Chapter Nine
Michelle was snoring on the couch when Aliannah got home, much to her relief, so she tip-toed to her room and shut the door quietly. She was still in awe at herself for kissing Jasper back. Even though Ivan still lurked about like a bad smell, she finally believed that maybe she could move on with Jasper. Was Jasper “The One”? Maybe? Or maybe not? A girl had to start somewhere, and Jasper seemed like a good place to start.
Aliannah woke the next morning to intense knocking on the front door. She opened it to find the florist courier again. This time, he had five huge bouquets of white peonies.
“This guy sure is a trier! I had to borrow Harry's Cart to get these up here,” the courier said, defeated. Aliannah rolled her eyes and waved in the courier so he could unload the cart and leave. She was in no mood for jokes. Ivan was becoming smothering. How can someone so far away be such a pain in the ass? She found the note on the last bouquet.
Aliannah darling, did you really forget about me so soon? – I.
Michelle walked out of her room just as Aliannah groaned, reading the note. “For God’s sake, Ivan! This is getting ridiculous. That man needs to stop before we drown in peonies.” Michelle muttered. She was not wrong. There were peonies on every surface of the apartment.
“How about we get dressed and bring these down to Harry? He can keep them, gift them, whatever he wants to do with them, and we need our apartment back,” Aliannah suggested. Michelle agreed this was a great way to get their apartment back, and soon, they were lugging all five bouquets down the hall to the elevator.
Harry was surprised when he looked up to see the girls putting the bouquets on his counter. “Ladies, what is all the fuss about? My birthday is not for another seven months” Michelle explained how the flowers were taking over the entire apartment and that they could not move without bumping into a bouquet.
“You could use them in the lobby, keep them, gift them, or donate them, whatever you choose, Harry. I am gifting them to you for you to do with as you see fit,” Aliannah insisted. Harry agreed to take them. He would use two to decorate the lobby and donate the other three to a local hospital to help cheer up patients. Aliannah was delighted with his choices and felt great about her decision to give the flowers to Harry.
A few days had passed; Aliannah had been so busy in work setting up the new exhibit for October that she did not notice how quiet it had been. She had not heard from Jasper since their kiss, and Ivan had been silent since his flower delivery. This little bubble of peace was lovely. Autumn had developed among the trees, turning their leaves from luscious green to vibrant yellows, oranges and reds. It was Aliannah’s favourite time of the year. Pumpkin spice lattes were her staple for October. It felt all sorts of wrong not to enjoy this warm, delicious drink.
Aliannah was sitting on the museum floor sorting through the brochures for the new launch when she heard heels clacking across the floor behind her. Michelle plonked herself down on the floor beside her.
“Thought I would join you for lunch today, here is that chicken Caesar wrap you like from down the road and a coke.” Aliannah thanked Michelle. She had not realised how hungry she was until the sight of lunch made her stomach growl so loudly that it echoed. Both of the girls laughed.
“This wrap is divine! Oh, I could marry it and spend the rest of my life with it,” Aliannah moaned as she devoured the huge wrap.
“Slow down before you choke!” Michelle laughed “also! It will go mouldy in a couple of days, so you may need to find a new bed-mate,” Michelle continued, laughing even harder. The two girls were in uncontrollable fits of laughter. It was good to laugh. It felt freeing. Life was never dull when Michelle was around. Their friendship went so deep they could practically read each other’s thoughts. When they were younger, they would tell people that they were non-identical twins since they were so in sync with one another.
They clinked their bottles. “To twenty years of annoying the shit out of each other!” Michelle cheered.
“Here is to twenty more years of trying not to pee our pants laughing!” Aliannah cheered, clinking again. The girls laughed some more and lay down to look at the painting on the museum ceiling. It had been inspired by the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, and Michelle loved looking at it.
“So, how is Gavin? You two seem to be more serious by the day,” Aliannah enquired as they lay looking up. There was a shift in the air. Michelle went silent. Aliannah bunched her brows, concerned and turned her head to look at her friend. “Michelle, is everything ok?”
Michelle sat up. Her body language screamed nerves. She couldn’t look at Aliannah. “Ali…. Gavin asked me to move with him” Michelle slowly turned to look at Aliannah. Aliannah was smiling. “You’re not upset?”
It was Aliannah’s turn to look confused. “No, why would I be? This is amazing; I am so happy for you. Gavin is such a good guy!”
Michelle burst into tears. “Oh my god, I was so worried you would be so mad”, she sobbed, trying to speak and cry at the same time. “I know we always planned to spend our twenties house-sharing in New York, and I am breaking our plans for a guy. This is not what we planned!” Michelle was barely able to breathe by the time she finished.
Aliannah put her arm around her friend's shoulder. “Why would I be mad? So what that we had plans; we are in our twenties, and now is the time to live. You are not ditching me for some guy. It is Gavin! He is one of the best ones. You are moving ten minutes away, not another continent” She laughed and continued, “We will still see each other and talk as much as we always have. I am truly and completely happy for you. I would be mad if you turned him down!” Michelle laughed this time.
Michelle let out a sigh of relief and said, “I am so glad our friendship is so strong. He wants me to move today since he has the day off to help me before the weekend rush at Zino’s” Aliannah hugged her friend. She was happy to know a good guy would be taking care of her friend, but she could not lie to herself. She would miss Michelle terribly, even if she screamed for flowers at 8 am on Saturday mornings. Aliannah let a quiet laugh out at this memory from a few weeks back.
Coming home that evening was a very strange experience. For the first time since she moved to New York, Aliannah has lived alone. The rent wouldn’t be an issue; Aliannah could cover it comfortably without being broke. The permanent loneliness, though, was the hard part. Michelle left their favourite photo together framed on the sitting room table with a box of chocolates and a note.
Unlike Ivan, try not to forget about me yeah? – M
Aliannah laughed out loud. Oh, Michelle! Only Michelle could make a joke out of the Ivan situation.