Chapter 14 — The Scandal
Today is a typical Monday. The weekend was great and filled with new experiences. I am wrapping up the end of my Monday work and thinking, wow this is shaping up to be a pretty solid deal. Oh how wrong I could be. I decided to stay a little later at work so I didn’t have to drive all the way home and then back for my kickball game. We played a hard game of kickball, and it was a nice stress relief. Once the game was over, I open my phone and see that there was a missed call from the girl. I figured, ok I’ll just say goodbye to my friends and shoot her a message that I am heading home. When I get to my bike about 10 minutes later, I get another phone call from the girl. This time I answer. She sounds very faint and asks when I’m getting home. I said soon, and asked if everything was alright? “No, everything is not alright,” she says again in a faint soft voice as if she is weak. I ask again if everything is fine and if she is doing ok. “No, but we will talk about it when you get home,” she says. I ask her if she is sure and she replies to drive slowly but get home soon and we will talk when I get home. My entire trip home I am listening to music and not trying to think about what it could be. Worse case, she’s going to tell me she is pregnant. I was preparing for the worst. I know this chick though, and she is very dramatic. I talk myself out of worrying and drive slowly to home. I even though of stopping by the store before just to kill some more time, but I didn’t. When I get home she has a very sad look on her face and tells me to sit down. “Oh god, someone died,” I think. I quickly ask her what the problem is. She asks me to sit down. I tell her she is making me very nervous and I want her to tell me exactly what the problem is ASAP. “It’s your mother,” she finally blurts out. “What is wrong with my mother?” I ask. “She sent me a message today. I want you to sit down and swear in front of the bible that you didn’t say anything to her about our fights.” I ask her what exactly my mom said. Little does she know, I already knew exactly what my mom said since she sent me the entire conversation earlier that day. She reads me the convo. She wrote to my mom first saying that she helped iron my clothes and get me ready for this new job, and what a fine man I am becoming. She also used a quote I said earlier in the day: “Behind every strong man is a strong woman”. My mom replies that she has no doubts in my abilities and she knows I am a very smart and driven individual. She then asks what the girl’s plans are in America and if she plans on staying, who is going to pay for the ticket and everything. The girl replies something sarcastic about god that I can’t even remember right now. The girl read me all this, but deleted the part where she replied with sarcasm and I didn’t call her out. “That’s it?” I ask loudly. She starts trembling and said that my mom said exactly what I was talking about when I brought up her leaving a week ago. “So? That is exactly what is on everyone’s mind,” I quickly reply to her. I had a face of stone as if I was not amused with the charade she was putting on. She tells me that she feels I am not being true to her. I know it was my time to speak up but I am weak. Instead I tell her that I am the only one standing behind her and that all my friends ask the same thing and think that it is not her place to stay here for six months. She immediately picks up her phone and leaves a message for her friend that she will need a place to stay for the night. I was not amused. I did not say a word. She then begins crying and telling me one day I will be sad that she left and think about what once could have happened. I thought it was bullshit. I told her why all my friends think she is overstaying her welcome. She freaks out and cries hysterically. She stands up just to theatrically fall on the ground as if to faint. She didn’t faint. She weakly says that her blood pressure is low and that she needs salt under her tongue. I calmly walk over to the kitchen and grab some salt and a spoon to put under her tongue. She shudders as she puts her hand on my hand and inserts a spoon of salt under her tongue. She continues to cry and cry. I eventually calm her down and tell her that I started the entire conversation with the fact that I am the only one behind her. Again, I am weak. She says nasty things about my friends and bitches that I didn’t defend her. Oh god if she only knew the things my sister had to say about her. Ha! Then she would definitely feel offended. She said she felt humiliated and she said she is tired of having to prove to everyone that she is here for me. I bit. I calm her down some more until I mention six months again. “Six months, SIX MONTHS!”, she explains, “If I hear SIX MONTHS one more time I swear that is the last time you will see me.” Oh god how I am weak. She explains how things change and how it isn’t that long of a time and that I wanted her to stay and that I am her boyfriend. I feel like I am her boyfriend only when it is convenient for her. To wrap up the story, she eventually says she will stay the night but sleep on the couch. I ask her why, and she says to give me space since I was talking about how I like my own space. This makes no sense to me. I tell her that it is ridiculous for her to sleep on the couch to give me more space and that I feel like she is just saying that so she can be alone. Eventually she says she will sleep on my bed too. I tell her to advise her friend that everything is ok and that she will not be spending the night. Who knows what she really said. In the end, this was potentially my second chance to just bite the bullet and let her be on her way. I still feel like it would be me giving up though. I am weak. I’m sure she will be the one wanting to come back eventually if she left, but once she is out that door, there is no way I am letting her come back.
