Greenlee was, for the most part, a very loving girl. She had a temper, which often made it seem otherwise, but despite her tempermental behavior, she tended to be very loving. She came from an extremely wealthy family, one which she was certian fate didn't mean to put her in. She couldn't help but blame it on Fate's error, because she always felt so out of place when around her relatives. She was different; not like them. Her parents made it a point to spoil her, which she accounted as "one of the many curses of being an only child."
You would think a person would like to be in such a wealthy, princess-like situation, but Greenlee did not. She despised her parents and loathed the way they raised her.
Greenlee had been in her fair share of relationships, all ending in heart break. Some guys wanted her for sex, others for her money, but none seemed to be interested in her, to just like her for who she was. Once she thought she found it, she thought she found true love. He was the perfect guy: handsome, charming, sweet, compassionate, loving. Everything she wanted. Greenlee was fooled into thinking that he really did love her, and she knew she loved him, so when he proposed, of course she said yes. And then came that night, the night Greenlee remembered so well...
She and her fiancee were sitting down to a fancy dinner in her living room, which was entirely lit by candles. Greenlee had spent an entire week planning the evening. It was a special night. It was the night that marked the one year anniversary of their meeting. After they had eaten, laughed and talked, they fell into a sudden silence, staring into each other's eyes.
"Ask me anything," he said. "Anything at all."
"Okay," Greenlee said with a grin. "Have you ever met anyone like me before?"
"Never," he smiled.
She giggled. "Do you think I'm beautiful?"
He leaned in and kissed her nose. "Of course."
Her eyes lit up. "Would you do anything for me?"
"Anything."
She took a deep breath, "Do you love me?"
He paused, staring at her. She sat on the edge of her seat, eagerly awaiting the reply. And suddenly, he looked away.
That was when Greenlee gave up on love.
One year later, she was beginning to feel lonely. She wanted to settle down with a guy, the perfect guy, who had the most wonderful family. They would go to family get-together's packing along their kids, and they'd give the family hugs and kisses because it's been so long since the last time, and oh how the little one's have grown. He would take her coat and hang it up for her, and she would bake him cookies. She wanted a comfortable life, with solid memories and open futures.
For the time being, however, Greenlee was working her new desk job at the Pine Valley Times as a news columnist, single as possible. She wished she had a boyfriend or, preferably, a husband, but she knew she couldn't rush a thing like that, and so waited in eager anticipation for the day when fate would bump her into her soul mate.
Until then, she was working her desk job. Flickering on her computer minitor was half an article, and clutched in the palm of her hand was half a mug of coffee. She spun the cup around, the now cold coffee swishing in a spiral. She set the mug down, sighed deeply, and pushed her hair back behind her ears. Reading over the half-written article on her screen, she began to tap her finger nails on the desk. In her opinion, the article was finished. There was nothing more to add. She knew, though, that if she left it as it was, then her boss would surely get on her case for writing yet another short article. She could already hear his deep, raspy voice: "It needs more detail!" He would shout, tossing the paper into the air.
Greenlee's eyes began to wonder around her office. A framed picture of her dog, Happy, was sitting on a shelf, with a ballet trophy from when she was little beside it. Then her eyes fell upon a sticky post-it note. STAY FOCUSED, it said. Greenlee smirked at herself. "Focus. Yeah, right."
She spun her chair around in a circle and stopped in front of the monitor, attempting, once again, to focus on the task at hand.
"More detail.." she muttered. With a glance at her clock, she realized how late it was, and that she had been officially off work ten minutes ago. She saved her article, shut down the computer, and stood up stretching her arms.
"Another day, another dollar." She grinned.
Gathering up her coat, hat, gloves and scarf, she bundled up and locked her office door behind her.
"See you tomorrow Greenlee," an employee said with a smile.
"See you." Greenlee smiled.
She headed outside into the cold, the wind whipping her hair about in a frenzy.
"I don't know what's worse," she said to herself. "Walking home in the freezing cold, or working on boring articles in a cozy office."
She pulled her coat around herself tightly, clutching her briefcase in her hand.
"Naturally, the cozy office sounds better," she thought, "but if your going home to a warm fire and a mug of hot chocolate, the freezing walk might not seem so bad."
She suddenly laughed at herself, realizing she was debating nothing with no-one.
When she finally arrived home, she entered her little apartment, her nose and cheeks a cherry red. The first thing she did was hurry to the kitchen and fill her copper kettle with water from the sink, then she set it onto a hot burner. After taking off all her winter clothes (and throwing them all about the floor) she opened her closet door to find where she had stuffed the christmas decorations. As she rummaged, her eyes fell upon an old shoe box. She turned away from the box quickly, and started rummaging on the other side of the closet... but she stopped. She turned back to the shoe box. With a deep sigh, she lifted it from the shelf.
