Chapter 16 #2
The night before had been a mostly sleepless night, and he was pretty sure tonight would be a repeat. The only thing that made it better was the phone call he needed to make to Aria about the photoshoot plans.
He had decided to wait until that evening to reach out to her, but fought the urge to call her sooner.
He stopped into a local market for a few items he needed. The few groceries Sofia had left were gone and he needed something for dinner that evening.
Once home, he grabbed the canvas bags and headed inside, closing the door with his foot. He put some chicken in a fresh orange and sage marinade for later and settled onto the sofa with a book. But the words ran into each other, and he found himself reading the same paragraph over and over.
Admitting defeat, he laid his head on the back of his sofa and closed his eyes.
He cringed when he thought about how mortified he was at the gallery when he stupidly blurted out the name of the project Aria was talking about. Of course, he knew the name. She had said that Pride and Prejudice was her favorite book and movie many times while at his house with Sofia.
He let the memory of that day play back in his mind.
“Okay, Sofia. We have everything we need now for our play,” Aria said. “Thanks again for bringing us to the store, Alex.”
“Yeah, thanks, Alex,” Sofia said sarcastically, making Alex mouth “shut up” frantically behind Aria’s back.
“No big deal,” he answered.
He dawdled in the living room as the girls spread out the supplies for their project on the floor. He grabbed a book from the side table, sat on the sofa, and pretended to read it while stealing glances at Aria.
“So, which book are you doing for your play?” he asked nonchalantly when Sofia went to the kitchen to get them something to drink.
“Pride and Prejudice,” Aria cooed. “It’s my absolute favorite. Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy—ah, their love story is so romantic.”
Fumbling to flip the book right side up quickly, he asked, “What’s so romantic about it?”
Sofia yelled from the kitchen, “Alex, you wouldn’t understand anything about romance.”
“Oh, Alex, you’ve got to watch it,” Aria said excitedly, glancing his way for a moment and then returning her attention to the project pieces.
He smiled at her enthusiasm and let his gaze linger a little too long while she busied herself on the floor. When her eyes drifted upwards, they met his again. He willed himself not to look away.
Her hands stilled, her eyes surveying him, her expression one of surprise. Alex thought this was the moment he’d been waiting for to ask her on a date.
Still caught in the moment, he opened his mouth but was interrupted when Sofia walked in with lemonade and some cookies.
“My mom made her cookies before she had to leave. She said to say ‘hi’,” Sofia said as she plopped down next to Aria, causing her to look away from Alex. She blinked several times, cleared her throat, and went back to her work.
Tomorrow, he thought. Tomorrow, I’ll ask her...
Coming back to the present, Alex rubbed his eyes and put his legs up on the sofa to stretch out, still reminiscing.
Sofia had made fun of him mercilessly about his infatuation with her schoolmate.
Alex remembered bribing his opportunistic sister, an arrangement that kept him broke that whole last year of school. The payments stopped only after he caught her sneaking out of the house to go to some pop star’s concert with her friends.
He got up and made himself a cup of coffee, rubbing his temples as it brewed. Looking out at the ocean from his kitchen window, he grimaced at the memory he hated the most.
Bringing his cup with him to the seaside, he sat there and listened to the seagulls overhead, letting the familiar sounds ease the ache that always came with the next part of that memory.
The reason he ended up in Athens for college was to avoid Nicholas. They were set to go to the same college in Rome, both majoring in business.
Taking a deep breath in, Alex relaxed and set the cup down on the sand. All in all, it worked out the way it was supposed to. He fell in love with photography and Aria and Nicholas fell in love with each other, married and started a business that she now ran.
But what would happen now that they had met again? He knew this was all irrational. They each had lived separate lives for over a decade. He should just offer her friendship. But what was he to do about the ache he felt in his chest every time she was near him, as if she was a missing piece?
I really must be crazy.
Taking his phone from his pocket, he checked the time and decided he should make that phone call. Hearing her voice again was something he had been looking forward to all day.
Grabbing his cup, he walked inside and washed it out in the sink. He laid out some vegetables in a large ceramic bowl with plans to grill them along with the chicken.
He sat down on the barstool, his thoughts running through his mind at a rapid pace. Grabbing his phone, he pressed Aria's number.
“Hello?” Aria answered cheerfully.
“Hi, Aria. It’s Alex. I wanted to reach out like we spoke about. How’s your weekend going?”
“Hey, Alex. I spent the day at the beach. Hadn’t done that in a long time. How about you?”
“Just lunch with Sofia and my father. Got a few minutes to talk about the photoshoot?”
“Yeah, I just got confirmation from the author a little while ago. It's set for Tuesday at 9:00am in my office. We have an area there we can use. And he’d like some outdoor beach shots as well. Would that work for you?”
“That's perfect. I’ll see you on Tuesday morning, and I'll text you my email address for the details,” Alex replied while pacing the kitchen floor.
“Perfect. Oh, and Alex, I'd like to cook dinner for you after the shoot if you’re free, as a thank you.”
Alex pumped his hand in the air in victory but knocked over the ceramic bowl of vegetables on the counter, lunging for it right before it rolled onto the tile floor. He pressed the phone between his cheek and shoulder, praying she hadn’t heard the racket he was making.
“Ah. Never mind. Don't feel obligated, Alex. We don't have to...” she backpedaled.
“No, no,” Alex said quickly, walking into the living room and away from the danger that lurked in his kitchen.
“No, I would love to have dinner with you Aria. It's a date.”
Why did I say that?
“I mean, it's a plan.”
“Okay, great. I'll see you on Tuesday then,” she said, her tone slightly hesitant.
“Sounds great.”
“Alex, I found out on the way home from the gallery about your mom. I was waiting until you came over to ask you about it. And we can still wait until then, but I wanted to say how very sorry I was to hear this. She was always so kind.”
“She was an amazing woman. And thank you. Seems we’ve both been touched by deep loss. But I know she would have wanted me to keep going even through the pain. I want to make her proud, even now.”
A few moments later, Aria whispered, “I wish I knew what Nicholas would want me to do. I feel like I’m messing things up most days.”
His heart broke at her vulnerable words.
“Listen, Nicholas loved you. I know that for a fact. He would have wanted you to do the same thing my mom wanted for me. Keep going. Keep dreaming. Don’t give up.”
“Thank you, Alex,” she whispered. “I’ll see you on Tuesday.”
“Good night, Aria.”