While I zoned off, Helen’s piercing voice brought me back to the present.
“Sarah, yesterday you hurt my feelings…” She slapped my hands away with a frown.
I turned utterly speechless and confused; a moment ago she was sulking, and now she had transformed into a fiery goddess blazing with indignation.
“What did I do?”
“If you don’t like Vincent, you shouldn’t have made it obvious,” she spat.
What the f*ck, is she serious? “Your boyfriend is a…….” I refrained. He would be dumped anyway; there was no need to make it quicker.
“A real what?” She inquired, waiting for a meaningful answer.
“Never mind,” I decided to let it slide, after all, this wasn’t the first time she dated a pervert.
“Hello baby.”
Yeah, speaking of the devil.
Vincent hugged her from behind and peppered kisses on her neck.
‘What a public display of affection,’ I scoffed.
Helen, on the other hand, was enjoying the kissy moment, forgetting her single girlfriend was watching.
“Hi,” Vincent smiled, biting those lips again. His gaze moved from my face and travelled below, scrutinizingly.
I did my best to hide the disgust on my face. “Helen, I’m gonna go…”
Helen glared at me; I knew she wanted me to be nice to her new boyfriend. There is simply no way that’s happening.
“See you tomorrow…” I left them with a stride and got into the car. Helen will be busy with that pervert, so she wouldn’t have time for me.
*
The savory aroma of broiled meat filled the tepid air of the kitchen. I inhaled the smoky smell of my favorite with one thought in my head. ‘Grandma, you missed a lot,’ she was a very strict vegetarian, unlike me and father who were complete opposites. Just looking at the mouthwatering food made me appreciate the wonderful gift of nature. I sometimes wonder what would happen to me if cattle go extinct. Nah, nah, I plucked that thorny thought out of my head and carefully took out the steak from the broiler pan and placed it on a flat plate.
I heard distant footsteps approaching; my taunting heart throbbed in anticipation, all for the figure drawing near.
“Sarah.” That voice caused a smile to plaster on my face. “Yes, Mr. Clinton.”
As soon as our eyes locked, my desire for meat became a past story, my sense of taste craving those appetizing, hued lips, making me gulp, swallowing hard with wants.
“Your food smells delicious…”
His praise pulled me out of my thoughts. “Hm. Oh… thanks…” I stammered. “Will you like to eat now?” There was no reply.
“Don’t tell me you ate out,” I said abruptly, with my eyes widened.
The expression on my face made him chuckle. “I didn’t eat out today.”
He gave a satisfying answer, and I inhaled with ecstasy. “Let me set the table, or would you like to eat in your room?”
“I’ll eat at the table.” He responded and walked out of the kitchen, with my keen eyes following behind his broad shoulders. So impeccable… everything about him was so flawless.
I snapped out of it, but those infatuations still lingered near. My patience was running low, and I’m afraid I might impulsively ruin everything.
I set the dining table and waited for him to come downstairs. He returned some few minutes later, and we sat down. While we ate dinner, I caught a glimpse of his cheerlessness, though he tried hiding it, making it slightly obscure, it slowly leaked on his face.
“Mr. Clinton…”
“Hmm.” He lifted his face, and I shrunk in the teeter of what to tell him. I called him without thinking. i noticed the grim in his eyes. Why do I feel like comforting him? Why do I sense melancholy all over him? Though his physiognomy was a little bright yesterday, today was something else.
“What is it, Sarah.” I could tell he was trying his best to conceal his saddened emotion. I started racking my brain for hilarious things to tell him to shift his mood from the clutching solemn.
Then it hit me…
“Mr. Clinton, are you really good in physics?” He pondered for some time before replying. “Yeah, back then in high school…”
“Do you know what’s weird about gravity?” I asked, batting my eyebrow at him. My expression made him smile.
“Sarah, what are you up to?”
“Just answer.” I urged him, tugging his sleeve.
He inhaled mildly. “It’s weight, heaviness.”
“Tsk, tsk… Mr. Clinton, you’re reading the dictionary. Listen to me, the weird thing about gravity is like the whole universe is one big, cosmic game of ‘Simon says’ and gravity is just shouting DOWN, DOWN! all the time.”
He released a snort and looked at me in disbelief. “What?”
I shrugged. “That’s what they taught me in middle grade… I look away. “You know what’s weird about being an adult?”
He dropped his fork and looked at me, eager to hear the answer to my own question. “Their brains are constantly playing the game of ‘Adult stimulator’…”
“Now what does that mean?” He asked, staring at me deeply. I gave him a warm smile. “They try to level up without losing all their points to challenges, responsibilities, or even difficulties. But do you know how a few, or maybe most of them, overcome that?… A big pot of friendship…” I encircled my hands as if stirring a big pot of food and winked.
He snorted and facepalmed himself, trying to suppress his laughter. I felt relief seeing him like that. I still want to hear the same laugh of yesterday…
He chuckled and looked at me again, his eyes lit with amusement. “Your father missed a lot of details.”
“Yeah, you’re right. If he had told you everything about me, it would have taken all day… There’s still so much you don’t know about me, Mr. Clinton…” I responded.
He shook his head and resumed his meal. His expression was better than before, and it gave me much joy, and honestly, I don’t know what I was feeling at the moment. Was it a kind of connection? Whatever it was, I loved it…
Then I remembered, he turned down my video game; how would he make it up to me, like he said…