*Alejandro*
Soft jazz music resounded in the background. Glass clinked as people murmured.
I walked towards the booth where Lucas was seated. He had a glass of tequila in front of him.
He had his head down; his finger was dancing on the screen of his phone. “Son,” he raised his head, his eyes quickly meeting mine.
“Dad,” he called and stood. We hugged, his cologne engulfing me.
It was nice to see him extend his hand to me in a hug; it made me feel like I was on top of the world.
“How have you been?” I asked, taking my seat, “I didn’t know you were back. I got no call or text from you.” I said, signally a barman with my fingers. “When did you arrive in LA?”
“I’ve been in this City for a few days now; as you can see, I’m doing well.” He said.
I gave my orders to the barman.
Lucas typed on his phone again before placing it on the table in our middle. “I guess you must have been busy?” He asked and I nodded.
“I have been, but I’m sorry. If I had known you were around, I’d have made time for you,”
“It’s fine; I understand how it can be something.” He said.
We spoke about various things: business, politics, and the economy. I receive a report on his performance each week, and I tried to make sure I gave him tips on how to improve.
I noticed he had been checking his phone continuously; though we were engrossed in a conversation, his phone beeped repeatedly, and he would always pick it up and reply.
“Got a girl?” I asked, a small smile settled on his lips.
I have always wanted to talk about things like this with him, about women, and about other personal matters.
“Well, yes,” he said and took a sip from his drink.
Though we have become closer over the years, we haven’t discussed anything personal. It was always business.
Lucas has always been closer to Williams, and he told him all these things, too.
“Nice, as it should be,” I said proudly. He was my son; he had the money, the charm, and the height. I was surprised he could pull any lady out there.
“And who’s the lucky girl?”
“Well,” he paused and took another sip, his eyes refusing to meet mine, “well she’s,” he took another sip and placed the glass on the table.
“She’s just a girl,” his reply didn’t make sense to me, and I squinted my eyes at him. Well, of course, it’s a girl,” he laughed and peeped into his phone. You can give a reply,” I said.
I noticed he became uneasy, and my hope of having deeper conversations came crushing.
My chest rose and fell at the thought that I would have to tell him about Austin and Andrea. I don’t want to keep any secrets between us anymore.
But I didn’t think this was the best place to do so. I gulped down my drink.
“Dad…” he called, and I returned my attention to him. “Do you believe in the invisible string?” he asked, and I leaned into the chair.
I’m not sure why he asked.
I’ve heard about such philosophy but haven’t given it much thought, “like there’s one person out there who is meant for you.”
“I haven’t given much thought to that theory, but I think I believe it. There’s a special someone for everyone. Some are close, others are not.” I said.
“No matter how close you are or how far, when the time is right, I think they’ll find themselves,” I don’t know if what I had just said made sense, but all I knew was that I loved speaking to him and wanted to continue the conversation.
Lucas nodded, giving what I had just said a thought for a brief moment.
“There’s a name for what you just said,” he threw his head to the side, “I can’t quite remember the name of the theory, but it says something like, even when the person you should be with is close to you, you won’t notice them except when the time is right,” I nodded pouring myself a drink.
“Why this theory?” I asked.
“Nothing in particular, I was just thinking.”
We spent a little more time together. Nora called me, but I didn’t take her call. Then she called Lucas and demanded we return to the house together for dinner.
“I have other plans,” I said, refusing the best way I could.
Lucas has grown to have more understanding than ever and without any arguments, he agreed and we both went our separate ways.
He went home, and I went home, too. To Austin and Andrea.
Austin was seated on the sofa when I opened the door and stepped in. He leaped on me when he saw me.
I picked him up and held him close; he didn’t try to kick his way down this time. “How was your day?” I asked, sitting with him on my lap.
He went ahead to recount the entire day. “Did you come to my school today?” He asked.
“How did you know?” I asked him.
“My homeroom teacher said so. She said I had two dads; the rest of the class envied me.” He felt proud.
I brushed his hair with my hand.
I could only help but wonder how he must have felt when he had no dad. I held something about how some had mocked him.
I liked that he was sitting close to me, so when he suggested we go into his room to play with some toys, I insisted on watching a car race competition on my phone.
So here we are, eyes pinned on the screen he held.
I am not truly a fan of cars. I did love them, but not as much as he does.
We were still in that position when Andrea walked into the room. My breath quickened at the sight of her.
She walked towards us. When she stopped in front of us, I felt my heart beating wildly behind my rib cage.
