16. Chapter Sixteen
One week, two weeks, three weeks.
Lea has avoided me for almost three whole weeks.
Since our last encounter at the cafeteria, I noticed the distance in her eyes. She didn’t have to say too many words. Her actions were loud enough.
I got caught up in the euphoria of our last date and thought we were on the same page with our feelings for each other.
She barely speaks to me these days.
In the mornings, she leaves early enough for me not to have a chance to offer her a ride.
She always turned off her lights at night before I got back, showing she didn’t want anyone to visit her.
Even when I attempted to knock on her door a few times, there was no answer.
At work, she only spoke to me about work-related issues.
“Here are some documents you need to sign.”
“You have a meeting scheduled for 10:00 am.”
“This client says he wants you to supervise directly.”
“I have emailed the presentation to you.”
Single-line, emotionless conversations were what we had these days.
It is evident that she is on a mission to shut me out, but I cannot figure out why. The last date went so well and ended on a great note, even after the surprise call with my parents.
That night, I slept better than I ever had in my life. Music filled my room, mixed with her laughter in my ears.
I went home to celebrate that the love of my life had acknowledged my feelings. The kiss we shared was different from earlier ones. Although we were not an official item yet, it was a good step in our hearts’ direction, or so I guessed.
What could have gone wrong? To turn such a blissful night into a heart-wrenching three weeks of distance.
Whenever I asked her what was wrong, she would shrug and dismiss my concerns like they didn’t matter to her.
A knock on my door interrupts my intrinsic thoughts. I permit the person to come in, and she walks in.The secret door connecting both offices has not been used in the past weeks. She would use the front door whenever she needed to get something to me. It was as if she was sending an apparent message to everyone who cared to notice that our relationship was plainly platonic and nothing more.
This phase was difficult, not just for me but for her. I could see her struggle to avoid my gaze whenever she spoke to me.
The pain in her eyes was evidence that she was hurting too, but why wouldn’t she open up and let me in on her thoughts?
“Good morning, Damien.”
I nod as a sign of accepting her greeting. Bile was gathering in my throat, and it made it too difficult to respond to her with words.
She bats her eyes as if fighting back tears. Or was I just imagining it?
“Mr. Lorenzo sent another project brief and an excellent review of the last project.”
“That’s great,” I struggle to say.
This was exciting news for me and the company. With Lorenzo’s media platforms, our project would be on the news all over the world, which would mean more clients and more prominent ones.
“However, he says he needs to meet with you as soon as possible as he has a flight to catch before three this afternoon. I came to inform you personally, as you have not opened the email I sent earlier today.”
My laptop was open right before me, but I had gotten no work done. I kept staring at pictures from the night we went bowling, trying to figure out a solution to dissolve this wall between us.
“Right. Err mmm. I was preoccupied with something else. I will check the email for further details. Thank you for the notice.”
“You’re welcome,” Lea says abruptly and turns to walk out briskly like a soldier dismissed by her commandant.
Just before she shuts the door, I call to her, “Lea…”
She takes a few seconds to contemplate whether or not to respond to me. Her mind ticks the decision it wants to make.
The chosen option is not to respond, as she shut the door as though I had never called or she had never heard.
“Dear Mr. Stone. I must say, I am now fully convinced that you are the best in construction and interiors in the whole of Los Angeles. I dare say in the whole of the United States of America. You perfectly executed the project, and the owners have only positive remarks. They have decided to hand over another project to your company, and I would need to meet up physically to discuss this with you.”
I read Mr. Lorenzo’s email repeatedly until my mind memorized the words. The venue and time for the meeting are stated in the other details below.
Based on this information, I have less than an hour to get to the meeting venue.
I gather my phone, car key, and other essential documents I need for the meeting.
On my way out, I stop at Lea’s office and peep in to see her staring into space. Her eyes looked wet with tears, and they dropped slowly from her eyes.
Why did we both have to hurt this much over something we could discuss? Whatever the case, there would be a solution when we speak about it and not this Great Wall of China that was standing between us.
I struggle to keep my mind fixated on the road as I drive. My mind struggles to keep up with the various reasons she acted this way. Was this a stage of grief, too? Was she shutting her heart out from receiving any form of love?
The honking of cars fills my ear as I realize that the traffic light has turned green while I struggle with my Lea-thoughts.
I move forward as other drivers move past me, but not without giving me looks of disgust.
None of that mattered to me more than the woman I love, who had all my heart shutting me out of her life and her thoughts.
I arrived at the Boulevard according to the description in the email.
Mr. Lorenzo instructs the butler to welcome me in, leading me to the lounge where Lorenzo is seated.
A bottle of Old Italian Grape wine is set before him with two wine glasses.
“My good man, Stone. It’s lovely to meet you again.” He says in his undiluted Italian accent.
“It’s nice to meet you again, Mr. Lorenzo.”
“Your staff are super efficient. How do you get them to work that way? There was no hassle for them to get the job done. They did such an excellent job with the project.”
“Everyone understands the vision at Selware and the need to always deliver a perfect job. My staff understands the assignment.”
“They truly do. I am glad I got to work with you.”
He went on about the new projects that we had to work on. One was here in Los Angeles, while the location of the other was not certain yet.
We go over the details and strike a deal. Another win for Selware was in the bag, but I was barely excited about this. Nothing was exciting to me anymore.
It’s almost dark by the time I leave the Boulevard. I contemplated going home, but the thought of Lea shutting me out by turning off her lights made me rethink such a decision.
I decided to go back to the office. Doing some work would take my mind off these insistent thoughts that plagued my mind.
The drive back to the office is silent, even with the music playing from the speakers. My ears shut out the sound of the jazz melodies and could only hear Lea’s sing-song voice instead.
I park my car at my designated spot and make sure to lock it properly before going in. I walk into the hallway and notice the lights turned on from another office.
Who could still be here till this late hour? We operated a policy that did not allow staff to work overtime here. I believe in work-life balance and do not want staff working till late hours of the night unless it is extremely important and unavoidable.
I walk down to check whose office the lights are coming from and notice that it is Lea’s office.
What was she still doing here?
Lea doesn’t notice when I walk into her office as her head is bent beneath her table.
When her head comes up, she is as shocked to see me as I am to see her still here.
There were a few seconds of silence, and it was deafening.
Maybe we could sort this out this evening.