LET’S MEET
Jean’s reply to her message really made her very excited, and both of them started chatting with each other by sending one message after the other person replied, and that was happening in a jiffy because both of them were sitting with their phones in their hands.
Marie: “I have been at home only. It is just that I got no time at all. I am sorry.”
Jean: “No problem. Good you messaged me today. What are your plans for the day?”
Marie: “Nothing much. I studied a little, and I think that is what I am going to do.”
Jean: “Take a break! Your holidays have just started. Stop studying.”
Marie: “Studying is my favorite hobby. Taking a break from it is not possible.”
Jean: “How can studying be a hobby?”
Marie: “The same way playing basketball can be a hobby.”
Jean: “Oh please! Playing is very different from studying.”
Marie: “If you say so. Haha. What will you do today?”
Jean: “I am planning to come and visit you. Maybe meet you somewhere outside.”
Marie: “My parents will not allow me to go anywhere outside.”
Jean: “Is meeting near your house also not possible?”
Marie: “There is a park near my house. I can walk my dog till there.”
Jean: “What time will you be taking him for a walk?”
Marie: “Shadow is particular about peeing and pooping. He has his time set."
Jean: “So, what is it? Tell me the evening time, and I will be there in the garden.”
Marie: “Evening at around 4:45 should be fine because 4:30 to 5:00 pm is his time.”
Jean: “I will be there waiting for you from 4:30 onwards.”
Marie: “Okay, Jean. I will come there as soon as I can.”
Jean: “Wear something black. I will also wear black.”
Marie: “Black it is!”
Jean: “See you later.”
Marie: “Bye, Jean.”
Not a very long chat but a short one was enough for Marie to go back to her room much happier to do what she was doing and desperately waiting for it to be evening so that she could take Shadow for a walk and meet her best friend who she was already building a crush on. It was difficult for both of them to decide what it was, and it was very early to do that too, but it was certainly something that was much more than just friendship.
Everything that Marie did after having that chat with Jean, she did it in a rush because she could not wait for it to be evening already. This feeling was very new to her, and she was loving it. It felt as if this was why she was living her life, and she related all the things happening in her life to the way that she was feeling and the new emotions that were evolving in her because it just felt very right to do that.
In did not take much longer for it to be 4:00 in the evening, but the half an hour wait felt like it was a wait for one whole year to pass. Marie was walking to and fro from her study table and the door of her room. Her sister was playing a video game on her new portable gaming console and was not paying attention to what Marie was doing until her foot hit her bed.
“Walk carefully,” she said and asked, “Did you get hurt?”
“No, I am fine,” said Marie even though it was hard for her to take another step. So, she sat down on the floor holding her toe which hit the bed because it started to hurt. It was just about time that she had to take Shadow out for a walk, and she was worried if she would be able to actually walk straight.
While she was getting up, Rebecca got to the foot of the bed to support her. She said, “Sit down on my bed, Marie. You will feel better, rest for some time.”
“I am taking Shadow for a walk,” Marie replied.
“Are you crazy?” Rebecca questioned to make it obvious that it was not a good idea for Marie to take him for a walk since she was hurt.
“I will take Shadow for a walk,” she mentioned.
Marie got nervous because she had to step out of the house in order to meet Jean as they had planned. Come what may, she had to be in a position to go outside, but the way her sister had been talking to her did not quite make it seem plausible for her to go for a walk with Shadow for about twenty minutes. She was left thinking for a solution to be able to step out.
She took care of her facial expression that showed how badly she was hurt and pretended to stay strong as she was walking in front of her sister to prove to her that she was not hurt as badly as Rebecca was assuming even though she was having difficulty in walking with a hurtful toe and not showing how badly it was hurting. She tried her best to maintain a smile by showing off her teeth.
“See, I can still walk,” she said as she continued walking in front of Rebecca.
“I will take Shadow to the park,” she stated.
“Do whatever you want to,” Rebecca commented and went back to her bed to continue playing the video game which she had been playing since the time she woke up at noon.
Happily, Marie went to the bathroom to give a final touch up to herself, and she walked out of her room with her dog’s strap. In no time, she started to actually walk normally as her pain subsided, and she forgot about hitting her toe to the bed.
The air outside felt fresher to her than usual, and some melodious tune started to play for her in anticipation of meeting Jean. The wait, the hurt, the manipulation, and everything seemed worth the trouble only because she was finally going to see her friend. Nothing could have possibly been better than the feeling which she was getting at the time she was walking to the park.
When she was just about to enter it, she quickly ran her sight in the park to see if she found Jean over there. And voila! There was Jean. She was standing at a distance which was almost to the other side of the park looking back at Marie, and both of them started to smile just as they spotted one another. Marie was hoping not to be caught meeting her crush.
