There's always a situationship between a beach and the weekend. There's always more life then. When Lessin and Sabrina arrived, many were leaving and many were arriving. Something like a food fest was happening and the whole vibe was an adventure. For sandy reasons, the girls left their shoes in the car. Bare Feet was the way to go.
"Which stall should we try first?", Sabrina asked,
"Seafood stall, always.", Lessin rubbed her hands, excited.
They began the tour and each stall was better. They enjoyed kebabs, skewers and poke bowls and beverages. Both were eating machines. Their mutual love for food and personalities made them feel cozy around each other. They were in so much synchronicity that they needn't question anything.
A little further from the stalls, the band was playing bongos. Some were dancing and the rest were watching. Lessin grabbed Sabrina's hand and stepped into the circle.
"You dance?", she asked,
"If you lead I'll follow.",
There was no specific dance style or step. Only dancing with the beat. Lessin was the worst dancer this planet had ever seen. But Sabrina made her feel confident about it. How? By doing exactly what Lessin was doing. When she moved right, she did the same. Left. Same. Twirl? Same. Perfect imperfections, that's how I'd describe them.
After they sweat it, they decided to sit by the shore, letting the waves kiss their feet. It was a very serene feeling considering what they left behind at the birthday party.
"You think they noticed our absence?", Lessin asked,
Sabrina shrugged, "Who cares? They should've treated you better.",
"You're a great dancer.",
"You're a great teacher.",
Lessin chuckled embarrassedly, "You're just kind. You didn't want me to be humiliated.",
"What are you talking about?", she laughed, "Anyway, this is so much fun.",
"It is.", Lessin nodded, "So, Phoenix University of Architecture, huh?",
"Yeah.", she smiled, "It's a big deal.",
"I'm so proud of you. I've said it before.",
"Thank you.", the eyes that previously faced the waves now stared at Lessin, "Do you still have feelings for him?", she asked.
Lessin met her gaze. There was no reason to lie. She nodded, "Yeah.",
"You want him back?",
"He's dating your sister. I think I'm just in denial. I see that he's happy now, but after what me and him went through I expected more from him. More closeness, more love, more understanding. Instead, he moved on.", she sadly expressed it, "I don't mean to talk bad about Bella. I mean, she's good, obviously kind and sweet. It's just that sometimes I can't help but feel like I deserved to be treated that way, now more than before. But I've been replaced.",
"Maybe he doesn't like Bella.",
"No, he likes her. He likes her very much. Even if he breaks up with her, he'll never be with me. I know I still have feelings for him, but I don't want him back. All I want is for him to apologize to me. I want him to see how much his words shredded my already bleeding heart.",
Sabrina moved closer, "What happened? Did he deny the pregnancy?", she asked,
Lessin shook her head, "I didn't want it. He was very invested and excited, but I wasn't. I was scared. Both our parents are heads of different church departments, very respectable. If news that their children had sex before marriage and worse enough I got pregnant, I can't even imagine the commotion.",
"Very understandable.",
"But he had an odd confidence that everything was going to work out. Back then, I saw the pregnancy as a punishment because we sinned. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't eat. I was withering. One day I just had this revelation that I was already pregnant, you know? The baby was already in me, part of me. God might forsake me, but not an innocent soul. Many teens have sex without getting pregnant but I did. Maybe it was meant to happen.",
"So you kept it.",
"I decided to. I had made that decision in the morning before I saw him that evening. He thought I was still planning to abort so he came to me with a piece of paper, his last straw. In it, he had written two names, Isack and Margareth. He said he'd seen the names in a dream and asked me to look at them, pray that night and just to only have positive thoughts.",
Then she paused. Her chest felt tighter. She was now reliving the worst day of her life.
"That night I prayed.", she proceeded, "I loved both names and I was excited for the first time. I fell asleep hugging the piece of paper. I said 'Goodnight Isack, or Margareth' and then I closed my eyes. I woke up at 6 am, feeling discomfort under me. I switched on my lamp, removed the blanket, and there it was, blood, everywhere.",
Sabrina instantly held her hand. She could picture the rest. As she told the story, Lessin never shed a single tear. She was purposely tormenting herself, thinking she very much deserved it.
"I cleaned myself, my room, burned the sheets, all that before my parents woke up.", she continued, "At 8, I was at the hospital. They confirmed that my baby was gone. In the evening, I returned the paper back to Zabron and informed him that the baby was gone. That was it, the day he officially hated me. He didn't want to hear the truth. He believed I had an abortion.",
"What's wrong with him?",
"I get it. I never told him that I was ready to have the baby. All this time I wanted only one thing, and when I finally got it I just felt like the worst person in the planet.",
"But you know it wasn't your fault, right?", Sabrina gently rubbed her hand, comforting her, "You miscarried. You had nothing to do with it.",
"Yeah. I'm trying to believe that.",
"Lessin?", someone called from behind them.
They both quickly turned around, meeting the beautiful, but staggered face of Winslow. But she wasn't alone. Christopher Vanguard was with her. Lessin quickly stood up, same did Sabrina.
"I know you from somewhere.", Winslow squinted her eyes as she read Sabrina's facial features like a board.
Being used to people being embarrassed by her, Sabrina was ready to give out a fake name and deny knowing Winslow. But what happened next polished a wall that was starting to mold.
"This is Sabrina, remember her?", Lessin hopped into the intro, "She was our junior back at school.",
"Oh!", Winslow had a realization, "I remember her. Wow. You look so different.",
"Beautiful, right?",
"Stunning!",
Sabrina watched them brand her as the prettiest girl and there's nothing she could do but blush. Lessin had proved her wrong. People aren't the same.
"Sabrina, this is Winslow, and that's Christopher Vanguard.", Lessin commenced,
"I know Winslow.", Sabrina nodded,
"So what's the deal here?", Lessin asked Winslow, "A date?",
Christopher chuckled as he shook his head, "Winslow has made it very clear that it's not a date.",
"I was free, he was free so yeah.", Winslow shrugged,
"Did you just get here?",
"Yeah, what about you?",
"We've been here for a while, ate our way to the bongos and now we're here.",
"Alright. Well, we need to follow your footsteps. It was good seeing you both.",
"Wait.", Christopher took out his phone, "Can you take a photo of us, me and Winslow?",
"Sure.",
Lessin took the phone and went to stand at a perfect distance. Winslow and Vanguard posed like a couple, although they denied it.
"Ready?", asked Lessin,
"Yeah.",
"Okay. 1, 2 …",
The photo was interrupted by an incoming phone call from an unsaved number. 630-861-37 ..
"48?", Lessin inwardly spoke to herself.
She knew that number. It was Cora's. Why was Cora calling Vanguard? She knew of their entanglement, but to her, it made more sense that Vanguard was now with Winslow. Not to be toxic, but one was supposed to move on, and that person was supposed to be Cora. So why was she calling him? Were they still in contact? Then why was her number unsaved? Question after question after the other. Either way, the photo wasn't going to capture itself. She didn't want to make matters awkward and so she hung up and proceeded to take the photo. It wasn't a total success though. Winslow too had captured that brief look Lessin had on her face. In short it was a capturing moment.
***