Blueprint for Romance

Exception not the Rule

Vanessa

“Ah, come on, Nessa,” Mandy groaned as she stared at me. I shrugged as I glanced over at Mark, who was far more interested in whatever TV show he was watching. I liked Mark, he was a cool, relaxed type of person. However, I didn’t like talking about my personal stuff in front of him. Then again, I had specifically come over to their house to talk to Mandy.

“What?” I asked as innocently as I could. Although this topic of conversation was boring and overdone, I still needed some advice.

“He told you to ask him again in a month or two. Who does that?” Mandy questioned.

“I mean, look at Alastair and Jacob,” I pointed out. Those two had been in it from the beginning. Much the same as Damon and me. And those two had gotten together and were now engaged.

“Nessa, I love you, ok? I really do. I think you are an amazing person, and you deserve to find a man who isn’t going to simply use you to warm his bed,” Mark nodded even though he hadn’t taken his eyes off the screen. So, he was listening. I contemplated moving this conversation elsewhere or leaving, but maybe he could give me some insight. As a man.

“What do you think?” I asked Mark. He immediately paused the show he was watching and turned in his seat to look directly at me.

“Honestly, if I were you, I’d let him go. Damon has some serious issues…rightfully so. If he doesn’t want to make a commitment, you have to ask yourself why,”

“Why?” I asked because I had a feeling he probably had a good reason.

“Well, he is either secretly in love with Molly or is using you to make her jealous. Or he doesn’t see you as partner material. Just because you two are compatible in bed doesn’t mean he sees you as a potential wife and mother to his children,” he explained. I considered that for a moment, but as his words registered, my heart sank. “Molly is great, and they have been friends for so long that I doubt that is the case, but you never know,”

“No, he definitely isn’t into her like that,” I whispered. “Molly is completely infatuated with Jaden and…and I’ve heard Damon tell her to go for it. He wants her to be happy, just not with him,” I said. Mandy nodded in agreement, but Mark didn’t look as convinced. However, I had to seriously consider the second option. Maybe Mark was right, maybe that was the problem.

“Am I not wife material? Mother material?” I asked both of them curiously. Mark looked away and I frowned. However, Mandy was quick to answer me.

“You are…unsettled. That’s the only way I can think to describe it,” she said.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you moved away from home to put distance between yourself and your toxic family…and that’s fine. You have that right. But you stumbled into Chasea, and you haven’t really made it your home,” she explained her reasoning and I stared at her in silent surprise. The fact of the matter was, she wasn’t even wrong. “I wish you were staying here for me, but I know that isn’t the case. You’ve always had one foot in and one foot out. Damon…he is the reason you decided to stay in Chasea,”

“Right,” I agreed, because again, she wasn’t wrong. “But I do like it here, and I do love you,” I informed her. Mandy smiled as she reached out and squeezed my knee affectionately.

“I know you do, but Damon is the reason you’ve stayed. I mean, you still live in the upstairs apartment…and there is nothing wrong with that, but do you really want to work at the café for the rest of your life?” she asked, and I slowly shook my head. “Do you even know what you’d like to do?”

“I’ve never really thought about it,” I remarked thoughtfully. Mark shook his head, and I knew he was going to share more of his thoughts. I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear it after the horrible news he had given me just a moment ago. If he was right and that was why Damon didn’t want to commit, then I had no idea what to do.

“Damon is looking for stability. You know him, Vanessa. You know his background, and you know what he wants for his future. And right now, you are the exact opposite of everything he is looking for,” Mark pointed out, and I groaned as I fell back against the couch. This was worse than I thought. “You aren’t a bad person, Vanessa, and you’d make a great wife and a wonderful mother. I’ve seen you with the twins…Damon probably sees it too…but you need to get your life together in order to show him that you are exactly what he is looking for,”

“Ok…so, I need to get my life in order, and then he will commit?” I asked. Mandy immediately nodded while Mark got up.

“Get yourself a real place, and maybe look at getting a real job,”

“Hey! Working at the café is a real job,” I argued.

“Working at the café…anyone working at the café uses that as a steppingstone for whatever else they want to do. You live off your inheritance…and I’m not saying I know all about that,” he hurriedly said as he glanced at Mandy, who immediately blushed. Of course, she had told him.

“Keep it secret,” I snapped.

“Of course,” he said with a nod.

“Ok…ok…I need to think about this and then…and then…yeah,” I got up and Mandy stood up as well. “Thank you, both of you,” Mandy hugged me, and I waved at Mark before I left their home. I really had to think about what I wanted to do with my life, and I knew that wasn’t going to be easy. One step at a time. I needed a house first.