Rafael sat in his car watching the guest go into the hotel, there were a lot of people, as he expected, but he couldn’t bring himself to go in.
Nicole had called him two days to Christmas to inform him about it, he hadn’t given a straightforward answer so if he doesn’t show up, she might not think much of it, Christmas? It was hell, compound with the fact that he still wasn’t able to come to an understanding with the Mining stuff and then his Christmas being the worst ever, he hated the holiday season, have hated it since he was a young child, even before his parents passed away, this year, he had thought it would be different, that he might finally enjoy the holidays with family but his plans were crushed months before Christmas, on Christmas, he had been at the office all through, Josie had invited him to have dinner with her but he turned her down, after the stuff that happened at his house with Josie, he tried to keep his distance from her so that she won’t get the wrong ideas, he didn’t want to lead her on because he liked her a lot as a friend.
“Let’s go,”
He said to his driver, who took a moment to start the car, he couldn’t go in, it was better this way and Nicole would understand, when he got back to his apartment, he took off his clothes went to the winery, and poured himself a glass of wine, he should really take that idea and get the hell out of Florida and stay away for a long time, long enough for him to forget everything that happened here, he was on his second glass when his nuisance of a best friend Caleb called, he contemplated not taking the call since he knew why Caleb was calling but he gave in and took it anyway.
“Hey Rafael, why aren’t you here yet?”
Caleb asked when he took the call.
“I came and left,”
He said he knew Caleb would scold him but he didn’t care.
“What? Why would you leave? The event barely started, when did you leave?”
“I didn’t go in, I just stayed aside, I didn’t get out of my car, I couldn’t,”
“What? Why? She invited you right? Don’t you think she will feel bad if you don’t at least make an appearance?”
“I can’t Caleb, yes I don’t have a problem with my wife, but her sister is there I don’t think I can control myself, so I am just going to bail out for peace’s sake,’
“Wow, I have never known you to be a chicken but what do I know? Anyway, you do know she invited and would most likely wait for you to get it? Don’t keep her waiting man, especially while knowing you guys aren’t over each other,”
“She is over me, I am the one still holding on like a fool, I should be over her too and I can’t stand seeing her sister there,”
“God, you are so stubborn, why does it matter if Natalie is here? Why does it matter? I honestly don’t know what you feel you are doing Rafael but you are doing it all wrong, don’t take it out in her, just get your ass in here,”
“She killed my child, I can’t see her there all smiling and I know she will be there, I saw that they made up,”
Rafael replied, photos of the twin had hit the tabloid two days after Christmas and they both looked so happy and free, just seeing those photos made him mad, what more if he saw Natalie in person?
“I don’t think you should be saying that, she didn’t actually kill anyone,”
“That’s how I see it, and I can’t stand her,”
“Understandable, but her sister said she didn’t, you weren’t there, you didn’t see what happened, okay, not the right time to talk about this, how about you just show your face and leave, she is waiting,”
“I am not coming back, and I am moving to New York in the new year,”
He revealed, the idea had first come to him last week, but he hadn’t thought much of it, now that he said it out, he thought it would be better if he leaves Florida completely before he married Nicole, he had been more based in New York than Florida but after he got married, he decided to stay more here but now, he wanted out, start over in New York.
“Wait, since when? You are leaving Florida? But your office is here,”
“My office is anywhere I am Caleb, did you forget I didn’t stay much in Florida until this year, I am just going to go back the way I used to be before I got married.
“Oh no, where are you?”
“At home,”
“Where? You have a lot of home,”
“At my house stupid,”
“Okay let’s meet and talk about this, I can’t tell on you and talk sense into you through the phone so I am coming over, I just need to tell Nicole I have to be somewhere else,”
“No, Caleb, you stay there, please?”
He pleaded hoping Caleb would not say no.
“You should be the one here Rafael, she won’t notice me, it’s you she would have her eyes looking for, she already asked me about you, I didn’t give her any answers not to keep her hopes up but can’t you change your mind?”
“No, I am not coming,”
He said and ended the call, hoping Caleb will get the message and just stay as his rep but the moron couldn’t take a hint and was at his doorstep twenty minutes later.
“What the fuck man? What are you doing here? I told you to stay there,”
“And I told you I was coming over, you can’t drop the bomb of leaving the state on me and expect me to go partying,”
Caleb said pushing him out of the way and entering his house, the man was stupid.
“I said next year,”
“Next year is less than four days away,”
“Still, you shouldn’t have come here, I told you to stay at the party didn’t I?”
“Well, your wife was asking me about you and I didn’t know what to say to her when she asked again for the third time so you can think of it as I ran away,”
He said going over to his fridge and taking out beer.