Before she could give herself over to her nerves, she dialed the number. It rang four times, and she thought the person on the other end had decided not to answer.
She nearly hung up, but she knew she was being foolish. You’ve spent your entire life being a fucking coward. You know you don’t have to be that way now.
“Hello?,” was the hesitant answer.
“Hi!,” she exclaimed, heart slamming against her rib cage. “I may as well tell you now, but I’m nervous as hell and don’t know what to say.” The stammering speech and nervous laughter testified to this.
“I don’t want to talk to you,” came the curt reply.
Silence followed.
“This isn’t good enough. It will never do, and there’s no time to explain just now.”
“I’m sorry to have wasted your time,” she muttered in a hoarse whisper.
“Meet me after work. The bench. You know the one, by the lake in the park.”
“…okay.”
“We’ll walk to my place from there, because you’ll never understand through mere words.”
Click.
“We’ll walk to my place from there, because you’ll never understand through mere words.” I like that, but I think he was kind of a dick in getting there.
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Or maybe she misinterpreted his tone.
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Ah, I see how that could happen. I wonder if she will meet him.
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That depends. On whether or not she likes tulips. And whether or not he likes skittish women. Of course, I’m just throwing ideas out there…
How do you think the story ends?
And I like how you assumed it was a “he.” 😉
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Well, given your last story, I kind of just imagined it as a continuation of sorts. I think she likes tulips, but I don’t believe they are her favorite. I didn’t see tulips mentioned there, so I wonder why on Earth that would be pertinent. I think it ends with a lot of physical expression, since mere words won’t do.
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Hmm, interesting perspective. Maybe it is a continuation. Maybe it’s a graduation. Maybe she is calling the boy that magnetized her. And maybe that’s exactly where it’s headed next.
I like the way you think.
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I know.
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Maybe he wants to do the nasty instead of talking.
😀
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HAHAHAHA Sandra! Maybe so… 😉
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Interesting. It leaves you wondering if she went. I wouldn’t have.
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So you read it as intimidating! Or darkly mysterious. A new perspective! I like seeing how everyone interprets things differently from one another.
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Not as intimidating. To me it was a rejection.
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Hmm, fair point.
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We don’t know what she was calling to say but if someone tells me I don’t want to hear it, fine, bye seeya.
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I like it. #MorePlease
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Yay! Thank you!
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Powerful! I don’t really have a side but I definitely think she fucked up somewhere along the line. Nice story!
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Ooohhhh yet another perspective. I like it. I like it.
And thank you!
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Eeesh, the tension! Well-executed.
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Sweet! THANK YOU!
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Whoa…this is very intreging! There is a million different ways this could end, hell, a million different ways we could have gotten to this point…nicely done, Steph.
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Thank you so much for this kickass feedback – I’m always nervous when I try my hand at anything even remotely fictitious. Thank you thank you!
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Hey no problem!! You did a great job getting me interested! Nothing to be nervous about, these words belong to you, ultimately you are the only one that needs to be happy with them!! ❤
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You’ve lifted my spirits. Thank you, Eric. I can certainly see why so many people are so fond of you. 🙂
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🙂 thank you, Steph. Have a great day!
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You, too!
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I didn’t read it as a guy- very clever to leave it ambiguous. I picture it as she was adopted and finally found her biological mother. Maybe I’ve been watching too many made for tv movies:)
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Oooooo I’m loving this. Great perspective!
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um yeah that’s long enough…tell us what happens next…
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Ahahahaha!
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😛
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I felt her nerves as I was reading this…my palms started sweating!
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You should see a doctor about that sweating.
Hehe.
THANK YOU!
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He’d just tell me to bugger off and stop wasting his time, since it’s approaching 32°F these days (i.e. who wouldn’t sweat in this heat?).
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HAHAHAHA! Just goes to show how we all acclimate to our own climates!
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I’m much better at acclimatizing to the cold than the heat. When I was living in Indonesia, I never stopped sweating buckets, earning myself the coveted nickname Puddles (kidding about the last part…I’ve always dreamed of being called that).
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Okay Puddles, your wish is granted! 😉
The heat is unbearable for me at certain times of year down here. But nothing like I know Indonesia must be. I’m planning a big move soon, that is if I can finagle everything just right!
