Loss and Longing

That night and the following day Stevie snapped at everyone. She knew it wasn’t fair, she was furious with herself but she was taking it out on everyone else. However she could seem to stop it. The work day was torturous, nothing went right and in the end she sent Rachel home early to remove her from the firing line before she lost her as a friend.

Finally it was time to close up but as she stepped outside and locked the door, someone said her name and she started. Without even looking, she knew who it was and she was shocked. Her movements slow, she turned around. Grant was standing a few feet behind her.

“I was wondering if we could talk” he said “I didn’t want to disturb you while you were working otherwise I’d have been here this morning.”

Stevie sighed. She’d thought she was never going to see him again after the way she’d behaved the day before and while she was glad that wasn’t the case, she was wary about what he wanted to tell her. She didn’t want to hear that he thought she was a childish idiot. She knew that already. Taking a deep breath she committed herself. “Okay” she said.

“Will you come back to my place or we could go to your place” he said “I promise you I won’t touch you if you don’t want me to and it’ll be the last time you see me. If that’s what you want.”

She realised then that he thought she was upset, that’d he’d offended her. Now she felt worse than she had before. She said, “I’ll follow you.”

He nodded “I’m parked out the front.  I’ll wait until you pull around.”

“Okay” she said again and turning around she walked to her car.

When they reached his place, Grant let them in and led the way to the kitchen. Tossing his keys on bench he sat on the edge of a stool, his feet flat on the floor, he crossed his legs at the ankles. His eyes were on his hands linked together in his lap.

Stevie remained standing and as she tried to get the words right in her head to apologise, he beat her to it.

He looked up and said “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you yesterday.”

She blew out her breath and looked away.

“I like you” he said “I can’t help it. I thought you might have felt something for me too, but if you don’t, tell me and I’ll leave you alone. I just need to know one way or the other.”