"Oh really. Well, do you understand my side... Or is it just hers?" Julian asked.
Abby shook her head. "Look, I understand the both of you. I really do. And I honestly don't want to pick sides. So whatever this is, can you guys just find a way to fix it? You don't even have to love or like each other. You just have to find a way to be around each other without fighting. Or else it's going to be a problem, and then before we know it, someone can't take it anymore and decides to leave. I don't want to lose any one of you"
"Well, I don't think we are ready to be around each other now," Julian said.
"And I agree" Nina replied, giving him a look like she wanted to kill him.
"Yep, definitely a bad idea to talk about this" Abby said to herself, when she saw they weren't even making any effort to listen to her and stop arguing.
Julian grabbed his phone which he had kept on the table and slipped it into his pocket. "You know what, I can't do this anymore. I shouldn't have talked to you about this because obviously you don't want to see just how wrong you are, and you can't even bring yourself to listen to reason, so I guess it will be better if I just leave"
"Yes. Please do" Nina retorted.
Julian stared hard at her for a while, and she had to try so hard not to look away. She didn't really understand the look in his eyes.... Pain, hurt, anger... She didn't want to care. She was too angry to care.
"Fine. I will leave" he said, then he turned and walked out.
After he left, Nina turned to Abby. "I'm really sorry that you had to see all that, Abby" she said. "I know he's your brother and I honestly didn't want all that to happen. It's just that I wasn't expecting to see him here, and when I did, I guess I just lost it because I'm angry with him"
"It's okay," Abby replied. "I understand that you guys are hurting... And angry... And you miss each other.... but for some reason you guys can't bring yourselves to find a way to fix things." she started to laugh . "It's almost like you guys are enjoying torturing yourself for nothing and I'm sorry babe, but it's hilarious. As much as I hate seeing you guys fight, I gotta say a part of me really enjoyed watching it... It was kinda funny"
Nina gave her a look, then she sat down and dished some spaghetti into her plate. "You are indeed a horrible person"
"I know dear," Abby replied, still laughing."
"Abby, I feel like I'm becoming a grouch. Do you think I'm becoming a grouch?"
Abby put a finger on her chin "Well....." she began.
"Oh my God. What kind of friend are you?" Nina asked, feigning annoyance. "When someone asks you something like that, you should say, no, I don't think you're becoming a grouch"
Abby smiled. "So you want me to lie? You know I can't do that"
"Shut up," Nina said.
Abby laughed and patted her on the shoulder. "You haven't really been yourself lately, but I don't think you are a grouch. I think you are my friend, and you are going through some stuff and you need time to get back to your old self. There's nothing wrong with that"
Nina gave her a small smile. "Now can you please call Julian and check on him?" she asked. "I'm mad at him but I really don't mean for that to happen." she paused then added. "And you better not tell him I told you to call him or I'm going to kill you"
Abby chuckled. "Got it," she said as she left the kitchen.
----------------------------
Julian's office staff was avoiding him. Not that he could blame them. He’d arrived back to the office on Tuesday the following week, acting like a bear with a sore paw. Apparently taking one week away from the office and Nina hadn't done anything to change his bad mood.
He’d briefly touched base with his assistant, long enough to tell her not to hurry back into work and to remain with her granddaughter as long as she was needed.
He’d gone over his last conversation with Nina until it rolled like video footage through his head. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get it to turn off. He was angry with her, and he missed her terribly.
It was his own fault for pursuing Nina so relentlessly, he thought. She’d been hesitant from the start, and he’d ignored all the warning signs. He’d never become serious about a woman who didn’t put him first. And he damn sure wouldn’t be involved with a woman who put more importance on what the world around her thought about her than on her relationship with him. And what the hell was she so mad at him for? He just couldn't understand the woman.
He scowled when a knock sounded at his door. One of the secretaries poked her head in and held up an envelope like a shield.
“This just came for you, sir.” She said,
“Bring it over,” he said, waving her in.
She hurried over and all but threw the envelope at him before beating a hasty retreat out of his office. He shook his head. He hadn’t been that bad since he’d returned two days ago. Okay maybe he had. He had to admit that.
With a sigh, he glanced at the envelope. It was an overnight package with the name of some corporation he'd never heard of before. It was marked extremely urgent.
He opened it and to his surprise it only held a folded newspaper. Nothing else. No letter, no explanation. He pulled it out and it fell open on his desk. It was turned to a specific page, and when he looked down, he saw Nina's picture, only it wasn’t one he was familiar with. She looked different. Maybe younger? And she looked terrified in the picture. She had one hand up like she was trying to avoid the camera.
Frowning, he scanned the article. He was so pissed by the time he got to the end that he had to go back and read it more carefully.
The photo was indeed of a younger Nina. She’d landed a position with a prestigious advertising firm one year out of college.
She’d done impressive work and then she’d been promoted to senior executive very quickly—above several other junior executives who’d been there longer.