Ooga-chaka ooga-chaka. Groan.
Ooga-chaka ooga-chaka. Sigh. Not now, the full cast of Guardians of the Galaxy, I'm trying to sleep.
Ooga-chaka ooga-chaka. Jesus. Don't you know I have things to do tomorrow? Yes, Chris Pratt's abs, I have to take my super hot girlfriend up to our cabin to meet my parents. Yeah, I work tomorrow too.
I work tomorrow.
I shot out of bed, nearly smashing my Blue Suede alarm clock as I turned it off. I ran to my closet, pulled on my shirt, and then fell flat on my face as I tried to put both of my legs into my pants at the same time. As I was trying to regain both my footing and my dignity, my phone rang.
"Hello?"
"It's your mother. I hope you're ready for tonight. Your brother flew in special from New York just to meet her. We're all so excited!"
"Awesome, Mom, that's great. I would love to talk to you, but I'm late for work-"
"Oh my goodness, that's right! Well, don't let me keep you! Talk to you soon, I love you!"
"Yep, I love you too. Bye."
As I hung up the phone, I realized my shirt was definitely on backwards. I flipped it around and ran out of the bedroom into the kitchen. The only things in the fridge were a banana and some Chinese food, which I decided made for a good enough breakfast. Besides, Christmas was in two days, I could eat well at the cabin. As I was finishing the last wonton, I remembered something.
Tasha. Shit. Where was she? We were leaving today, and she had taken off of work specifically for me. Was she hiding?
"Tasha?" No answer. I walked back into the bedroom, to check her side of the bed. She had stayed up late last night, and so I never actually saw her go to bed. In fact, it looked as if her side hadn't been slept in at all. As I checked under the covers, I found a note written on an orange Post-It.
Lucy,
I'm sorry, I don't want to do it this way, but
I think this is the only way I can be happy.
I can't do this anymore, and I didn't know how
to tell you. I hope you can still find happiness.
I love you,
Tasha
I sat down. I read it over again. I read it again and again, until I had every word memorized and I could read it in my head. I couldn't see the words anymore, I couldn't see anything anymore, because there was a river of tears flowing from my eyes. I couldn't think, I couldn't feel. All I could do was sit and cry.
I started to remember. I went back to the day we met, in the hair parlor. I knew from the moment she squeaked out her name that I would fall in love with this girl, and that I would do anything to make her mine. That's why I showed her the subway, and opened my heart to her and let her crawl inside. And in time, she did the same for me. I knew her deepest secrets, her deepest desires. I knew that I was the first girl she'd ever been with, and I hoped I would be the only one.
She was a first for me, too. The first person I ever slept with. The first one I ever lived with. She was supposed to be the first one to meet my parents. And now, she was the first person to ever break my heart, thoroughly and completely. But I couldn't hate her. What she did was terrible, of course, and it hurt like nothing ever had. But it was those three words at the end of the note that changed everything. She was the first one I said them to, and now, they stared back at me, tearing me apart each time I read them. She still loves me. She still loves me. Tasha still loves me.
Fuck.