"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple."
― Dr. Seuss
Day Three
Do you know the feeling you get on a lazy cool Sunday morning where the birds are chirping sweetly and the your bed just feels like cotton candy. Today was such a day. When I first woke, I noticed something off. First, my table clock was telling me it's six thirty in the morning. I don't get up until like three hours from now.
Then the second thing I realize is that a hand is restricting my movement. I look down to my abdomen and I see a hand around me. Oh yeah, Me and Stephan shared a bed due to the fact that my house is a two bedroom apartment and my twelve year old brother had to take the other room.
My heart was doing a little flip flop while I look at the once intimidating Stephan sleeping. He just looks like a cute teddy bear when sleeping. A snoring cute teddy bear.
I sneak out of bed, to get a shot of my caffeine and start doing work. Now that I'm promoted, I'd have a lot of work to cover. I was excited but I also knew the stress I'm going to go through at the end of the day.
I sat down on the kitchen sit and just did my work there so I don't disturb Stephan.
Adrien comes out looking ready for school.
"Oh hey Addy, you're up?"
"Is that a surprise, I've got school"
"Uh, you want breakfast?"
Adrien grabs an apple from the counter.
"I got it"
He starts walking towards the door.
"Oh wait, I have to change"
"I'll take the bike. My bike is still in the garage right?"
"Yeah it is"
A loud bang follows.
I feel hurt and honestly tired. I don't know how to go through to my brother that I'm not an object for his anger. Life is just what it is. I need him to get over it.
I work until it's nine am, before I decide I should get a shower. I get into my room to find Stephan missing from the bed and my shower running. Is he bathing in my bathroom?
I knock rapidly on the door.
"What are you doing?" I shouted over the door
"Masturbating" he shouts back.
"Why didn't you just use the bathroom in the hallway"
"One question, how does your home have three bathrooms but only two bedrooms"
"I don't know, ask the idiot that made the house"
"That makes you the idiot that bought it". I hear the shower go off.
"Just get out of there real quick. I don't like you in there."
"Why, did you leave your underwear around here?"
I feel my face flush.
"Stephan Stones will you come out of this bathroom"
The door opened so quickly, I jump back a bit. Stephan wrapped himself in my silky pink robe, which looked hilariously funny but I couldn't laugh because if the serious look he gives me
"Say that again", he looks at me weirdly.
"Uh, Stephan Stones will you come out of this bathroom?"
"Ashe", he replies looking down, concentrating heavily on the carpet.
"What?" I reply dumbly
"That's my middle name. Stephan Ashe Stones"
************************************
Stephan vacated the room for me after he returned my robe. It was then I noticed he also used my mango shower gel to shower.
While I dress up into a nice black flair skirt and a white long sleeved top, I pull my wet hair into a bun.
I smell delicious waffles and I hurry down.
Stephan was working the waffle machine, with a laser concentration.
"So when will you go for your audition"
"In seven days time. I'll have Jasmine over to take some pictures for me. For Social media"
"I could take pictures for you. No problem at all." I frown a bit. I take a waffle and took a large bite.
"She's a professional photographer and a social media influencer"
He looks at me for a very long time.
"What?", I ask him, "was the waffle yours?"
"I know you", Stephan says, his eyes look oddly like gray.
"Don't rush it, you are bound to remember", I make a small connection with his arm.
"Elizabeth"
"Yes?"
"You forgot the apple juice again"
************************************
Two hours exactly has passed since we ate breakfast. One hour fifteen minutes passed, since I went back to work in my room while Stephan did whatever on his phone. I refuse to believe it's because of social media he looked so serious about.
Forty five minutes have passed since Jasmine came into my house. Ten minutes have passed with me not being able to concentrate with task at hand because the main presence of Jasmine was really triggering me. And currently I'm sitting on the couch while Stephan "models" and takes hot pictures with Jasmine hands unnecessarily groping him with every opportunity she has.
"Yeah just like that, slouch just a bit more, yeah perfect", Jasmine clicked with her camera.
I made a dumb face and miserably watched the both of them work. Jasmine and Stephan, they looked like a couple. Death was out of his mind when he gave me this task to do. What am I supposed to do. Cast a witch spell on him and get him to fall hopelessly in love with me. What do I look like? Snow White?
"Done!", Jasmine chirped, shaking her head and her loose top bun came loose, her brown wavy hair cascades down her back and face. "Oops", she giggles. Ok I swear she's doing it on purpose.
"Want some smoothie?", Stephan asked his guest. She nods her head.
Ok so, no smoothie for me. They practically ignored me and when to the kitchen while chatting about how great the pictures will come out. I decided to take my jealous ass back to my room and put my frustration into my work. You know the Adam and Eve story? Yeah Jasmine is the green eyed serpent.
After holing myself up in my room, trying to get somethings down, I gave myself a dumb excuse to go back down and spy on those two.
Jasmine was sitting on a chair, busy on her phone while Stephan was nowhere to be found. She looks up immediately disarming me a bit. I go to the fridge pretending I came down because I was thirsty.
