I: Invitation
Ella’s phone chimed, signaling her of an upcoming new text message from none other than her long-term boyfriend, Lucas Delgardo. She glanced at her phone and let out a heavy sigh.
We’re on for tonight, don’t forget. She read the text and decided not to confirm or decline the invitation. But she wished she could have at least declined his invitation. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do any of those things because of the inevitable landmines that she did not want to detonate in her face. Instead, she continued to sip on her hot latte and walked back leisurely to her workplace. She took in the fresh scent of baked goods as she walked past a new bakery that had opened two weeks ago. The aroma stopped her in her tracks, and she decided to finally give this a try before the usual thought crept into her mind. She was anything but spontaneous, a trait her current boyfriend never ceased to remind her of.
“Something smells wonderful here,” Ella chimed in to the cashier, speaking with a customer.
The lady turned to her with a pleasant smile, "That’s exactly what I said when I came in an hour ago. Now look at me leaving with my hands full."
“Seems like I’m in good hands, then. What do you recommend?” Ella’s reply came out a bit shy and awkward. Ella was not the type who ate anything that other people recommended to her without first conducting an extensive search for the food in question. Ella’s body shook with nervous energy as she paid for the baked good that had been recommended to her. Thirty minutes later, she sat in her office with a croissant and her latte in hand. She decided to eat them on her coffee break and dive into work. Sometimes, work seemed to be the only place where she could forget all her personal life problems. The only place her life drama allowed her a moment to catch her breath. And she seized that opportunity with all her being and pulled ahead more overtime than anyone in the company.
Lunchtime came faster than expected, and most of her work for today was almost finished. Ella treated herself to a nice restaurant within walking distance of her work to keep her in a good mood. She managed to duck herself abruptly behind a big tree in front of the restaurant when she saw her boyfriend locked in a cozy conversation with his so-called best friend outside the same restaurant where she wanted to have lunch.
Her heart stuttered in her chest before the familiar and reassuring thump-thump sound kicked in. With shaking hands, she touched her heart and inhaled three deep, belly breaths to calm herself. To anyone else, her reaction would seem dramatic and over the top for no reason. But in Ella’s subconscious, she had a feeling that he was lying to her. Furthermore, every time she hung out with them both, she felt like she was forgetting something important afterward. Like she’s losing a part of herself.
This restaurant was popular with couples, according to what her coworkers told her. And when she decided to finally give it a try in the spirit of spontaneity, he took that opportunity from her by bringing his BFF there. The restaurant had the perfect scenery for one to lose oneself in, with all the Christmas lights and fake tree branches coated with fake snow adorning the pine log. From behind the big tree, Ella surveyed them, and when a server came to take their order, she made her escape as quickly as she could. Her eyes seemed to leap out of their socket when she saw the girl standing three feet in front of her.