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Ooohhhh….how exciting! Moving up to the Great White North for some white stuff?
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Not quite, but I’ll be a lot closer to you than I am now! I’m headed to the Pacific Northwest, woman! I have to sell my house (working on getting it cleaned out to list it) and secure a job, and I’m done with the South. Done. This is a dream long in the making!
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Woohoo!!!!
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C’est trippant!!!! Es-tu prête pour l’aventure? 😀
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Uhuh Uhuh! Just gotta sell the house and get a job and all that fun stuff! 😂
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Piece of cake! 😀
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Hahaha! Oh lord I hope it’s easier than it all feels. But I’m gonna do it. I’ve been dreaming about it for years. It’s time to choose my own destiny – I don’t know if you ever played those games or read books like that, where you get to choose your own ending. But that’s what I’m finally doing. Getting out of the passenger seat and into the driver’s. 🙂
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I’m here for moral support…as you know, I’ve relocated several times in my life (to different countries, mind you, but I’m sure moving across the country brings many of the same challenges), so I could potentially give you some advice.
Are you moving with your cats?
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I will need all the advice I can get, I assure you!
This is brand new for me and life changing.
And there’s no way I’ll move without the boys. I’ll have to find somewhere that will let me keep them.
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I’m so proud of you for taking such a courageous step to change your life! No, I’m not being facetious. 🙂 Please let me know what you need advice on. I’ll do anything I can to help!
SO glad to hear your boys are going with you. I’ve always found it hard to understand why some people choose to leave their pets behind. That’s just like leaving one’s own kids behind!
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Exactly! Those fellas are my family. And one of them has been with me for about 12 years now. He’s…14, I think? Still feisty. The other one, I’ve had for about 6 years, and he was a kitten when he wandered up to me and climbed my pants, purring and meowing. No way can I leave them.
And thank you!
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Wow, 12 years is a long time! I’ve had one of mine for almost 8 years (she approached me as a few-week-old kitten), and the other one for 5 and a half years (she’s now close to 15). Both of them are familiar with air travel! 🙂
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That’s the part I’m worried about – those poor things traveling!
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Are you planning to fly with them?
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Well, I dunno. I don’t know anything! I know I’ll need to hire a mover. I don’t have much but bedroom furniture, really. But I don’t know how to drive a u-haul myself! I wonder if the movers could haul my car, too? And I could fly with the cats? AHHHH so much to think about. But these are important questions.
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I will write you an e-mail to tell you about my own experience with moving.
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Merci beaucoup!
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Sorry for not replying to your e-mail from AGES ago.
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Non non non! I will not allow you to be sorry! I am the world’s worst about emails. Please don’t be sorry. 🙂 big hugs
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OK, I will stuff my sorries in my nutsack. Wait a minute…I got no nutsack!
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Oooooooooo you said nutsack. I’m telling!
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Tattletale!
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😀
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I’ll be away for a while now – gotta head to the house. And I’ve already started packing it up. So I’ll be busy with that for most of the night!
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Thanks for letting me know. À bientôt!
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How did the packing go last night?
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Kinda rough last night. I should email you about all this at some point. Tonight’s gonna be bad, too. But the end is beginning to come in sight. Pretty soon, it will be down to just scrub scrub scrubbing things I’ve long neglected. Then stick a sign in the yard!
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Packing and moving is definitely not fun – I feel your pain. Is anyone helping you? Bon courage, mon amie!
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Well. Yeah. I mean, sorta. It’s. Ahh. The house is still filled with my ex’s stuff, so he’s been over helping me sift through things. It’s a pretty emotionally draining experience.
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Ouch…
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Yeah…
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So it’s both physically and emotionally exhausting for you…
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Yes, exactly. I barely slept last night, so that’s probably why I’m having trouble focusing today. Tonight’s gonna be worse because we’ve saved the biggest and most important chest of mementos for last.
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Aaarrrrggghhh. It would help to have someone else there to prevent you two from getting too emotional.
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There aren’t any fights or anything, but he’s never gotten over the split. So it’s….it’s hell on the emotions.
I wish I had anyone else! But perhaps it wouldn’t be fair to him to do that even if I did.
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I somehow knew that fighting would not be an issue. It’s actually a lot more difficult in this case…I’ve been there before.
