“Bossman, why you here, man” Marcus asked as he spotted me walking into the shop. “Why not? If I don’t come, you guys might get into trouble and burn this place down” I said in a teasing way. “Ha Ha, not even, you really helped all of us out, so we owe you. There is no way we would intentionally let you down” Marcus said leaning against the car he was working on. “I know. How’s it going here” I asked. “Oh, you know, can’t complain. Business is good. Customers keep coming in and we keep doing what we gotta do” Marcus said. These guys know their stuff when it comes to fixing cars. “That’s good. Well, I’ll be in the office” I said and went upstairs. I opened my own service station a few years ago. In addition to gas, I also have mechanics in house to fix cars. The guys I hire are those who are down on their luck and need a helping hand. I didn’t intentionally make my business this way it just became like this. They are a good bunch of guys, rough guys, but still good guys. As I just sat down my phone starts ringing. I look at the caller ID. It’s Lara. My excitement was ridiculous. And my face couldn’t not smile. I answered the phone with “Lara you're still awake.” “Hi, yes, I was just thinking if I should text you or call. I decided to call, but now that I think about it you said you were just about to start work. I’m sorry. I didn’t really think before I called” she said sounding apologetic. “Lara, it’s ok. I’m just looking over some paperwork for the company. Basically, busying myself” I said. “Oh, you work in the office and do administrative stuff” she asked me. “Well, yes. I own the business.” I said a little sheepishly. “Oh, that’s fine. But then you probably really don’t have much time to talk then” she said. “I’ll make time for you” I rebutted. “Um, don’t worry about it. I’ll see you Thursday. Have a good day” she said a little rushed then disconnected to phone call. “Lara I….” I couldn’t even finish my sentence before the call was disconnected. So, I sent her a TEXT Orion: "You were not bothering me. Please call me when you wake up. Sweet dreams." I sighed long and loud. Bing TEXT Lara: "I will. Thank you!" “What’s wrong with your face,” Colin asked with a smirk as he was standing in the doorway. “What’s wrong with your eyes” I replied a little irritated. “Ohhhh, bossman, you in a bad mood now” Colin asked. “No, not really. What’s up” I asked. “I was just going to ask if I can bring a date on Thursday” Colin asked. “Sure” I replied. “Should we bring anything” he asked. “Nope. Just come” I said. “Alright” he stated as he walked away.
The day was not very eventful. Which is good because that means everything was running smoothly. At least for now. Calling it a day I start packing up. As I was walking down the stairs, I heard that the doors were being closed by Marcus. “How’d today go” I asked him and continued to walk out of the shop for him to lock and set alarm. “Ok. We had to order a part, but it won’t be in until tomorrow, other than that, business as usual” he supplied. “Alright. Have a good night. See you tomorrow” I said and walked to my car. Just when I was about to get into my car, my phone binged with an incoming text. After getting in and starting the engine, I grabbed my phone to see the text notification and saw an unexpected phone number. I didn't want to deal with this drama, so I called Crown instead. "What's up" Crown said in greeting. The background was a bit noisy, but I couldn't make out where he was. "What you doing? Let's do dinner" I asked. "Sure, I'll pick something up and head over to your place" Crown responded. "Sounds good" then the call was disconnected. I tossed my phone to the passenger’s seat, then drove out of the parking lot heading for home. While I was driving my thoughts returned back to that unexpected message. It's been so long, why now? I started to have a bad feeling, but I'm not sure why. The past is making its way back and I really don't want to face it. If this is the path I am supposed to be on, then I guess I better face it. The past came rushing back to me to the day that changed me to who I am today. I'm not ashamed of what I did, but there could have been a better way to handle things. I shook my head to let go of all memories. When I got home, I went straight to take a shower. I didn't need wait for Crown; he can just let himself in. The warm water of the shower calmed my nerves. The past needs to stay in the past. After that thought, I washed myself, got out, then got dressed. I heard someone rummaging in the kitchen. Crown must be here I thought. I walked down the hall and went into the kitchen. "Hey man, I bought Boston Market, choose one" he said while he was opening both food containers that he placed on the kitchen table. One container was meatloaf with various sides and cornbread, and the other was filled with chicken with various