Lena bravely called Patricia. This was the only person she could ask about things that she didn't know, and she won't be judged.
Patricia's cell phone just rang, and she answered as she had saved Lena's number.
"Oh, Lena?" Patricia was obviously surprised when she called. "You called. Do you need anything?"
She bit her lower lip before speaking. "Ahm, because ..." She nodded. "I have a question."
"Shoot," Patricia said, a hint of a smile in her voice. "You ask now."
"Ahhm ..." She took a deep breath. "What does it mean when you're nervous and your heart beating fast?"
"You're scared, probably," she replied immediately.
Afraid? No. She was not afraid of Ace. She felt the opposite—Indeed.
"Amm, what if you're next to the man, then you feel that…"
Patricia suddenly screamed loudly, causing her to interrupt the rest of what she was going to say."Oh, my God, Lena! Cupid hit you!" She screamed again. "Oh, em, gee! Girl!"
She winced at the force of her scream. "Ahm, what do you mean by Cupid hit you? Give it to me straight, Patricia."
She laughed softly. "Of course. You literally think. Anyway, I won't give it to you straight. I want you to think."
"How?" She was already stressed.
She was silent for a few seconds, then spoke. "Okay. What did I tell you about Cupid?"
"Ahm ..." She frowned. "Cupid represents love."
"Oo-kay, now, replace Cupid with love in my sentence 'Cupid hit you'."
Love hit you.
Lena did, and she blinked rapidly as she replayed it in her mind over and over again. "No ..." she whispered. "This can't be love, Patricia." She felt panic. "I mean, I don't know what love is, so how can I say I love someone? I'm new to this. But I know it's impossible for me to love him in the few days I've met and talked to him. You must be wrong, Patricia. There must be a scientific explanation to what I'm feeling for him. This can't be that four-letter word—LOVE."
The other person just laughed at her. "Lena, even me, don't know what love is. No one knows. You just feel it. Love is a mysterious thing that someone feels for no apparent reason at all. There is no scientific explanation for that. As in, nothing."
She was even more confused. "Is there a book that I can read about love?"
Patricia chuckled. "There is but you will still go to the bookstore and search. So, I suggest you open your laptop, then wait for me. I'm on my way to your clinic. Are you there?"
"Yes."
"Good. We'll search on Google about love and see if you're in love or not. More info there."
Lena smiled. "Thanks, Patricia. I can't do this alone. I'm in a mess."
"Okay, I'll be right there in a minute."
When Lena hung up the phone, she immediately turned on her laptop.
It took twenty minutes for Patricia to arrive. And when she did, she instantly grabbed a sit, pulled her to her side, faced the laptop and typed, 'Signs of Falling in love' in the search box.
Lena held her breath as she waited for a site Patricia had chosen to open — lovepanky.com.
While staring at the laptop screen, Ace entered her mind. Was she really doing it right? Was searching for the signs of love on Google was really the answer to her question?
"If you don't believe what I'm saying on the phone, I hope you believe it," Patricia said, then read the first sign of the person in love. "Number one, you are thinking of him right now." She grinned at her. "Right?"
Lena blinked. Yes. She thought of Ace. "Ahm." She bit her lip. "Yes."
A triumphant smile appeared on Patricia's lips, then smirked. "Oh, isn't it? Check number one." She did a happy dance on her seat. "Number two, his voice brings a smile to your face."
She shrugged. "Maybe. He's not here right now to test-in that number two."
Patricia tsked. "Number three, the long good-byes. Sweet. Long goodbye. Has this ever happened to you?"
Lena frowned as she remembered Ace's farewell to her earlier. It was a bit long, but it's a bit. "Just a bit."
"I'll take that as a yes." Patricia grinned. "Number four, teasing games. It's nice to joke with him. It's fun to feel and very easy to feel."
She shook her head. "I don't know if he's joking or serious. He only smiled once."
"It's a no." Patricia stared into the air. "Number five, you can't get enough of him. In short, you're addicted to his presence. You want to always be with him or talk to him."
She nodded. "There are times when I miss him but not always but quite a bit."
She nodded as well. "Okay. A half yes and a half no."
She laughed softly. "Is there something like that?"
"Of course. That's the word maybe." Patricia scrolls down to read number six. "Awkwardness. Meaning, you're miserable and embarrassed when you're with him even though you're happy he's there."
She nodded. "Big check, Patricia."
She screamed. "Oh, uh, gee, girl. I love you. Number seven, again and again. You always want to call or text each other. You want to always be together—"
"Nope. I know he has a job so I don't want to disturb him. It's okay for me for him to come here to my clinic without a dog."
Smiles trembled on Patricia's lips. "Eight, you smile like an idiot." She wagged her eyebrow at her. "Are you smiling for no reason or are you smiling while you're thinking of him?"
"Sometimes," Lena admits. "But not all the time. I have dogs to take care of."
Patricia winced. "I'm hooked on the dog, girl. You're a really weird woman. Anyways, nine, you've changed for him?"
She shook her head. "No."
"Ten. You see the love in his eyes?"
"I do not know the answer."
"Eleven, you don't care even if you look stupid as long as he notices you."
She shook his head. "Nothing like that."
"Twelve, the tight hugs."
"Ahm ..." There was a nick on her forehead. "Have tight hugs, then kiss on the forehead."
Patricia shuddered again. "Thirteen, your patience is too long and you will do everything for him."
She shrugged. "I have no answer there."
Patricia sighed. "Fourteen, the little butterflies."
Lena giggled. "Definitely a yes."
"Sweet." Her foot was stomping on the floor. "Fifteen, you miss him all the time."
She felt herself. "Yes. Quite."
Patricia seemed to be able to sit in the seat with excessive squeaking. "Sixteen, you smell like him. He smells mental."
She nodded quickly. "Jordan is fragrant. Too fragrant."
Patricia's eyes were watering, and her lips were pitying as she faced her. "Jordan? is it Mr. Ace Jordan Steele? Who gave a million to charity?"
She nodded earnestly. "Yes. He is." There was no harm in telling the truth to a friend.
Patricia stared at her. "Girl, Jordan Steele is not good for you. God, Lena, you are so innocent. While that man, good heavens, how many women have cried because of Mr. Steele? I'm not asking you to stop seeing him, It's your decision. It's just a warning to you, okay? Be careful when Mr. Steele is with you."