We both take a couple of steps back when a gust of wind hits us square in the face.
“This is some nasty shit,” Kyle mumbles from next to me. “We should just go inside. Or at least get out of the doorway.”
“You go.” I move my head to point toward the crowd. “I’ll stay here.”
The wind goes right through me, but I don’t feel the cold like I normally would. I am functioning strictly on adrenaline at this point. I can’t even breathe properly, and I won’t be able to until I finally see Mona.
“She’ll be here, dude.” Kyle pats my shoulder again. I guess it’s intended to comfort me. “She said that to Zara when they talked, and she said the same to me.”
Kyle told me that he paid a visit to Mona. My first instinct was to get angry about it. I hated the thought of him describing to Mona how sad my life growing up really had been. That was the main reason why I never shared anything that personal with her. But then, I realized that the reason why my relationship with Mona got ruined was because of me being so closed off emotionally. So, I let it go and thanked Kyle for putting in a good word for me. We were both surprised with that reaction from me.
“She never responded to my message onHolidates,” I now tell my friend.
“No big deal,” he shrugs. “She’ll probably want to respond in person. Some people are like that,” he explains. “They have a hard time putting things in writing.”
I can relate to that since that’s how I was, too, until very recently.
“Oh, dude!” He pokes me from behind. “I think I see her!”
My eyes search for her, desperate to finally have her here with me. At the same time, my hands clench on the gift I have for her. My fingers are cold and stiff but refuse to let go.
“Oh, fuck!”
Kyle gets a bit agitated as he steps out from behind me, where he was in an effort to get protection from the wind.
“Fuck,” he repeats.
I still haven’t spotted Mona, so I’m not sure what he’s bitching about.
“Let’s take this in, man.” He grabs me by the arm and tries to pull me with him. “We should go in. Right now,” he insists.
“I haven’t even seen her yet. And I am not moving from here until I do.”
I have a strategy, which I plan to follow to a T. I am here to grovel and leave with her on my arm. It’s not about me being warm and comfortable.
“Brother, trust me on this.” Kyle attempts to pull me away again. “Come with me. This is not good…”
I open my mouth to ask what he means when I finally see it. Mona is walking up the stairs to the venue. Her hair flows behind her, making her more beautiful than ever. She has a heavy wool coat wrapped around her body, and she holds onto the collar to cover the column of her neck.
She laughs at something the person next to her said, and then… I finally notice what Kyle was trying to warn me about.
The hand not holding on to her coat is wrapped around the arm of a stranger. A man. He is tall and good looking, in a classic kind of a way that almost looks fake.
They come up the steps until they finally reach the platform which leads to the majestic doors inside the building.
Right about now, I really wish I’d heed Kyle’s advice when he tried to pull me away from this disaster. But it’s too late. It’s like being involved a car wreck, where the airbags go off, but theyonly serve to hurt you more as opposed to protecting you from damage.
I remain frozen to the spot even when I clearly see Mona and this guy heading straight for me. She hasn’t seen me yet, and I wonder if she’ll even bother to give me the time of the day when she passes by me. If she’ll even see me standing here. She seems to be pretty involved in conversation with this guy.
“Who the fuck is this?” Kyle whisper yells into my ear. “I specifically asked her if her plus one tonight was herHolidatesdate. She said yes.”
“She must’ve made it up to get you off her back,” I say. My face is numb from the cold when I speak, and so is my heart. I can’t feel anything anymore.
“Alex!”
Mona’s shocked gasp reaches my ears before my brain registers that she is now standing right in front of me. When I move my eyes, I notice that she’s let go of the guy, who is now standing a polite step behind her.
“Why are you out here in this cold?”
