Why is Sean making me feel so small?
“And what if that doesn’t work out? What if you just become another stupid stay-at-home girlfriend whilst Justin goes out and fucks random models?”
I lean back in my seat, staring out of the window as I bite my lip to stop myself from crying. Sean sure does know how to pick on someone’s sore spots. Of course that’s what I’m worried about, that’s my chief concern, but everyone has told me I’m just being paranoid and that Justin loves me, blah, blah. Sean is the only person to confirm my doubts. Thanks a lot, pal.
My eyes land on a shiny black Escalade in the parking lot. Justin has one exactly like it. He spent at least an hour talking about how it had a “banging stereo system” and then took me on this off-road adventure over some bumpy terrain he and Trace have been riding on since they were kids. It was petrifying, especially as Justin decided to do ‘wobblies’ every now and then and would veer in a different direction just to scare me.
But it was fun. I have no sense of adventure in my at all, but Justin always seems to drag me out to do things that under normal circumstances I would never do, but then I end up enjoying it. The same must apply for New York, right? And it’s nothing something he’s forcing me into, it’s something I’ve thought about and decided that yes, it is something I want to do. I wish Sean could just appreciate that.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I reply as calmly as I can.
Sean sighs, taking a drink of his beer. “Look, Cat, I’m sorry. I know you must hate me for telling you this, and I know I seem like the bad guy. It’s just…” he trails off before suddenly bringing his hands down on the table with a crash, causing me to flinch. “Fuck!” he whispers so other diners won’t hear us, putting his head in his hands.
“Sean, you’re supposed to be my friend!” I say defensively. “You can’t just jump down my throat because you don’t like Justin.”
“But you know what the consequences could be, Cat. You know what sort of life he leads, and I would hate to see you wasted on it.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re so much better than him!” He sighs, running a hand through his hair. “And I really don’t want you to get hurt, Cat,” he says gently, his green eyes staring into mine.
Before I can help myself, a lone tear slips from my eyes and smoothly rolls down my cheek. “He won’t hurt me, Sean.”
“How do you know that?”
I shrug. “I have no guarantees, but I know he won’t. We love each other.”
“But is that enough?” prods Sean.
A shadow falls over our table and we turn to look at the person standing by our table, expecting to see some bored teenaged waitress with a kimono waiting to take our order.
You can only imagine my surprise when I saw a fuming Justin and Trace standing over our table.
“Justin!” I screech in surprise. “What are you doing here?”
Justin ignores me and his contemptuous gaze settles on Sean. Trace reaches out and puts a hand on my shoulder.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” I mutter distractedly, looking over at the steady eye contact between Sean and Justin. “Justin, what are you doing here?”
“I think you and I need to have a little talk,” he says through gritted teeth, not even giving me a second glance as Sean stares defiantly back at him.
“About what? The fact you’re ruining your girlfriend’s career?”
Wrong thing to say, Sean. “She’s with me now, get over it,” Justin retorts harshly. “Stop trying to make her feel like she’s making the wrong decisions, because she‘s not.”
Sean pauses, before closing his eyes momentarily and pinching the bridge of his nose. “Alright, I’m sorry. But how can you expect me to just sit and watch as she gives up everything for you?”
“She’s not giving up everything! She’s making a few adjustments that for all you know, could benefit her!” Justin comes back with, crossing his arms over his chest. “And anyway, she’s made her choice, so that’s that.”
Sean grunts and takes a swig of his beer. “So then why are you here?”
“To tell you to back the fuck off,” snaps Justin angrily. “You of all people have no right to upset my girlfriend.”
“I’m not upset,” I interrupt quickly. “I’m just fine.”
Justin turns to me, as if realizing for the first time that I’m even there. “Are you alright, sweetheart? What did he say to you?” he asks, crouching down and rubbing my arm comfortingly, looking at me with sincere blue eyes.
“I’m fine. I think you and Trace should leave,” I suggest quietly, noticing the glances of the people in the restaurant.
“But he made you cry!” he says, sending me an outraged look.
“I asked for his opinion, and he was fully entitled to express it,” I reply calmly, my heart fluttering nervously at the thought of a bust up between the two men.
Justin pauses for a moment, a look of annoyance flickering in his eyes. As much as I know he would love to pummel Sean, I don’t think that’s fair when I fully expected a negative response from him.
“But he made you cry,” Justin repeats adamantly. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at Sean. “I’m not leaving until you at least apologize.”
“What is this, kindergarten?” scoffs Sean, imitating Justin’s actions and crossing his arms defiantly. “She knows I think she’s doing the wrong thing, I’ve not done anything except told her the honest truth.”
“You upset her.”
He shrugs. “And you don’t think what she’s doing is wrong?” He snorts. “No, of course you don’t, because you clearly only think about yourself.”
“Don’t talk to him like that!” I protest, frowning at Sean. I’ve never seen this side of him, and I don’t like it. He can be a little arrogant and won’t hesitate to persevere his point, but he’s never been this bad.
I know he might not agree with what I’m doing, but whatever I’ve done in the past Sean has always supported me. Glancing between them, I can see from the envious glare radiating from Sean his jealousy of Justin, and I know he’s made twice as angry for the simple fact that it’s Justin I’m sacrificing things for and not him.