"So..", I begin, "How was your photograph session?"
Jasmine beams, "It went beautiful of course. He's really hot. and handsome. Does he have a girlfriend?"
I felt a surge of panic, "He is a "don't touch" commodity for now"
Jasmine smirks at me, "You like him, don't you?"
"That is none of your business"
"I suppose he doesn't know that you like him. Well how about a race? The first person that gets him, keeps him"
I squint my eye at her, "You know for a pretty person, you are quite daft, He is a human being not some stray cat. Yes I do like him but I'm not about to turn it to some competition"
Instead of feeling insulted she laughs in my face, "I guess he'll be mine sooner than he'll ever notice the little puppy love you have for him" We stare at each other for a long time and my face was getting red from the confrontation.
"What are you two doing?", Stephan walks in on us. He changed his shirt to another one.
"Nothing, just a healthy match between two females", Jasmine smirks. "Oh yeah, Stephan, I was wondering if you'd like me to show you that waterfall I was talking about, it's not far from here, we could use that location for our next session." She kept her eyes on me, trying to measure my reaction. And I tried to keep myself from reacting too much from it, but I was seething like a boiling kettle.
"Well, why not?" Stephan said without thinking about me and they left in a flash.
I sat there, ruminating on my feelings when Adrian stepped in from school.
"Hey", I greeted him.
He just looked at me and headed into his room. Ok no, not him too. I had to deal with Beauty and Prince Eric all day, I'm not about to be ignored by my own brother.
I slam into his room without knocking.
"Hey! What's the big idea? "he screamed at me.
"Great you are speaking to me now. Let's just scream at each other", I scream back.
"Get out, I don't want to talk to you" He buries his head under the pillows.
"You don't want to talk to anybody, not me not your mom or mine and not dad, nobody"
Silence.
"I know how you feel Adrian, I am not your enemy"
"Stop saying that, you don't know how I feel"
"Adrian, Mom and Dad got divorced when I was your age so yeah, I do know how you feel whether you believe it or not. I was angry for a long time and I really didn't know what was going to happen to me, I felt as if my nest was broken"
Adrian raises his head and looks at me. "Dad wasn't around anymore and mom was crying for a few weeks, she was a hot mess. I had to get used to seeing Gabriella and to be honest, I hated your mother for awhile."
"But Adrian we are not responsible for how our parents choose to live their lives, they are adults, they can figure out their feeling and make their decisions based on that. We just have to be there for them when we can and support them"
"But you are not happy too" Adrian says, with his blue eyes filled with tears.
"Well yeah, I am a bit angry with mom and dad about what they did because it was wrong but I'm trying to accept their decision and well live with it. You should too."
Adrian was silent for a while. "Yes, you are right, I should stop sulking"
"Like a baby", I added. He threw the pillow at me, "I am not a baby"
Adrian and I are on speaking terms again and I feel this overwhelming relief in my soul. we were always so close so I understood how our parents getting divorce and married again could affect him. We ended up making noodles and watching a movie on Netflix, our favorite way of passing time before he decided to do some homework before turning in for the night. I was chatting with Noah when Stephan rolled in.
"HI, did you have fun?", I asked as he settled on the couch next to me.
"How do you watch a movie without popcorn?"
"You don't have to watch a movie with pop corn all the time" I countered back.
He turn his face to the tv and it was silent till the movie I started rolled the credits.
"I'll take the couch. It's a sofa-bed anyways."
"What?", I asked a bit distracted with my thoughts.
"I said I will sleep on the couch. I don't feel comfortable sleeping in your bed, with you. It's weird. Right?"
"Oh yeah sure", I stammer feeling a bit stupid and empty. "I was going to tell you that but you beat me to it, we could go shopping tomorrow, get you a comfortable blankets..."
"I kissed her ", Stephan said out of the blue.
I felt my heart break a bit. "Jasmine"
He rolled his eyes, "Who else stupid?"
I said nothing. He kept watching me while I thought of what to say next.
"Good for you"
"You don't care?"
"Why should should I care? I'm just somebody you need to stay with for thirty days"
"So we were not dating? We did not love each other or something."
"I did not even know you"
"Good", he said relaxing further beside me picking up the remote to pick a show. "Because she's sexy and I believe I'm no bloke. She made it clear she wants me."
"Good to know", I say between my teeth. He gave me a sideway glance but didn't pay me any more attention. After a minute or so, I stand up and muttered a goodnight to him.
Barely three days in and his romping after girls with dimpled smiles and seductive eyes. I guess that's what a five years lubido can do to a man. What did I even expect. That he falls for me while he intently tries to know who I am and how he was like in his past life. I am really delusional.
I lay on my bed and pinch myself to make sure I was not dreaming. I'm going to end up failing. I don't think I can save Stephan. I'm not pretty enough or smart enough. I'm just not enough. I sigh as I rolled around my bed.
But then I would really be a loser if I don't try to save the man I love.