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After more than a week of rejecting his calls, Adrianna was sure he’d give up. She wasn’t worth the hassle, surely Jack would realize that. A few more days went by and when she didn’t receive any more calls she was both relieved and disappointed. It was for the best, though.
On a Tuesday evening, Adrianna was sitting on the floor of her living room, painting her toenails. She had had a good day, having slept a full five hours straight the night before and had woken up in minimal pain. She spent the morning in the laundry room and then spoke with her mother.
Adrianna’s parents were still hoping their daughter would return to school to get her degree in medicine and her mother told her that every chance she got. Not wanting to argue, Adrianna told her what she always did.
“Soon, Mom. I’m not ready just yet.”
“How’s work, honey?” her mother asked her. Adrianna spent the last two years lying to her parents, telling them she had a job working as a medical assistant in a pediatrician’s office. She didn’t like lying to them but it was important that they believe she was living a normal life. The more normal it seemed, the fewer questions they asked.
“It’s fine,” she said casually. “I’m hoping to take vacation next month so I can come home for a visit.”
“Oh really, sweetie? That would be wonderful!”
Adrianna felt badly about getting her mother’s hopes up like that but it was something she had to do to keep up with the facade. In reality she had no intention of going home until she really had to at Christmastime, still six months away. She couldn’t stand visiting her hometown where she was bound to bump into someone she knew from high school. They would either pretend not to see her out of discomfort or look at her with such pity she would want to throw up.
After hanging up with her mother, she decided to get out for the day. It was a rare occasion when she wouldn’t feel like keeping herself holed up in her apartment and so she took advantage of it. She went out for lunch, did some grocery shopping, stopped in the library for a bit, and then bought a few new bottles of nail polish at the drugstore around the corner.
She was polishing her toes in a color called Koala Pink, remembering how she and Rachel both went through a pink phase when they were twelve. Their rooms, clothes, shoes, accessories, and even pencils they bought for school all had to be some rosy color.
“Remember when we washed all of our white socks with my mom’s red blouse on purpose?” Adrianna said out loud to her late best friend. “You said they were the color of cotton candy and then put one in your mouth to see if it tasted like it. You were such a nut, Rae.”
Adrianna liked days like that, when she was able to reminisce about her friend without having a meltdown. Those days were few and far between.
She sat thinking about her best friend and where they would be right now if they hadn’t been in the accident while she waited for her toes to dry. They’d be finishing up with med school, probably sharing an apartment together and applying for residencies. Maybe they would be planning Rachel’s wedding to Jason.
With a heavy sigh, Adrianna lifted herself from her carpet not wanting to dwell and spoil her good day. After she placed the bottle of nail polish in her bathroom cabinet she heard a knock on her door. Her jaw dropped when she saw through her peephole that it was Jack.
Pulling away from the door quickly she waited silently for him to go away after knocking again. Then her cell, which was sitting on her sofa, rang.
“I know you’re in there, I can hear your phone ringing through the door!”
Damn, he really was clever, wasn’t he?
Pulling her hair down from the ponytail it was in, Adrianna fluffed her bangs and looked down at her wardrobe. A pair of black yoga pants and a Kermit the Frog t-shirt wasn’t the most flattering thing she owned but it would have to do.
“Why are you so persistent?” she demanded when she opened the door.
“Why are you so stubborn?” Jack countered. He looked good. He was wearing a pair of well-worn blue jeans and a white button-down shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His dark hair was styled neatly on top of his head and he stared at her with a gleam in those striking, blue eyes.