“Sean, I’d better go,” I say quietly, bending down to pick up my purse. “I’ll call you, okay?” I will call him, one day, but I think the sooner I’m out of his sight the better.
“Cat,” he tugs at my elbow. “I’m sorry. I just…”
“No, don’t worry about it. I think we just need some time apart,” I reply, throwing down a few bills to pay for my drink. “Bye, Sean,” I say, bending down to drop a quick kiss on his cheek.
“Cat, I really am sorry,” he persists, standing up.
“I know,” I smile at him, before taking Justin’s hand and pulling him away from his protective stance. “Come on, you two, let’s go.”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taking another glance at her out of the corner of my eye, I tap my fingers worriedly on the steering wheel.
“So when are you going to pick up your stuff from the office?” I ask, breaking the silence.
Cat shrugs. “I have no idea.”
“Trace could pick it up for you,” I offer.
“That might be a better plan,” she mumbles, keeping her gaze transfixed on the scenery whizzing past her window.
“Will your boss mind you leaving early?”
She shrugs in response, resting her head against the cool glass of the window. “He seemed more than happy to let me go. And I can probably finish up anything left to work on at home.”
By the tone of her voice, you would think she’d just witnessed the death of her childhood pet. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Are you sure?” I continue, taking another glance at her. “You’re very quiet.”
“I have nothing to say,” she says simply, folding her hands in her lap.
“Okay, Cat,” I reply, suddenly pulling the car off the road and stopping just to the right of the road. “What’s wrong?”
“Justin, what the hell are you doing?” she panics, glancing behind us to see whether there are any cars about to crash into the back of us. “It’s ever so slightly illegal to just stop driving on a road.”
“I don’t care,” I brush off firmly, turning to face her. “I’m not moving this thing one inch until you stop shutting me out.”
“I’m not shutting you out!” she insists, anxiously checking the rearview mirror. “Can’t we talk when we get home?”
“No,” I reply simply, pulling the keys out of the ignition.
“Justin!”
“It’s your choice,” I shrug. “Either you drop the Ice Queen act, or we get taken from behind from another car.”
She frowns at my crudeness and folds her arms. “I’m fine, honestly.”
I roll my eyes and lean back in my seat. “Baby, is this that thing where you say you’re not pissed, but then you don’t talk to me for three days? Because I’m really not in the mood for that.”
“That just wasn’t my ideal goodbye to Sean, that’s all.”
“It wasn’t for me either. I missed my last chance to just hit the mother fucker,” I smirk.
“Justin, this isn’t funny!” she snaps. “You and Trace made things extremely awkward for me.”
“Cat, the guy was making you cry! You expect me to have just sat there and watched?”
She shrugs grumpily but doesn’t reply, a sure sign she knows I have a point.
“I was just trying to defend you and myself. He would have just carried on badmouthing me if I hadn’t turned up.”
She rolls her eyes. “So? I know for a fact you value Sean’s opinion about as much as you do Paris Hilton’s.” She shakes her head. “You two are so alike.”
“What?”
She lets out a frustrated groan and brandishes a hand to the road in front of us. “Let’s just drive.”
I cautiously place a hand on her lap, praying it doesn’t get smacked away. “Has it changed your mind about anything?”
She shakes her head. “No. That was exactly what I was expecting. He just a little harsher than I thought he’d be and…touched a few buttons, that’s all.”
“Such as?”
She shrugs and looks down at her hands. “You know…just how it’ll affect my career and us…” she trails off and bites her lips shyly.
Leaning over, I quickly press my lips against hers. “You don’t have a thing to worry about, sweetheart.”
She sighs. “I know, I know. I just can’t help but think about everything that could go wrong, and--”
“And what if things go right?” I interrupt. “You said you loved New York, you said your job was getting boring, and you said you loved me. What’s the problem?”
She finally relents and smiles. “There isn’t one.”
“Exactly,” I reply triumphantly, turning back to the wheel. “So, how are fabulous me and Sean the Shithead alike?”
“You are!” she exclaims, laughing. “You both try to be so macho around each other, and more often that not fail miserably.”
“Excuse me, but I am much more macho than that little pussy,” I retort, putting the keys in the ignition. “I bet if I had threatened to punch Sean, he would have squealed like the little bitch that he is.”
She laughs. “Justin, I hate to say it, but he’s more muscular than you are. He‘s probably stronger.”
“So? I could have the little bitch screaming for mercy,” I smile, reaching over and entwining out fingers together.
“Is that your new nickname for him? The Little Bitch?”
“Good idea. Yes,” I nod.
She laughs and leans over to quickly kiss my cheek. “And you’re my little bitch.”
“Hey, I’m your bodyguard,” I tease. “I was valiantly defending you in the face of…um…danger.”
She rolls her eyes jokingly. “Fine, I’ll call you my Little Bodyguard.”
“My big bodyguard,” I correct.
“Why big?” she asks.
Giving her hand a squeeze, I turn to look at her and wiggle my eyebrows suggestively. “As if you don’t know, my dear.”
She laughs and slaps my leg. “Dear God, let’s pray city life cools that enchanting ego of yours.”
“So you’re definitely still coming?”
She turns to me with a shocked expression in her eyes. “I never doubted it for a second.”
Smiling, I pat her leg affectionately. “That’s my girl.”
Story Tags: Be the first to add a tag to this story
