"You never liked her. Why I never noticed that." As the movie progressed, Jasper became more emotional, questioning every situation that happened in the past but could be a sign that had been overlooked. This guy should have felt lucky that I liked him.
"Me not liking someone doesn't mean you should avoid them," I told him.
"But you were right about her."
"You don't know that." Despite my reasoning, I had a feeling that he had already made his decision.
He was right. I didn't like Lisa from the very beginning. This girl was pretentious, and sometimes rude when she joked with others. She never tried to be nice to Jaspers' friends. I was kind to her because of their relationship. If I had to name the person closest to me, it would be Jasper. For that reason alone, I wouldn't want to upset him by arguing with his girlfriend. It couldn't be said the same about her. She wasn't very nice. Part of me was glad we wouldn't see her any longer.
"I can't explain it, but when I was sitting here alone, waiting for you, I thought about her. Like a lot. And somehow, I stopped looking for excuses." When he looked at me, I could see what exactly he wanted to say. It was written all over his face.
"Do you know what I mean?" I nodded. "Even if she didn't cheat, I don't think I want to be with her. She is beautiful, but that is not enough."
"As long as you are sure that this is what you want, it is okay. What matters is your happiness." I wasn't sure how one argument was evaluated in grieving the relationship.
After what seemed like a long silence, I felt like I had to add, "You will find someone who is right for you. I'm sure about it."
Jasper smiled sadly. His eyes were a bit red from what I assume was holding tears. I didn't like seeing him so upset.
"Can I move in with you?" I heard him say, and my head twisted in his direction. My eyes went a tad wider, and I swore at myself for being so soft on this guy.
The whole week was one rollercoaster. Jasper stayed every night arranging his room, arguing over the phone with Lisa, and moving his stuff back and forward while complaining about various things. I haven't done much labour work, but I was exhausted just from not having a sense of peace.
That's why I was annoyed more than usual. My coworkers tried to talk to me, but I just kept silent. I couldn't deal with chit-chat when I felt that my house was a war zone, not really my safe space like how it used to be.
Thankfully, one thing didn't change, and that was a guy sitting in the corner enjoying his beverage while watching something on his phone. Funny how he gave me more stability than my new housemate despite not knowing him. He wore a brown sweatshirt and light-coloured trousers. I found this odd considering that it was raining outside the whole day. I would be concerned about muddy stains on the sleeves in his place, but I haven't noticed any. Maybe he lived close to the cafe?
An hour had passed, and he looked ready to leave. His posture straightened, and he leaned more forward in his seat. I saw him stuffing his phone in his pocket, and then a second later, he looked briefly in my direction. I felt a bit embarrassed, but it would be more embarrassing to look away immediately, so I held the stare for two seconds and continued doing my job.
Emotions. Adrenaline. It felt like I was in a race. It took me a minute to calm my nerves. I made sure my face was blank and emotionless. My colleagues have often told me they could never immediately guess my mood. Apparently, that made it hard to get close to me. Was it true? I couldn't tell. Besides, I thought that I was a friendly person.
When he left the cafe, my eyes hung on the door a little too long. I realized it when I heard Jess behind me. "Someone got your attention? Or maybe there is something wrong with the door?"
I turned in my seat to look at her and figured there was no point in lying. "You know this guy?" I pointed at the door behind me.
"Not really, but I know he comes often. Why are you asking?"
"No reason." I shrugged, hoping she would drop the topic.
"You really don't pay much attention to clients, do you?" She laughed as she walked away.
I wondered from time to time how little my colleagues thought about me. I was a reserved person but not unfriendly. I did care, and despite not liking my job, I worked hard. I couldn't figure out where this "bad boy and I don't care attitude" came from. What did they see that I couldn't?
While staring for a second at the dark screen, I couldn't see anything unusual in my expression. In a slightly worse mood than in the morning, I went to change and then home.
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