She planted a kiss on Austin’s head.
“Yes, boy, you seem to be having a good time,”
“You came back quite late, Andrea,” I said. Though my eyes were glued to the screen, I didn’t miss the sound of the car that dropped her off. Her car was back, so I knew it wasn’t hers.
“I had some things to settle,” she stepped away from us, and I felt an immediate void as if something had been pulled away from me.
I watched her walk into her room.
After Austin fell asleep, I took him to his room. When I returned, Andrea was in the sitting room, her back facing me.
As she turned to take a seat, I noticed the lipgloss she had on.
I quickly walked towards her, slid my hands around her waist, and pulled her close to me.
“Did you apply lip gloss for me?” I asked if she had no reason to wear lip gloss so late, except she wore them for me.
“What are you doing, Alejandro? What if Austin wakes up?” She wiggles in my hands.
“You don’t have to worry about him; he’s asleep. But if you are still scared that he may walk in on us, then we can simply step away to somewhere where he could be able to see us.” I said.
From her statement, it meant it was fine to do stuff as long as Austin didn’t see us.
“No, that’s not what I mean. Let me go.” I didn’t; she had stopped wiggling.
I turned her in a swift move, and her face on my chest, “You reek of alcohol. Did you hold Austin despite smelling like this? What if he has a bad impression on you?”
“You don’t have to worry.” I was a bit scared within. What if I scared him away, but then I didn’t cause he
Hasn’t noticed it? So many thoughts ran through my head as I held Andrea.
She has relaxed in my hands. She was no longer wiggling or trying to get away from me. I wahad been so long since we had been in this position. “I miss you, Anna, my Anna,” I whispered into her ear. I miss this; I miss holding you.” I placed my head on her hair and inhaled the smell of the fresh shampoo.
She unconsciously snuggles close to me.
She didn’t say the words. She didn’t need to say it; she missed me as much as I missed her. She still had feelings for me.
I was glad she still loved me. We stayed in that position on the sofa, my hands wrapped around her, her head was on my chest.
“How did you become a designer?” I asked, wanting to bring up a discussion. She was quiet, “you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” I added
The last thing I wanted to do was to force her into making any decisions she didn’t want to. It hurts that she didn’t want to speak to me about it but I’ll let it go. At least now.
“I think a part of me has always loved designing,” she said and paused. One side of my lips pulled up in a smile. She was speaking about it.
“A part of you?” She bobbed her head up and down.
“When I first got the job, I was freaked out, but then, I’m a good artist, so I just had to come up with something. Studied a few designs, and there, I had it,”
“You draw?” I was puzzled, we never spoke about this. Or did we?
“You didn’t know,” “No,” she pulled away from me.
Was she angry that I didn’t know she liked to draw? Should I have said yes? I sat straight, staring into the eyes of the woman whose warmth engulfed me moments ago.
“I didn’t mean it that way. I just wanted to,” she raised one hand, stopping me from speaking further. I bit on my tongue. I have managed to ruin the night.
“Come with me,” she said and stood. I raised a brow. Did I perhaps mishear her?
I stood, and we walked together to her room. I didn’t think I’d be here.
I have never thought of entering her room. I stepped into the warm and cozy room.
She had arranged it to perfection.
“What did you want to show me?” I tried not to allow my mind to wander. She brought me here because she wanted to show me something, not because of another reason.
“You can sit,” she said, trying to make her tone strong, but I could see through the mask she was trying to wear.
I sat on a couch at the side.
She walked to her vanity table and pulled one of the drawers open. She then took a book from it and walked to me.
“I’ve always loved drawing,” I flip across the pages of the book. There were drawings of various kinds, all perfect.
“I didn’t know you were this good.”
This was raw talent, “when I was young, I enjoyed painting and drawing and things about art,” she said.
She handed me another book. This time it was drawings of people. It was perfect.
“Why did you stop?” I asked her.
“Who said I stopped?” “You did; if you hadn’t stopped, I’d have known you loved drawing when we first met,”
“I never stopped. I wasn’t confident enough to talk about it,” my heart broke into a million pieces as I watched the girl who could have been one of the famous artists if she had allowed herself to.
She sat on the arm of my chair, and as I flipped each page, she would explain the drawings to me.
We did that till she was sleepy.
Her head fell on my shoulder. I picked her up in bridal style and took her to her bed. I brushed a few strands of hair from her face, then stood about to leave.
But she caught my hand, and without opening her eyes, she muttered in a low voice, “Don’t go.”