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It really is. Tonight is gonna be the worst yet. The rest won’t be easy, but tonight. Gah. I don’t even wanna leave work. 😦
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Just keep yourself logged into WordPress and excuse yourself every two minutes to write to me.
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Hahaha! Two minutes! Okay okay…I gotta head out.
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You thought I was kidding?
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Hanging in there…
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Oh, you are here! 🙂
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I’m waiting for you to write me a message every 2 minutes.
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Mon dieu!
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Non, non, non, c’est PUDDLES, pas Dieu!
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Hahaha!
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Tu oses rire de moi??
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Oui oui! Le hmph!
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L’insolence!
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Ça va, Stéphanie?
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I hope this all makes sense, but I didn’t wanna answer in English…for obvious reasons…
La nuit dernière était encore le pire. Au lieu de l’affaire solennelle d’habitude, il a perdu son sang-froid d’une manière importante. Pousser un cri, jeter des choses, me blâmer pour tout. C’était mauvais. Il était vraiment mauvais et effrayant. Il est venu ce matin pour présenter des excuses. De nouveau. Comme d’habitude. Mais je pense qu’il peut se calmer et m’aider à finir maintenant. Habituellement, ces explosions sont intermittentes et non une réalité quotidienne. Ce fut une très mauvaise nuit. Ah, il va bien se passer par la suite. Comment ça va? Est-ce que tu as passé une bonne nuit?
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Quelle nuit horrible! Heureusement, c’est fini. Moi, j’ai passé une nuit plutôt agréable. Il faisait extrêmement chaud hier (45°F)…j’ai transpiré comme une folle!
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Ahaha!
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How are you holding up today?
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Comme ci, comme ca. I am…okay. Drained and fatigued, didn’t sleep well. And not looking forward to the weekend. Yet, I am. Because the further I trudge through this, the closer I get to being done and moving on for good!
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Bon courage, mon amie! (As I’m sure you know, ‘bon courage’ doesn’t mean ‘good courage’. ;-)) Hope you get some much-needed rest for your body, mind and spirit this weekend. I’ve been busy today meeting deadlines (otherwise I would’ve responded earlier). Un gros câlin pour toi!
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Whew – no worries! I’ve been busting my ass all weekend. Getting closer and closer to having this house ready to put on the market. It will probably be at least two more weeks, though. But then this puppy is going on the market, and I will be onward and upward!
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Yes, you’re heading onward and upward! 🙂
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oui oui!
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And yes, I HAVE read those Choose Your Own Adventure books before. I used to love them!
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YES!
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You’ll never believe this…it’s SO freakin’ warm here that water is fallin’ from the sky!
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Hahahahaha!
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You laughin’ at me, woman? It ain’t funny. :-X
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Eeeehehehehehehehehe
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Omg. I got a totally different handle on this than everyone else. I imagined her reaching out to her Mom in a half way house or something with the intention of re-establishing some sort of relationship. The girl hoping it would be different this time. 😦
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Oh my god, dude. That is totally awesome! And sad. And awesome. Thank you for this perspective. I did leave it open-ended, so who knows!
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Ok. So I’m thinking no way is she this nervous if it doesn’t involve a love interest. The curt response can either be because the call really did come at a bad time?(cheating partner,super hero mid-heroism) but a planned meetup means partner still wants contact…and understanding? I’m thinking he is going to confess to being a superhero. No way is it going to be a bad news kinda talk. Why would they walk to his place after a bad news kind of talk? Superhero confession…or proposal. I would take either…or both.:-)
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Oh my gosh, superhero proposal! Best hypothesis yet! 😀
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🙂
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This is really good! I want to know what happens next! =) I’m curious what happened between them to cause the curt response, but wasn’t bad enough to deny meeting to talk.
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Nice – thank you so much!!
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I am fascinated by all the endless possibilities that your post suggest and your imaginative followers. I felt it might have been a ex-lover who was fed up with explaining it was over. Beautifully written.
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Ooooo another perspective. I’m finding it all so fascinating, too!
Thank you so much, Kerry. 🙂
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Thank you for entertaining me!
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“You’ll never understand through mere words”, I like that line. It opens a lot of directions, nice work, solid dialogue.
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this is a scary story. You’re a talented author and a very clever person. 🙂
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Awesome! That’s awesome – thank you so much!!
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🐱
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