CONT.
1390 Words
The eye of the sun weakens upon the furtive peek of the moon in the east. The hush of the deepening night simmered with the avenue that never gets tired of accompanying the cars with different hues of paint and the lights striking through edges of everyone’s eyes passing by.
The queue of streetlights seemed sashaying alongside. Their halos sterilize the velvet black appearing bold, earthbound stars. The symphony of crickets parading on the background and the roaring engine rang in her ears.
Her mind went around in an endless loop when suddenly she bumped into someone, making her system arise.
“I’m sorry, miss,” a modulated, yet sympathetic voice of someone waved through the air.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you coming,” she apologized, too.
Eventually, their eyes met in between. Everything suspended in time that they stood petrified, staring into each other’s eyes.
She cleared her throat at a later second when her eyes bulged slightly. “Matt, is that you?” she unbelievably asked, examining his face down his feet.
The lights from the post help them see each other clearly.
His forehead creased, curious as to not absorb yet how she knew his name. Then, a hint had been cornered into his mind with no way out, but a familiar face appeared across it. “Guillen,” he mumbled.
“I knew it! Here you are,” she said eagerly, even slipped from her problematic mind the worries she got feasted.
“Oh, Len, what’s up?” he asked, still looking amused.
“I’m good,” she replied, beaming a short smile.
“What brought you here? I mean… you working here in Manhattan?”
Matt was her childhood friend back in the countryside who happened to be residing here in the city.
His question sent her a wave of memory that came about this morning. Her curvy lips forming just a little while ago transformed into subdued expression.
“Uhm… just a tiring and unfortunate day. You know, it just happened. Not my choice either.” Her voice became monotonous.
“What happened to you? And you’ve got to bring with you your bags. Did you just run away from home?” he asked with his eyes narrowed down her hobo bag.
In her sigh exited straight from the mouth the moment her shoulder slumped. Everything associated with her emotions earlier came back to her senses – pained, distress, worries, and mental breakdown.
When Matt felt something had gone wrong with her, he tapped her shoulders. “Come on, let’s just pop in for a coffee by the nearest café house.”
Along the way, no one dared speak. They just let the moment pass them by. Only their treads on the tarmac could only be singing in patterns.
When they got to the Sylvestre’s Café House, his favorite cappuccino indicated on his top list of order that of Guillen ordered as well; it was his treat, by the way, as he mentioned.
“Well, when you’re ready, Len. I’m here to listen,” he expressed and sipped in his drink. It made him whip up as soon as he tasted it.
Somehow, the surge of her breakdown subsided little by little.
“Uh…” She gripped the ceramic cup, feeling up its heat on her palm. She could not bottle up what she feels anymore. She needs to at least damp it down, despite the unlikeness of having her problem advertised to anyone.
“I’m frustrated, as you see…” Guillen continued and followed by further details about what happened to her this morning. “You know, it was hard to accept. Look, I borrowed that placement fee I paid down. I thought up I could pay them back when I got to work in Germany.” Her tears welled up, and she could not be able to hold them back that they quickly streamed down her cheeks. She thought they were all gone.
“Len, I had no idea that would happen to you. I’m sorry. You could’ve called me so I can assist you at least,” he empathized and reached out her hand.
She sobbed, “I actually don’t know what to do right now. I’m messed up.” She blinked even longer, making her restless tears threaten to run dry anytime soon. She choked a few times and took a gander outside through the glass wall.
“Len,” Matt paused and caressed the back of her palm. “You have nothing to worry about. It’s a good sign that we ran into each other. I can help you.”
She hesitantly looked at him, her face turning crimson. “No, Matt. I’d love to accept it, but it—”
“You’d love it. That’s all. Besides, we had good times together.”
She held out her hand from his and stirred her drink. “Uhm…” She exhaled in defeat. “You’re right. I guess I should need your help. I can’t just stay right outside.”
His teeth shone bright, and his shoulders held back against the backrest. “You can shack up at my apartment unit on the next boulevard if you want.”
She sat unmoving. Her mind blew away, and her eyes darted to the table right next to theirs. “Uhm… Matt, if I’d wish, I prefer being alone.” She gazed at him, fidgeting her fingers. “I mean… it’s kind of weird between us if you saw me crying all day long,” she jested to divert what she minded fusing into one idea – that was they may think weirder that they would live under the same roof together.
He chuckled and crossed his arms against his sturdy chest. “Well, I know somewhere on the third street a small unit where you can live temporarily. I’m up for your monthly fees until you get a job,” he offered.
She sprung to senses an assault of diffident. Her bashful eyes nailed at him as if she could transfer the data of her brain telling him not to provide her things like that.
“No, Matt. I have to go find a job as soon as possible. By tomorrow or Sunday, I must find one.”
It was evident that they had a good friendship back in Sherriff.
“Then, I know some jobs you can work as – saleslady in a shoe boutique, product endorser, junior stylist at salon…” He counted it all by fingers.
“Uh, Matt, are they good-paying?”
He shook his head slowly, unsure.
“I mean, is there anything that offers… you know much better benefits?” she asked out of want.
Surprisingly, it was not as his reaction as she had anticipated. She assumed he would describe her demanding. But actually, she just joked him around.
He nodded and held a blank look, envisaging a job that may fit on her. But a picture of construction site appeared on his imagination. Well, he mused around the possible things she could suffer if she had gone through it. But the salary is way a bit too high compared to what he recommended first.
“I have one. But give me a sec, I need to use the toilet.” He softly laughed and nipped over to the toilet.
“Hey! What’s up, bro?” a robust, clean-cut man in his apron greeted a friend who just came in the shop. He caught everyone’s attention even Guillen and gave an apologetic look to them.
“I just passed by the site to check the on-going reports.”
“All right, order, Ben?
“Yeah, as usual, citrus cold brew.”
Guillen happened to hear them two. Suddenly, that familiar voice flitted back through her ears. That reminded her the same baritone voice she heard on the police station. Her heart increased in beat, and she fought back her head to turn around only to see his face. She suspected, it was him – like no other than. The cells within her body sizzled alive.
His voice was appealing and like a magnet pulling her to his scorching anonymity. As much as she wanted to take a sight of this man, she could ever make a sway straight only to her cappuccino.
- Writer
