The Unexpected Best Friends

Chapter 4 – Someone

Jamie spent the weekend at the club. Dave and some of his employees finished the furnishings as best as they could. He gave her a budget for the paint and whatever materials she needed. He personally cooked her meals as she spent hours painting the walls and decorating them with some sceneries. Dave wants them to look vibrant. It was so tiring. Dave reminded her that she doesn’t need to finish everything but she’s stubborn. She wanted the rooms to be usable as soon as possible, too. Surely, it would take a week before the odor is neutralized.

She visited on Wednesday to check on them. Dave had someone buy sheets and curtains to go with the art she put on the walls. Technically, she only painted one block of wall in each room. The others were painted with plain colors.

“They could act as booth as well. You know, if a group would like some privacy.”

“But they’re small rooms.” Dave countered.

“So? Cozy and intimate. When you got extra budget, put some carpet on the floor and they would have more space to sit on.”

“Next, you’ll ask me to put a smart television so they could watch anything to their liking.”

Jamie shrugged. That’s good, too.

They continued to see each other every Friday and chat. Sometimes, Jamie would stay overnight and occupy one of the rooms upstairs. She finds it odd and amusing how they can talk for hours.

Some teased them when they’ve been seen many times together, but no. Jamie and Dave stared into each other’s eyes and silently shook their heads. They don’t feel that kind of connection. Her heart doesn’t flutter and she’s not exactly excited to see him on weekends. It’s just two friends chilling out and having conversations.

Slowly, Jamie started painting again. She found a rhythm after adjusting to her job. She’s making framed paintings as decorations. She can only work on her spare hours, which isn’t much. She gets an hour or two every day, but it takes time to get herself in the mood. She would spend at least half an hour getting into it. After finishing one, she would spend more hours trying to think of a new one. What theme is she going to make? What would she call it? She likes naming her pieces.

She was very reluctant to show them to others, but Dave insisted on seeing them. He took what he liked. He posts them on his social media and she gets free advertising from that. He would come every now and then to take them and sell them to his friends. She finds it amusing. A club owner selling her framed paintings. She’s grateful, though. She’s shy about doing it herself. Her confidence isn’t much. She would only charge just a little over her costs but Dave would double or triple it when offering to others. Yeah, she has a lot to learn about business and making a business out of her art. She’s thankful.

She decided to put the sale proceeds into a separate account. She likes seeing it go up week after week. She’s getting better, too. When she started, she finished a piece in two weeks. At this time, she can make two or three pieces in a week. She’s starting to enjoy her life, even if it’s simple.

Months have passed and life is looking up for both of them. They still enjoy each other’s company on weekends.

Dave likes reading and he usually slips into the local library to get new books to read. He frequents the place every week and no one actually noticed him. Well, no one ever mentions seeing him in that place. Or more like the people in his circle won’t be found there.

It’s a beautiful thing for him. He was reading in a corner when he decided to pause and look around. Just taking a small break. He’d been seeing this new girl since a month ago. She looks very focused on her book. Glancing at the title, the corner of his lips lifted up. Of course, it would be fiction. She seems very absorbed in the story. At one point, she sniffed while preventing herself from crying. It looked a little pitiful as she dries her eyes with her hands.

She looked very pretty with little make up. It’s the first time he’d seen her properly, making him curious. She was trying to be very quiet as she cries reading the story. He almost laughed. It’s a little funny. This is why you don’t read in public places. They might think you’re crazy.

He got up and offered the young lady his handkerchief. It doesn’t look like she has one.

Ella bit her lip as someone gets into her line of sight. She’s embarrassed being seen like this. Checking who it is, she didn’t think there’s someone in town that she hasn’t seen yet. Who is he?

“Looks like you need this.” He said and her gaze was drawn into his hand, offering her a hanky.

She can’t refute. She doesn’t have one. But…

“Oh, no. It’s okay.” She dried her face with her hand again. She’s not exactly done crying as she’s on a very emotional chapter of the book.

“No, really. Take it.” He insisted and set the white cotton in front of her. He smiled at her before going back to his seat.

Oh, does he read here, too? Her gaze followed him. She swallowed the lump in her throat, this one from silently crying over the story.

Gingerly, she reached for the hanky and gently wiped her eyes and face. She was reluctant to blow her nose on it. She set it aside but soon decided to hold it as more tears fell from her eyes. It’s a very sad story and she could relate to the main character.

She’s only twenty-one and she thought she knew everything already. Well, yes. She was very ignorant about life. The things she thought were right were apparently wrong. She can see that now. She realized how arrogant and immature she has been.

In the last two or three years, she’d been in more relationships than anyone else she knew. She thought intimacy is equivalent to love. I mean, why make it hard for the guy? If you like him, you like him. She’s not one to play games, and yet… she’d been played too many times. She wanted to prove them wrong, but she’s the one proven wrong.

How easy it was for them to get her, is how easy it was for them to drop her. Most of her relationships only lasted months. A couple or so. She’s not one to dwell on it too much, but now it got her thinking. Why does it always happen that way? Is it karma? It is, isn’t it? Yeah, she has no qualms getting into a relationship with someone who already has a girlfriend. I mean, if the two of them hits it off and they desire each other… why not? Her thought process was so wrong on many levels. But she was adamant she’s right. It’s kind of a hard pill to swallow, admitting she was so wrong.

She spent a month distancing herself from all the people she knew. After that, she spent the last month coming here and finding solace with books and stories. It’s an escape. If only she can have a happily-ever-after with someone who loves her… but that also begs the question: would you rather be with someone who loves you or someone you love? Can’t I have both? I would like to be with someone who loves me and I love as well. It should be mutual, right? How can you be with someone you don’t love? How can you be happy with someone who doesn’t love you?

Another thing she realized: lust is not love. She thought the desire she was feeling was love. For her part, she tried to do her best. To keep the man she likes by giving in to what he wants. And in the end, when they want her gone, she leaves. It was getting repetitive, though. Why do they all…? Why isn’t anyone keeping her? All she wants is to be loved! To be treasured. To be cared for.

The story she’s reading is starting to get to her. It’s getting personal.

She sighed as she acknowledged it. She’d done things wrongly in the past. She was wrong.