Carl's explanation
1070 Words
I giggled as Ryan was having another try at juggling glasses. I had arrived an hour early at The Corner Coffee and Ryan had kept me entertained. He was very sweet and had even given me free coffee while I waited. "Perks for my best customer," he winked at me. Now he was having a go at the plastic glasses, trying to keep three of them in the air. It was not going well.
"I love to hear you laugh," he said and sent me one of his handsome smiles. I had to admit that Ryan was quite the catch and would make some lucky woman happy one of these days. "I understand you're in the middle of some drama, but I hope I can take you out once the worst is over?"
I smiled at him but did not want to promise anything. "Just give me some time to process it all," I said. My mind was already trying to figure out how soon I could take Ryan up on that sweet offer.
"Umm...I believe your friend is arriving. Let me give the two of you some space. Ryan had set me up with a corner table, sheltered from most other tables, and he was retreating to the counter to help with the new coffee orders. I got a good look at his backside as he walked and I could not deny that I liked what I saw.
Carl entered the coffee shop, looked around, and eagerly made his way to our table as he saw me. I had been so nervous about this and had hardly slept last night; he looked refreshed and on top of the world. He frowned a bit as we made eye contact.
Carl sat down next to me, took my hands, and kissed my cheek. "Babe, I've been so worried about you," he claimed, but it felt like a role he was playing. I looked into his gorgeous eyes and realized we were done. But how to break it to him?
I drew my breath and felt my heart running in my chest. The heartbeats were so loud that I was sure anyone could hear them and I felt dizzy. But there was no way to escape this conversation, soI pushed on before my courage failed me. "Who was that woman, Carl?"
He stared at me in disbelief. I had never raised my voice to him or even attempted standing up for myself and I could see that my direct approach was surprising me. Then he tried to surprise me from his corner.
"What woman," I heard him saying. I could feel my jaw dropping and my cheeks going red. If Carl had meant to destroy my coolness, he had succeeded.
"The woman I saw you in bed with yesterday." I was not going to let him off the hook this easily.
"You must be mistaken. You came in as I was having a morning snooze and then you ran off."
Well, reader, you might think that I am lying, but these were his actual words. He had more than 24 hours to come up with some type of explanation AND THIS WHAT HIS STORY? I felt like a strong whisky to get through, but The Corner Coffee did not have a liquor license.
"Please, Carl, don't insult my intelligence."
"Honestly, babe, I have no idea why you're so upset or why you disappeared and did not answer my calls all day yesterday."
This was more than I was willing to put up with. I decided to not argue with him and just get through the rest of the conversation.
"Could you please transfer the rest of my money to my account?" I might as well tackle the money situation as well.
"What do you mean, babe? You have no money."
"And the rest of my salary this month?"
"I have no idea what you mean." I thought his complexion went a little paler, but I was not sure. He was hiding his alleged deceit well.
Carl cleared his throat and I braced myself for a story coming. "I've been called away for business, babe, so I will have to leave town now."
Could this scene get any more absurd? "Oh, OK... When will you be back?"
"In a day or two. See you," he said and kissed my cheek again. Then he got up and exited the coffee shop, leaving me feeling like a fool. What the f**k just happened? Did he actually think he could get away with the whole story?
I had promised to call Christine to fill her in as soon as the chat with Carl was over. I had no idea what just happened, but I told Christine everything. "Well, I think you should use the opportunity to go by the apartment and get some stuff," she said when I had told her the whole story. She was right, but I had no idea what I would find in the apartment. "Will you come with me?" There was desperation in my voice and I was sure Christine picked up on it. "Of course I will," she said reassuringly. "Wait for me at The Corner Coffee!"
I did not have to wait long before Christine walked into the coffee shop. I wondered if she had been waiting for my call. It didn't matter: the sight of her made me calm down a little. The place was busy now and Ryan had not gotten a chance to come to speak to me after Carl had gone. He waved to me as I finished the last drops of my coffee and walked to the door. "See you soon," he said cheerfully, and I nodded as I led Christine out on the street.
We walked to the apartment building in silence. As I approached the door, it dawned on me that Carl could have changed the locks or added an alarm. But my key worked perfectly in the lock and I opened the door to face chaos. Literally chaos.
The apartment looked like there had been a break-in or explosion. The wardrobe doors in the hall were opened and cloths were littering the floor. Actually, I could see that it was MY clothes lying on the floor. Carl's jackets seemed to hang perfectly on hangers.
Christine and I exchanged a look in disbelief. "What the hell happened here," we both said simultaneously.
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