sides and cornbread. Instead of taking one already made container, I traded some meatloaf and chicken so we both had meatloaf and chicken. I then walked to the refrigerator and grabbed both of us a bottle of water, then we sat at the kitchen table. While we were eating, the most we talked was about work. Nothing special. The food was really good and hit the spot. After we finished eating, we cleaned up and sat on the couch. "So, what's up" Crown asked as he stretched out. "Someone from the past hit me up today" I replied. "Who" Crown asked curiously. I pressed my lips together into a thin line cause I wasn't sure how to say this. Instead of saying anything I took out my phone, pulled up the message, and showed Crown. Crown took the phone out of my hands and looked at the number first, then read the message. "Holy fuck man, what is this" he asked. "Man, I don't know. The phone number is obviously familiar, but the message is cryptic" I said. "Did you respond" he asked. I shook my head side to side. "I didn't know what to say and it pisses me off to get this message" I said with anger in my voice. "What you going to do" he asked. I shrugged my shoulders up. There was no ideas that came into my head. It would be easy to just ignore the message, but the sender would continue to pester me. "Do you need help" Crown asked. "Not now. Maybe it's just nothing" I said not believing that for a second. I grabbed my phone and looked at the message again trying to think of how to approach this. Just then another message comes through from the same number saying 2 words. I stared at the words having mixed feelings about the sender. "Is this a good thing or a bad thing" Crown asked after a while. "Man, I don't know" I said. And I really didn't know what I was going to do. I looked at my phone again wondering what would come next. These 2 words could mean anything.
Lara Upon waking I took a shower and got ready for work, I decided to text Orion. TEXT: Lara: Good Evening! After sending the text I was wondering what I wanted to eat. The thing is, I never know what I want to eat. Basically, it’s never fun or fulfilling to cook for myself. It feels lonely. So, I just settled on drinking some orange juice, that should be good enough for now. While I was drinking my phone binged with a text message. I looked at it. It read Orion. I swiped the message open. TEXT: Orion: Good Evening. How did you sleep. I replied TEXT: Lara: It was pretty restful. How was your day? He replied TEXT:Orion: No problems at work, just a lot of paper work. TEXT Lara: Sounds boring. Hehe. What are you doing now. TEXT:Orion: haha, it is boring, but worth it. I’m hanging out with a friend. TEXT:Lara: Nice. So, I was wondering, will it be ok if I brought someone to you party?Ok, so after I asked that question, I wanted to take it back. It’s not like I wa
Lara “Girl what’s your address. I’ll come over and get ready at your place” Shantel said over my speaker phone. “Geez, it’s just a backyard party, there’s no need to go over the top” I said. “Hey, I never go out, so I’d like to look my best” Shantel replied. “Seriously” I asked exasperated. “Yes, it’s been a while and I’m single so I’d like to look at least decent. Come on, I live in scrubs, so why not dress up” she replied in a whinny way. I chuckled and said, “alright, alright. I’ll drop a location pin for you. Come over. We’ll get ready together.” “Great” she replied, then we hung. 30 minutes later, I was still just lounging around listening to an audiobook and playing on my phone. Basically, doing a whole bunch of nothing. That’s when I heard a knock on my door. I got up, walked over to the door and opened it. As the door was being open I her Shantel’s voice saying, “I’m here” in a singy songy way. I smiled and said, “come on in,” then I stepped back. As I was
Lara I didn’t expect to see Dr. Chase Cameron here tonight. I was already running late to get here because of some unexpected guess. It’s 10:15pm, I literally just walking into through the door when I saw Dr Cameron. He saw me and came straight up to me to talk. I didn’t want to be rude since he and I do work at the same hospital, so I chose to be polite. Speaking with him was fun and easy. At the moment he didn’t seem to show the arrogance that comes along with being a Medical Doctor. Well, that’s just my opinion of course because obviously, not all doctors are arrogant. My eyes glanced at the wall clock, and it seemed that I was talking to him for a good 30 minutes cause now it’s 10:45pm. I didn’t want to be rude to Dr. Cameron, but I also felt like I was being rude to Orion because I haven’t said hello yet. I started feeling a little uneasy, when I glanced slightly over Dr. Cameron’s shoulder, I saw Orion looking straight at me. He was out in the yard, and I was in t
