“Come in! It is nice to see you!”
Angel greeted Linda with joy. She opened her hand wide and hugged this familiar face that she hadn’t seen for years.
“How are you? What are you doing here? Have you eaten? Angel is like a machine-gun of question that unceasingly fires towards Linda.
“Wooh, hold up. Ha, ha”
“Sorry, ha, ha. Have you eaten?”
“Depends. Do you have a beer? Linda said in a happy and playful tone.
“Why?” Angel responded in a concerned tone
“I just feel that I need one, or two, or maybe a whole bucket,” There is a clear hint of sadness is clear on Linda’s tone. Angel would have asked a question, but she learned through the years that if a person is not saying anything even if they are clearly struggling, it just means either of these two things, either they are not comfortable sharing it with you or they just can’t at this moment. She decided to wait till this pretty young maiden opened up to her.
“Well, that is something I will always have,” Angel threw a can of beer to Linda that the latter caught and opened in glee as the sound of bubbling liquor fresh from the can is heard.
“Just what I need,”
Angel watched with sad eyes as Linda gulped the beer as if she had been thirsty her whole life.
“How are you?” Angel asked as she puts a bowl of peanuts in front of Linda.
Linda cannot hold it anymore, all the hurt, the depression, and the anxiety she has been keeping to herself. In front of Angel, she feels that she doesn’t need to put on a mask and pretend strong. With teary eyes, the latter looked at Angel. She burst into tears just like a kid does when they saw their mother after a whole day of missing her.
“It’s okay, It’s okay,” Angel said in a motherly tone while patting Linda’s head. This made Linda cry more and hug her tighter.
Sobs and tears filled the air for around thirty minutes till Linda finally fell asleep.
Angel placed a throw pillow under Linda’s head as she peacefully lies in deep slumber on the couch. She turned off the lights and secured the doors and windows in the apartment before going to her room. Angel took one last sad look at Linda. She let out a deep sigh in the presence of this young woman who is far from the jolly teenager that Linda was once was.
“This world is truly a cruel place,” Angel whispered as she shook her head.
It is morning.
The sun is high up in the sky. The birds are chirping outside. It is one of those days after the storm when the sun shines brightly in the morning.
Linda woke up at around nine in the morning with messy hair and puffy eyes.
“Good Morning, Let’s eat,” Angel greeted her with glee as she placed two cups of coffee on the counter.
“Good Morning,” Linda almost inaudibly muttered while scratching her head and yawning at the same time.
Angel waited for Linda to say something, to open up while they were drinking a cup of coffee and having small talk. She waited patiently, and it was not in vain as Linda always opened up her heart to her.
“It was at the police station last night,” Linda said casually as if it is as common as drinking a cup of coffee on a winter night.
Angel looked at Linda earnestly as the latter tried to look away. She tries to listen carefully as Linda tells her stories, her hardships, and heartbreaks. Angel did not give a piece of unsolicited advice not until it was solicited. She was there to listen and to make Linda feel that she was not alone. Someone in this world is willing to listen to her two cents and whatnots and will not judge her for coming in and out of prison at such an early age.
“So, what is your plan now?”
“I don’t know, I am yet to figure out,”
“do you want to stay with me for a while?”
“No thanks, I will figure it out on my own. But I will occasionally drop by for a cup of coffee,”
They both laughed heartedly that was stopped by a doorbell and a familiar voice in front of the door.
Angel checked the door, and it was James. She opened the door and asked him why is he visiting on the weekend, but James just smiled and handed her a box of cupcakes that she really liked and is enough to stop her from asking questions.
“I saw them on my way out and thought of you,” He smiled sweetly as he looked at Angel’s smile while tasting a cupcake.
“Do you have plans today,” James asked Angel, though the tone of his voice is confident, his hands are obviously shaking as he hides it inside his pocket, out of sight.
“That would have been nice, but I have a visitor today,”
“Ow, is Kyle here?”
“No, have a sit. I will introduce you to her,”
James’ eyes widened when he saw a familiar face pop out of Angel’s room.
Linda can’t also hide her amazement in this drastic turn of events. It is really such as small world.
Both of them said in unison, “You?!”
Angel was perplexed by these two as she looked at back and forth. She wonders where and how these two persons would know each other, so she exclaimed, “You know each other?” in a confused tone.
Linda told Angel the whole story in the best possible way she could while James occasionally gives his side-comments but is also trying his best to not “over-share” as it is evident that Linda is trying to hide something from Angel. James does not want to overstep their boundaries, a life skill that comes in handy for him most of the time.
“Wait. Wait. Let me see if I got this straight. So You [Linda] snatched his [James] phone in the middle of the aisle and then settled in the police station?”
Both James and Linda nod as if nothing is wrong with the series of events that entangled them together.
“What the F*ck?” Angel said in amazement while looking at James first and then fixing her gaze at Linda, “This is not going well. First. Why are you in the police station again? Anything you might want to share with me?”
James is amazed at how concerned Angel looked at Linda. He has been seeing how this woman is such a caring person for everyone around her. He can’t help but fall deeper for her as she seems to have it all.
“I will tell you later, “ Linda said to Angel in a low tone with a bowed head.
“Okay,” Angel nods in confirmation.
Silence filled the air for some seconds right before James broke the ice.
“Anybody wants a cupcake?”
“Yea, let’s go and eat. James brought something for us.”
Linda looked at James. Something is off. It seems that this guy looks so familiar. She is sure he saw him somewhere, even before the incident. James resembles someone they, Angel and her, knew, but she can’t pin it out.
“You know, I was looking at you even in the police station last night, and you look so damn familiar. Have we met before the police station?”Linda asked James that made the latter taken aback.
James smiled. It is not a happy smile but rather a type of smile that is a bit mysterious.
“I am not sure.” James briefly answered as he opened the box and gave Linda a cupcake as if trying to stop her from asking any more questions.
Linda’s words make Angel question James’ identity because he really looks so familiar. They just can’t remember where she saw him before. “
“Wait for a second, are you…?” Angel asked James a question that the latter did not expect.