Back To Black
The rest of the week was difficult for Therese. She tried to strictly focus on her work but it took a lot of determination as Genevieve still tried to woo her. The redhead’s gestures didn’t have an effect on her anymore since she was already captivated by a certain woman. Ever since she had given her number to the blonde, she hoped she hoped she would at least receive a call or text from her, but it never happened.
“Let me take you to dinner, Therese. Just one dinner.”
“I’m sorry but I’m really busy, Gen. I’m still not done editing the photos.”
“Come on, it’s just one dinner. Think of it as my treat to you for your upcoming exhibit,” the redhead winked at her.
“I just don’t think it’s a good idea, Gen. You and I are through, and going out for dinner might give you mixed signals, and I don’t want to do that.”
“Okay, fine. I’ll leave you be.”
The work was helpful to keep her mind focused on anything but Carol, but she dreaded the weekend. Therese was in a dilemma whether she should approach the woman again or not but she also didn’t want to seem desperate. She didn’t want to be reminded in case the blonde rejected her. Instead of having a pity party for herself, the brunette decided to work late every night and erase the blonde off her mind. But it wasn’t an easy task because every time she heard any songs from Kodaline and Florence and the Machine, they reminded her of the older woman. This situation irritated her since music meant something else to her now. It would always be connected to Carol. The ever sophisticated and elegant Carol.
“Hey, Dan, can you change the music? I’m really not liking it.”
“What’s wrong with Kodaline? I thought they’re your favorite band?”
“Can you just do what I asked you?” she accidentally snapped at her brother.
The auburn man just rose his arms in surrender and changed the song to a jazz one.
In the end, her pride won, and just like the stubborn woman she was, the brunette didn’t bother to try to be with Carol again. With the help of Dannie, each day got a little bit easier for her, and her work was finally at its finishing stages . She just needed to show her pieces to the board and have their opinions about it. She was so relieved that everything was finally coming together.
When the brunette didn’t hear anything from the woman again, she decided to not go to the record store again. She focused on her photography instead. She tried to convince herself that there was no time for any shenanigans. Therese felt like a fool for believing there was something between her and Carol.
She kept on having flashes of the blonde in her mind and no matter how hard she tried to remove her from her thoughts, it just simply never worked. She even tried going to seedy bars to forget about the woman, but no one held a candle to her mystery blonde. She scolded herself for being attached so easily to someone she barely knew. She had never been like this before, never, not to Genevieve, Madeline, or even Michelle. Not to anyone, really. Maybe Carol was an exception.
Carol tried her best to pretend like everything was fine. She would start her day early and even went for a jog before going to the store. Thankfully, her short exercise kept her mind away from Therese.
She attended every customer’s need with fake enthusiasm. Years of marriage with Harge had thought her one thing: fake it till you make it. Although she seemed fine to everyone else, she knew she couldn’t hide it from her best friend.
It was past the afternoon when Abby noticed there was something off with her friend. She couldn’t point out what specifically, but it just wasn’t the woman’s day.
Her natural posture had turned into a slump and even though her clothes looked stunning, the blonde still managed to make it seem unpleasant. Not just that, Carol was being grumpy and immature all day. She kept on lashing out and her best friend who couldn’t understand why. She was never like this. Carol was a composed and calm woman. Whatever it was upsetting the blonde, she presumed it was a big deal.
Her soft and loving eyes were full of rage and anger. The brunette tried to stay away from her sight all day but couldn’t help but get worried for her friend.
When the store was finally at its peace, Abby couldn’t help but ask her best friend what was going on.
“What’s happening, Carol? You look and act like shit today, it’s not like you to come to work late,” Abby finally questioned.
“I’m just tired, Abby. And I miss Rindy, you know how it is.”
“Oh, yeah… Is it also the time of the month already? You seem a bit bloated as well.”
“Fuck off, Abigail. Just like I said, I’m tired and have been stress-eating lately,” her voice raised defensively.
“You wouldn’t have to do that if someone’s banging you, you know.”
The blonde laughed at her friend’s statement. It was ironic, she thought, to feel like this over someone she barely knew. She wondered what Abby would think if she knew the real reason why she was acting like this.
The blonde had tried to be as composed as possible in the last few days. She tried to act as if not seeing Therese didn’t bother her at all, but her facade seemed to have completely crumbled that day .
“You’re the only one who can make me laugh, even at my lowest,” said Carol appreciatively.
“Yeah, because I’m such a goofball,” Abby smiled at her.