"Why do I keep doing this to myself?" She asked herself as she pulled the box down. Slowly she pulled the lid off, but she stopped when the kettle began to whistle. After making herself a cup of cocoa, she hurried back to the living room. She switched on her automatic fireplace (thinking all the while how nice it would be to have a strong husband to carry in fire wood and start a REAL fire), then she wrapped herself up in a blanket and set her mug of cocoa next to the box. She sat down Indian style in front of the box, then slowly lifted the lid.
Photographs, postcards, letters, old movie tickets, some scrunched up tissues and other little trinkets filled the box to the very top.
There were two things Greenlee had never admitted to anyone: 1) the fact that she had that box, and 2) the way she never stops thinking about him.
He seemed to haunt her, to consume her. She had been young and in love, and even though it'd been a whole year, she still dwelt on it. She still thought about all the candle lit dinners, all the nights they spent together, all their conversations. She couldn't seem to let it go. She'd never trusted or been so intimate with anyone before. In a way, when he left, he took with him her innocence. He took with him something she wished he didn't have.
Her hands dug deeply into the box, reaching all the way to the bottom. She pulling out an old book. When she opened it, she brushed her fingers over the first page.
"Today I met the most wonderful man."
Pushing tears away, she flipped to nearly the back of the book. After pulling an old pen out of the box, she began to write on the last few pages.
"I am finally realizing that you are everywhere, and I'm just going to have to get used to it."
Tears swelled in her eyes.
"I can't escape you. I don't even know why I try, but I'm not going to give up. I'm going to keep pushing you away, and one day I'll rid my mind of these thoughts of you. I'm bound and determined to not let you influence my life any longer. I'm throwing everything away, and I'm starting fresh. I'll find a new man, one who really loves me, and in 5 years from now, when we happen to pass each other in the street, you'll be a raggedy old bum with a bottle of liquor, and I'll be walking hand in hand with my husband."
She closed the book, buried it back inside the box, and, through tear-filled eyes, put it back up on the shelf in her closet. Sighing deeply, she sat down again on the floor. She picked up her mug and stared into the depths of her hot chocolate. Why was she clinging onto this man for so long? She was afraid. She was afraid she would never find love like that again. She just wanted a happy storybook life, but her dreams had all been shattered. How could she be certain she would find such blissful love again? Sometimes, even though it was all false, she wished she could have it back, because even if in the long run it meant nothing... at least she had been happy.
With a lonely sort of feeling, she dumped her hot chocolate down the drain, turned out the lights, and crawled into bed.
You would think a person would like to be in such a wealthy, princess-like situation, but Greenlee did not. She despised her parents and loathed the way they raised her.
Greenlee had been in her fair share of relationships, all ending in heart break. Some guys wanted her for sex, others for her money, but none seemed to be interested in her, to just like her for who she was. Once she thought she found it, she thought she found true love. He was the perfect guy: handsome, charming, sweet, compassionate, loving. Everything she wanted. Greenlee was fooled into thinking that he really did love her, and she knew she loved him, so when he proposed, of course she said yes. And then came that night, the night Greenlee remembered so well...
She and her fiancee were sitting down to a fancy dinner in her living room, which was entirely lit by candles. Greenlee had spent an entire week planning the evening. It was a special night. It was the night that marked the one year anniversary of their meeting. After they had eaten, laughed and talked, they fell into a sudden silence, staring into each other's eyes.
"Ask me anything," he said. "Anything at all."
"Okay," Greenlee said with a grin. "Have you ever met anyone like me before?"
"Never," he smiled.
She giggled. "Do you think I'm beautiful?"
He leaned in and kissed her nose. "Of course."
Her eyes lit up. "Would you do anything for me?"
"Anything."
She took a deep breath, "Do you love me?"
He paused, staring at her. She sat on the edge of her seat, eagerly awaiting the reply. And suddenly, he looked away.
That was when Greenlee gave up on love.
One year later, she was beginning to feel lonely. She wanted to settle down with a guy, the perfect guy, who had the most wonderful family. They would go to family get-together's packing along their kids, and they'd give the family hugs and kisses because it's been so long since the last time, and oh how the little one's have grown. He would take her coat and hang it up for her, and she would bake him cookies. She wanted a comfortable life, with solid memories and open futures.
For the time being, however, Greenlee was working her new desk job at the Pine Valley Times as a news columnist, single as possible. She wished she had a boyfriend or, preferably, a husband, but she knew she couldn't rush a thing like that, and so waited in eager anticipation for the day when fate would bump her into her soul mate.
