AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I had been working as a junior product manager for a small company at the time, and it felt like the kind of solution that could make our lives easier. But building something like that from scratch sounded too ambitious even to me, and I was expecting Chris to say so as well—but he loved the idea. We sat in the living room of our small apartment in New York, and he grilled me for hours about every single aspect of my idea. I found myself pacing around the room to think of solutions to the problems he was finding, and loving how invested he was in my newfound passion. I finished that long conversation convinced I had something good in my hands, and maybe even more importantly, I had Chris’s blessing.
Right when the sun was beginning to set, I rolled my truck onto Chris’s street. The houses around were picturesque with their wide front lawns. I saw the house I was looking for at the end of the street, and as I drove closer, it became clear there was no free space to park, which was uncommon for such an area. What was the point of living so far from the city if you didn’t even get a good parking space?
A couple holding hands just entered through the front door of Chris’s house. Confused, I lowered the window and immediately heard ‘80s music—Chris’s favorite.
Well, isn’t this nice?
Did Melissa throw him a surprise party? If so, why the hell wasn’t I invited? I parked the car further from the house but didn’t get out. I held the bag with the bottle of wine and the card I had written, feeling like a damn fool.Oh, Jay will have a field day when he hears about this.There was no point driving all the way back without giving Chris his present. I got out and made my way toward the house, my stomach swirling unpleasantly. I was a grown-ass man feeling hurt by not being invited to a birthday party.
I reached the entrance while a Prince song was playing inside. There were roses all around the entrance: red, yellow, and white. Through the window, I could just barely catch people talking and drinking. The party seemed to be in full swing. I felt self-conscious standing there with my FedEx uniform, but I wasn’t going to find something else to wear.
I rang the bell and waited with my stomach queasy. Ten seconds later, the door was opened by a smiling Chris, who quickly turned into a not-so-smiling Chris. He was wearing a blue vest that matched his blue eyes, with his dark blond hair combed neatly back. He looked like the kind of guy who could be modeling Rolex watches, leaning on his fist while gazing into the distance.
“Happy birthday,” I said, my voice higher than I intended.
He opened his mouth, closed it, then shook his head like he was waking up. “Wow, yeah, thanks, man. Come here.” He pulled me into a hug. From over his shoulder, I spotted around twenty people standing with drinks in the living room. Some were looking at me with a frown, maybe thinking I was delivering one hell of a package to be getting hugged by their host.
We pulled away and I raised the bag. “For you.”
He hesitantly took it and peeked inside. “That’s great, E, but you really shouldn’t have.”
Tell me about it.
“Hey, Chris, you’re coming for the cake?” someone called from inside.
“In a minute!”
He watched me for five seconds in silence like he was still processing I was really there, then he hurried to say, “Sorry, where are my manners? We’re having a small… a small gathering.”
“I can see that.”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Would you like to join?”
“That’s okay. I just came to drop this off and wish you a happy birthday.”
He cleared his throat and lowered his voice. “Listen, E, I didn’t mean to—”
“Chris, what’s the—”
Melissa came to the door and put a hand on Chris’s shoulder. She was beautiful, her dark straight hair and pale skin reminding me of Snow White from that Disney cartoon. Her eyes grew big when she noticed me. “Ethan! My goodness, I didn’t know you were coming. Chris told me you were busy with work.”
“Oh, did he?”
“Were you able to cut early?” She gave me a quick hug, leaving a strong scent of expensive perfume in the air.
I didn’t need to look at Chris to know his face went a few shades redder.
“I’m actually still working,” I said. “Just stopped by to leave a present. I’ll be heading off now.” I forced a smile and turned to Chris, who was indeed flushed.
“Stay,” he croaked. “Please?”
I didn’t know if it was embarrassment or regret guiding his words, but I figured that staying would be too awkward for both of us, and I didn’t want to stay where I was clearly not wanted. “I really need to go,” I said and patted his shoulder. “We’ll catch up another time.”
“The tweens have grown so much since you last saw them. You must come over for dinner soon,” Melissa said, sounding like she meant it. She really was a sweetheart.
“I will, most definitely.”
I turned around and made my speedy way back to my truck.
