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LOVE PEOPLE
Love You By The Side - Chapter 3
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Love On My Side
Author: Emily Giffin
Chapter 3
"Where are you?" Leo asked.
I breathed hard when weighing the answer. For a moment I think you want to ask with a hidden meaning - Where are you in your life? - and I almost told him about Andy. My friends and family. My photography work. The place where I am staying nice and happy new life how much. Answers that until recently I often drafted in the bathroom or on the subway, hoping for the occasion. The opportunity to tell Leo that I survived and went on with so much greater happiness.
But as soon as I open my mouth to say those words, I suddenly realize what Leo really is asking. Do you want to know exactly where I am sitting or standing or walking? In New York's small corner, am I digesting and thinking about what just happened?
The question that confuses me is the feeling of being confused about someone being asked for weight or money earned or any other private questioning that people do not want answered at all. But, if you refuse to answer publicly, people are afraid of being hid or harsh. Then, of course, people find an alternative and try to come up with a polite, perfect answer. Only my scales know ... Money is never enough, I'm afraid. Or, in this case:
But at times like that, I always clumsily blurted out the correct answer. My true weight. My salary details to every dong. Or, in this case, the name of the cafeteria where I was sitting drinking coffee on a cold day.
That's good, I think, when it comes to the tip of my tongue. After all, perhaps it is better to tell the truth. Hiding can be re-emerged as if trying to be courteous: guess where you are. Find me, why do not you do that.
Anyway, Leo answered quickly, understanding. "Okay," he said, as if this eatery was a special place we frequented. Or worse, as if I anticipate I can only be there. Then he asked if I was alone.
It does not matter to me, I want to say that, but instead I open my mouth again and utter a crude, simple, inviting word. Like a single red caviar sneaked in between two rows of black flags, only to be eaten.
Of course, Leo says, "Good. I came right here. Do not go. "Then he cut off the phone before I could answer. I folded the phone, and suddenly panic. The first instinct told me to get up and leave. But I told myself not to be cowardly. I can handle seeing him again. I am a mature woman, steadfast, have a happy marriage. So what's so horrible when you meet your ex-boyfriend, chatting politely to each other? Also, if I run away, would not I be putting on a game where I have no reason to play at all? A game that ended a long time ago!
So instead of doing that, I started eating the loaf. It does not taste - just like a piece of cloth - but I still chew and swallow, do not forget to sip coffee. I do not allow myself to look in the mirror again. I will not add a new layer of lip gloss, or even do not even check whether the teeth are sticky. Leave a poppy seed cake between the incisors. I have nothing to prove to him. And there is nothing to prove to myself.
That was my last thought before I saw your face through the rainforest door of the restaurant. My heart started rumbling, my legs were rumbling. I think it would be good if I had one of Andy's heart pills - the harmless drug he drank before each trial to keep his mouth dry and his voice not shaking. Andy insists he is never too nervous, but his body expressions say the opposite. Just as now I am telling myself not to stress. Only my body is betraying my mind and heart. Correct.
I looked at Leo as he shook the umbrella around the restaurant, glancing at Annie, who was cleaning the floor under a chair. At first he did not see me, and somehow, it gave me a bit of strength.
But it immediately disappeared when his eyes met my eyes. He flashed a slight smile at me, then lowered his head and strode towards me. A few seconds later he stood by my desk, taking off his black leather jacket that I remember very well. My belly rolled up and down. I was afraid he would bend down and kiss my cheek. But no, that's not your style. Andy often kisses my cheek. Leo never did that. True to capital style dOf course, Leo ignored the details and sat down in the chair opposite me, shaking his head, once, then twice. He still looks exactly like my memory, just a little older, and somehow more alive and darker - his hair darker, his body muscular, his jaw healthier. A perfect contrast to Andy's delicate appearance, slender limbs and light complexion. I think Andy looks better. Andy's life is easier. It's as easy as a beach promenade. A Sunday lunch. A circle around the round pot. "Ellen Dempsey," Leo finally exclaimed, looking straight into my eyes. I could not make a better start. I grasped the opportunity, staring at his dark brown eyes. Wiggled, as if he was trying to remember something about my new surname, the one he should have been able to immediately connect to Margot, she My roommate in my time and Leo love each other. But he can not seem to find that connection. This did not surprise me. Leo never paid attention to finding out my friends - and never paid any attention to Margot. Margot does not like Leo either. After the first big argument with Leo made me turn into a girl who just cries out crying, so clumsy that no matter what character in the Girl, Interrupted, Margot took the single photo of Leo that I was yes, a series of black and white portraits shot continuously with the camera automatically, and then tearing them in a clever way, running straight from the forehead to the nose, lips Leo, completely separate from my fresh face "See how much better you are now," Margot said. This is my friendship, I think so, even if I use Leo's adhesive tape carefully. I once again thought the same thing about Margot, when Leo with me broke up and she bought me a greeting card with a bottle of Dom Pérignon. I hold the cork again, take the rubber cord roll the whole picture around it and fold it into the jewelery box - until a few years later Margot discovers it when she returns the gold earrings she borrowed from me. " What the fuck? "She asked, rolling the cork between her fingers." Um ... you bought me a bottle of champagne, "I grumbled. "After Leo. Remember? "" You hold the button? And these pictures? "I stammered that I saw the cork as a proof of my friendship with her, nothing else - despite the fact that I did not get rid of anything at all. That's the party for Leo. Margot raised an eyebrow, but ignored the subject, in the way she often ignored the most controversial issues. That seems to be the way of the South. Or at least Margot's way. Anyway, I just announced to Leo my husband's last name. A victory is not small.Leo raised his chin, pouted his lower lip and said, "Oh yes? Congratulations. "" Thank you. "I was so excited and excited - and then a little embarrassed for being so triumphant. Opposed to love is indifference, I silently. "Card. Who is that lucky guy? "Leo asked." Do you remember Margot? "" Sure, I remember. "" I married her brother. I think you've met him? "I said ambiguously, though I knew Leo and Andy had met once, at a bar in the East Village. At that time, it was just a short touch, nothing worth mentioning between my boyfriend and my best friend's brother. An exchange of words like Hello ... Nice to meet you, my friend. There may be a handshake. That's right man. But years later, long after Leo and I broke up, Andy and I started dating, like any woman, I dissected the moment to detail. Break up on Leo's face. That guy. Really? The law student? "I saw the thorn with the words of that guy as well as Leo's lithe curls, wondering what he was thinking right now. Did you glean anything from that fleeting encounter? Or are you just scornful with lawyers? Or have I ever had a rumor about Andy making Leo offensive? Not. Impossible. Never - and not even now - there is anything wrong or grumbling to say about Andy. Andy has no enemies. Everyone loves him. I look into Leo's eyes, telling myself not to show any defenses or reactions. Leo's opinion is no longer important. So I nodded calmly, confidently. "Right. Margot's brother, "I repeated." It's perfect, "Leo said with an intonation that I'm pretty sure he was saying." Yes, "I say, smirking. I was completely sure of his tone, and I felt myself burning, a familiar feeling of anger rising. The kind of anger that only Leo has stirred in me. I looked down at my wallet with a twelve count that I would take the money
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