11. Red Dress Resolve
1323 Words
Samantha clenched her phone tightly and hurled it onto the sofa, but her frustration lingered. Her chest heaved, her breaths shallow and uneven.
Questions swirled relentlessly in her mind, the endless ‘what ifs’ threatening to drown her sanity.
What if she made a fool of herself? What if he turned out to be a creep? Or worse... a charming serial killer?
She collapsed onto the sofa bed, sinking into its plush cushions beside her phone. “It’s fine,” she sighed. “I’ll just message him and cancel. He’ll understand, surely.” As she turned her frame to pick up the phone, Charlotte nearly snatched it out of her hand, “What the hell, Charlotte?” Samantha snapped.
“You will not do that, Sam. What you will do is take a few deep breaths and stop this panic. Then you will go take a hot shower, have a snack and we will look for what you shall wear tonight. And lastly, you will go and have fun.”
“But…”
“No buts!” Charlotte interrupted. “You’re acting like this date is a marriage proposal. It’s just dinner. If it’s terrible, you can leave. But what if it goes well? When was the last time you actually had fun?”
“What do you mean? I have fun!” Samantha protested.
“Like when? What did you do for fun recently?”
Samantha sighted, masterfully changing the subject “This doesn’t feel like fun. Just thinking about it is stressful.”
“Because you are taking it too seriously, Sam.”
“Of course I’m taking it seriously! I haven’t been on a date with someone new in over a decade. It’s terrifying!”
“It doesn't have to be,” Charlie sat next to her, “look, modern dating is simple. You’ll have to meet a lot of people if you decide to get into another relationship at some point. But right now you need practice, mostly practice of loosening up, enjoying the process.”
“How can I loosen up with a stranger?”
“It’s all here,” Charlotte brought up her middle finger pointing to her head, “once you decide to change how you think about it, it changes how you feel about it.”
“You make it sound so easy…”
“Because it is, Sam. It’s easy, it’s simple, you have the power over your mind, not another way around.”
Samantha sighed. “I don’t know… Why can’t I just catch a break?”
“You are catching a break,” Charlotte laughed. “That’s exactly what this is.”
“Ha-ha,” Samantha said dryly. “Very funny.”
“It kind of is,” Charlotte laughed out, “look, I’m sorry for pushing you to do this, I know you aren’t thrilled. But I promise you, it’s better to get temporarily distracted than to sit around and sulk.”
“Sulking sounds so much better right now.”
“I know it does, but I can’t let you do it. Sulking is just one approach towards this situation. You’ll have plenty of time in your life to do that. I want you to try something different. You are still young and beautiful. I want you to see what Eric lost rather than worry about why he did it or how you feel about it.”
Sam thought for a moment and said with a crooked smile “I think I prefer to sit home and feel sorry for myself than go out and meet people.”
“I know you do,” Charlie sighted, “but you know, I won’t let you. So get your ass up and off to the shower. I’ll put together a snack.”
“Fine,” Samantha groaned, dragging herself off the sofa like a child forced to do chores. She grabbed a towel, glaring at Charlotte over her shoulder. “But I swear, there will be payback for this.”
“Bring it on,” Charlotte teased, already heading to the kitchen. “By then, you’ll be too busy planning your next date to care.”
Samantha rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop the faint smile that crept across her lips as she shut the bathroom door.
She closed her eyes, letting the water drum against her back, gradually washing away her panic. Maybe she was overreaching. Charlotte does it all the time and she enjoys the process. Maybe Charlotte was right. Maybe this was exactly what she needed—to feel normal again, even for just a few hours.
As Sam got out, a big sandwich was waiting for her on the coffee table with another brew of coffee. “Thanks, Charlie,” Sam said, offering her friend a grateful smile.
“You’re welcome. I already had mine. Sit and relax and I’ll start getting out the clothes I brought over. There were several good options.”
Charlotte enthusiastically opened a suitcase and one by one started getting out what was inside, sorting it into two piles: one with general ware and one that could work for tonight. “Where is he taking you?”
“‘The Taste of Sicily’. It’s just a few stops away,” Samantha said.
“Ah, Italian. Classy. I already like this guy.” Charlotte winked.
“Maybe you should be the one to go then,” Samantha grinned.
“Don’t worry, Sam, I have enough candidates of my own,” she chuckled, sorting through the clothes. “Ok, little black dress - always a good choice, but too cold for it. This one looks good,” she held up a knee-length red knit dress with subtle sparkles woven into the fabric, perfect for a cozy but elegant winter evening. “just about right, and seasonal. Or you could go with jeans and one of your jumpers… If you wear long boots, it’ll work. I think the red dress though is a good choice, you’ll look good, feel good, what do you say?”
Samantha’s phone started buzzing vigorously and she looked at it with dread.
“It’s Eric,” Samantha said grimly.
“He must’ve noticed some of your things missing,” Charlotte grimaced, “do you want me to pick it up and tell him to take a hike?”
“I’ll just let it ring,” Samantha visually tensed as she stared at the phone, her thoughts racing. Her already shaky attention was shifting with every new call. “Why won’t he just stop? He wanted freedom, he got it now. Why does he keep pestering me?”
“Because he wants you to come back and he probably thinks he can still fix things.”
“Why would he want me back if he wants to see other people?”
“I guess he might think he still can have it his way, eventually…”
“In his dreams.” Sam snapped, looking at a message coming through: ‘Sam, this isn’t funny. I saw you took your stuff, and I get that you’re upset, but can we at least talk? Ignoring me won’t fix anything. Let’s figure this out together.’ She came closer to Charlotte and showed her the message, her pulse raced, her fingers trembling as she handed the phone to Charlotte.
“Calm down, Sam. He’s not worth it.”
“I know. It just pisses me off.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to give him my piece of mind?” Charlotte asked, as another wave of vibration came through.
“I am not ready to deal with him, or with the consequences of whatever you might say.” Samantha switched her phone to silent and flopped back onto the sofa bed. “Now, give me that dress.”
“That’s more like it.” Charlotte was clearly happy about Sam’s change of heart.
- Writer