Until then, she was working her desk job. Flickering on her computer minitor was half an article, and clutched in the palm of her hand was half a mug of coffee. She spun the cup around, the now cold coffee swishing in a spiral. She set the mug down, sighed deeply, and pushed her hair back behind her ears. Reading over the half-written article on her screen, she began to tap her finger nails on the desk. In her opinion, the article was finished. There was nothing more to add. She knew, though, that if she left it as it was, then her boss would surely get on her case for writing yet another short article. She could already hear his deep, raspy voice: "It needs more detail!" He would shout, tossing the paper into the air.
Greenlee's eyes began to wonder around her office. A framed picture of her dog, Happy, was sitting on a shelf, with a ballet trophy from when she was little beside it. Then her eyes fell upon a sticky post-it note. STAY FOCUSED, it said. Greenlee smirked at herself. "Focus. Yeah, right."
She spun her chair around in a circle and stopped in front of the monitor, attempting, once again, to focus on the task at hand.
"More detail.." she muttered. With a glance at her clock, she realized how late it was, and that she had been officially off work ten minutes ago. She saved her article, shut down the computer, and stood up stretching her arms.
"Another day, another dollar." She grinned.
Gathering up her coat, hat, gloves and scarf, she bundled up and locked her office door behind her.
"See you tomorrow Greenlee," an employee said with a smile.
"See you." Greenlee smiled.
She headed outside into the cold, the wind whipping her hair about in a frenzy.
"I don't know what's worse," she said to herself. "Walking home in the freezing cold, or working on boring articles in a cozy office."
She pulled her coat around herself tightly, clutching her briefcase in her hand.
"Naturally, the cozy office sounds better," she thought, "but if your going home to a warm fire and a mug of hot chocolate, the freezing walk might not seem so bad."
She suddenly laughed at herself, realizing she was debating nothing with no-one.
When she finally arrived home, she entered her little apartment, her nose and cheeks a cherry red. The first thing she did was hurry to the kitchen and fill her copper kettle with water from the sink, then she set it onto a hot burner. After taking off all her winter clothes (and throwing them all about the floor) she opened her closet door to find where she had stuffed the christmas decorations. As she rummaged, her eyes fell upon an old shoe box. She turned away from the box quickly, and started rummaging on the other side of the closet... but she stopped. She turned back to the shoe box. With a deep sigh, she lifted it from the shelf.
"Why do I keep doing this to myself?" She asked herself as she pulled the box down. Slowly she pulled the lid off, but she stopped when the kettle began to whistle. After making herself a cup of cocoa, she hurried back to the living room. She switched on her automatic fireplace (thinking all the while how nice it would be to have a strong husband to carry in fire wood and start a REAL fire), then she wrapped herself up in a blanket and set her mug of cocoa next to the box. She sat down Indian style in front of the box, then slowly lifted the lid.
Photographs, postcards, letters, old movie tickets, some scrunched up tissues and other little trinkets filled the box to the very top.
There were two things Greenlee had never admitted to anyone: 1) the fact that she had that box, and 2) the way she never stops thinking about him.
He seemed to haunt her, to consume her. She had been young and in love, and even though it'd been a whole year, she still dwelt on it. She still thought about all the candle lit dinners, all the nights they spent together, all their conversations. She couldn't seem to let it go. She'd never trusted or been so intimate with anyone before. In a way, when he left, he took with him her innocence. He took with him something she wished he didn't have.
Her hands dug deeply into the box, reaching all the way to the bottom. She pulling out an old book. When she opened it, she brushed her fingers over the first page.
"Today I met the most wonderful man."
Pushing tears away, she flipped to nearly the back of the book. After pulling an old pen out of the box, she began to write on the last few pages.
"I am finally realizing that you are everywhere, and I'm just going to have to get used to it."
Tears swelled in her eyes.
"I can't escape you. I don't even know why I try, but I'm not going to give up. I'm going to keep pushing you away, and one day I'll rid my mind of these thoughts of you. I'm bound and determined to not let you influence my life any longer. I'm throwing everything away, and I'm starting fresh. I'll find a new man, one who really loves me, and in 5 years from now, when we happen to pass each other in the street, you'll be a raggedy old bum with a bottle of liquor, and I'll be walking hand in hand with my husband."
She closed the book, buried it back inside the box, and, through tear-filled eyes, put it back up on the shelf in her closet. Sighing deeply, she sat down again on the floor. She picked up her mug and stared into the depths of her hot chocolate. Why was she clinging onto this man for so long? She was afraid. She was afraid she would never find love like that again. She just wanted a happy storybook life, but her dreams had all been shattered. How could she be certain she would find such blissful love again? Sometimes, even though it was all false, she wished she could have it back, because even if in the long run it meant nothing... at least she had been happy.
With a lonely sort of feeling, she dumped her hot chocolate down the drain, turned out the lights, and crawled into bed.