“Whatever’s bugging you, you know I’m here, right? Let’s close the store early, so we can have dinner together and you’ll get a good night's sleep.” With that, the brunette left her alone while the blonde’s mind inevitably drifted once again to a certain green-eyed brunette.
It had been almost two weeks since she last saw Therese and losing her phone number was her biggest misstep. She must have thought I’m not interested at all, Carol thought to herself . She knew it had been Florence who had thrown the card away thinking it was trash, but she didn’t have the energy to be upset with the woman since it had probably been an honest mistake.
Palming her face, the blonde internally groaned at her stupidity.
How did I not save her number? Why didn’t I just immediately send her a message the moment I came home?
Trying to resign the thought, Carol busied herself with counting that day’s sales and waited for her friend to come back. Her mind was full of what ifs and regret.
“You ready? We can go to EP & LP and have a drink.”
“You sure Julie won’t be looking for you?”
“I just have to be home before 10 pm, so she won’t get mad at me.”
“Look at you! All wifed up and all that.” Now, it was Carol’s time to tease her best friend.
Abby just laughed at her and punched her arm jokingly. “Come on now. We need you to be wifed up as well, your one true love might be at the bar.”
The auburn woman called them a cab and let Carol go inside first, “North La Cienega, please.”
Thirty minutes later, the two women found themselves eating Asian cuisine. It was their lucky day, the two didn’t have to wait for so long to get a table in spite of not having a reservation. Although it was a bit crowded, the food being served was simply delicious and irresistible.
With drinks in hand, Abby asked the inevitable, “Okay, I have to address the elephant in the room. Why are you so off today, Carol?”
The blonde choked on her food and coughed repeatedly. When she was finally able to clear her throat, she shyly confessed to her best friend. “Therese gave me a calling card the last time she was at the store. She asked me to call her whenever we had something new, but I know there was more to it. Just like what you said, no one needs that many albums. So, I decided to give her a call the next day, but I lost her contact details.”
The brunette didn’t expect this answer. She thought it would be about Rindy or Harge being an asshole again. She tried to cover her shock by asking another question.
“Oh, love. I’m so sorry. Do you think you just left it in your purse?”
“Abby, I looked everywhere. When I say everywhere, I really mean it.”
“Have you tried calling her from the contact details she gave during her last purchase?” Abby offered, thinking of every way she could to help her best friend.
“I have but a different person answered. Jennifer something? I don’t know, I immediately hung up when I heard a different voice,” Carol exacerbated.
“Is that why she hasn’t come back to the record store?”
Suddenly, Carol became uninterested with her food and started to play with it instead. As much as she tried to be unaffected, this turn of events had really taken a toll on her.
“I don’t know. Probably. I mean, she must have thought I’m uninterested. I can’t believe I’m 45 years old already and acting like a fucking schoolgirl.”
“Oh… So you’re really interested in her? Being more than just friends, I mean.”
“Why do you think I’m reacting this way if I wasn’t?” the blonde was starting to feel irritated and raised her voice.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you. You know I’ll always support you, but she’s young, Carol. Tell me you know what you’re doing.”
“I don’t. I never did,” the blonde sadly smiled at her.
Silence filled the two, no one dared to utter another word. Abby was happy for her friend, she really was. But she couldn’t help but be protective of her best friend’s feelings. This was the first time she saw Carol act like this because of someone else other than her family. As much as she wanted to see her best friend date again, she also wanted the woman to be careful with her heart. The auburn tried to regain the blonde’s focus by changing the topic.
“How about you come with me to this exhibit next week? A change of air will do you good.”
Carol was thankful for the distraction and decided to go with Abby’s flow. She didn’t want to bother her about this anymore, she was no longer a teenager.
“I have to check my schedule. Rindy might be with me by then. When and where is it?”
“d’Art something, just somewhere downtown. Harge will drop Rindy on Monday, Carol, you know it. Besides, it’ll be on a Friday night so you’re free as a bird.”
“I don’t know, Abs. I’ve been feeling tired lately and I really just want to rest.”
“Oh, come on, stop being a pussy. There’ll be free champagne, great artworks, and maybe even a new muse. What more do you want?”
Finally, Carol relented to Abby’s nonstop persuading, “Fine, I’ll come with you.” Although she knew already that she didn’t want anyone else but Therese.
“Great! Julie will be ecstatic.”
“God, I don’t want to be your third wheel,” the blonde groaned.
“You said yes already, so there’s no going back! I promise you, you’ll enjoy it,” Abby gave her a cheeky smile.