Orion Lara slammed into my chest. The plate with the cornbread she was holding smashed between us and crumbled to the ground. “Lara are you ok” I asked her. Looking her over from the top of her head to the tip of her feet. She looked a little startled. I looked behind her. “Johanna, why did you do that” I spoke in a cold tone, my eyes piercing through her with anger. “What are you doing? Do you remember you asked me to be here” Johanna said sweetly, but she was fuming on the inside. Crown, not missing a beat started laughing. “I do believe you invited yourself,” Crown said as he walked over to my side. “Lara are you ok” he directed his question to Lara. “I’m fine. My cornbread died though,” she said pitifully. She looked totally dejected. I chuckled on the inside. What is it with that cornbread, I thought. I turned my attention back to Johanna. “You need to leave. Now,” I told her. “I’m not leaving. She should leave,” Johanna said as she pointed her finger towards La
Lara Dropping Shantel off and getting back to Orion’s place didn’t take long. When we walked through the front door, Crown had already cleaned up most of everything. I looked around inside and outside to see if I could help, but it seems like I wasn't needed. “Wow, Crown, good job. It seems like I didn’t need to come back to help clean,” I said while turning in a circle on the balls of my feet, stopping as I faced him. “There wasn’t much too clean. But since you’re back, we can just chill and catch up” he said. “It’s late don’t you need work in a few hours,” I asked. It’s around 2 in the morning, so shouldn’t that mean both of them should be sleeping now. “I took off just in case I got a hangover,” he said with a chuckle. “Come on, sit,” Orion said then sat on the couch. I looked at Orion, walked over and sat next to him, while Crown sat on the loveseat. “So, do you guys do this often,” I asked them. “Do what,” Orion replied. “Have people over like this,” I replied. Orion and Crown lo
Over the past few weeks, things at work were ok. Nothing good. Nothing bad. Working is fun but definitely not highlighted in my life. It’s just a skill that I can do and not a big deal. Orion and I have been getting to know each other too. We would go out on dates, talk on the phone, text each other, or even relax at his place or mine. In my twenties, I would have done the deed with him already. Now, turning 40 in 2 years, I abstain. Not that I don’t want to be with Orion, it’s just that the older I get sex isn’t that great. I’ve fallen asleep one time, another time I got bored because it’s the same thing over and over again, and then there was one I called out a name that was a character of a book I was reading at that time. I had to laugh at myself for that one, definitely no forgetting that experience. That’s quite funny now that I look back. Majority of the time, I had to get myself off after he got off. I swear some guys have no idea. With that thought I had to laugh
Waking up with Lara in my arms was an amazing feeling. She’s curled close to my right side with her right knee resting on my lower abdomen. Not wanting to disturb her, I take myself back to last night. Last night was very unexpected. I didn’t expect to meet her two sons and their friends. I’m not against meeting new people, nor do I get uncomfortable like Lara. Even though I haven’t been with Lara long, I was hoping she and I would progress in the direction of meeting family. I wonder what part Sean has in her life because it looked like there is something more to their friendship. Whatever it may be, I will be in Lara’s life for as long as she allows me to be in it. A thought is teetering on the edges of my mind, but I can’t seem to grasp it. Something about being lonely or alone. Oh, yes, the first night, Lara said she was lonely, or something along that idea. I can understand now that I saw why she may feel lonely. She only gets to see her sons when they have time, but
My body didn’t hurt much when I went into work that night, so I was relieved. The good part is that I worked in the ER for tonight. It wasn’t busy, which is suprising since it's a friday night, so I just sat there waiting for rounds to start. “Hey Lara” I heard someone say. I looked up from the game I was playing on my phone cause let’s face it, it’s boring now, and I need something to keep me busy, or I will fall asleep. I see Dr. Cameron walking up to me with a big smile on his face. “Hey Doc” I greeted him. “How you doing? It’s been a while” he asks. “It has been a while. Everything is ok. Nothing to complain about. What about you” I respond. “My shift is ending soon. Let’s go eat after” he says to me. “Sure. Who else is coming” I respond because it’s best if there is more than just us. “Just us” he says. My right eyebrow goes up on my forehead. Are you for real, I thought. “Huh” I say. “Just us. That’s ok, right” he asks. Is it ok, I thought. I don’t want to give him the wron