A Christian Romance

Chapter 24 - Time to stop

Debora and Adam were supposed to meet in the living room, whereas Joel would stay in the kitchen, with the door closed, preparing something for dinner. But things just weren't going all that well with the cooking, mostly because he was anxiously waiting for the aftermath of a conversation that hadn't even started.

If that conversation helped reunite his best friends, he would be the one to blame. He had been the one to strongly encourage that encounter. He had convinced Debora to meet Adam, and if the sexual attraction could be a problem, they could meet in their apartment - at that time, Adam had already learned that Joel and Debora shared the apartment.

An easy recipe, like spaghetti Bolognese, wasn't working at all. The pasta was overcooked, and the sauce was way too sweet! Joel was very frustrated, at that point. Maybe, he would have time to order take out, if he went quickly.

Suddenly, Debora came into the kitchen to meet him and see how things were going. She looked overly pretty in his sight, and that disturbed him.

"You have excelled yourself, just to make a good impression on Adam." He tried to sound nonchalant.

"No, I didn't!"

"Do you have make-up on?" He insisted, reasoning that she still had strong feelings for Adam if she had come out of her way to impress his best mate with her good looks.

"No, I don't."

He barely believed that he was slightly jealous.

"Do you know what you're gonna tell him?" He asked, trying to drift his attention.

"I have rehearsed something in the mirror..." She mocked herself. "But, of course, I don't know how it will turn out." She confessed. "I'm so nervous, Joe."

He simply looked back and then drifted his attention to the mess he was doing. Debora saw the confusion in the kitchen, and before she started to whine over Joel's lack of organization, she decided to leave him alone.

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Debora hadn't seen Adam with his shaved hair yet, and Joel didn't care to share anything about that. So when she opened the door to Adam and saw that all his hair was gone, she was shocked.

"What happened to your hair?!"

"I needed a drastic change, so I shaved it off." He explained. "Do you like it?" He dared ask, with a hint of hesitation in his tone.

Adam had a pair of eyes that could mesmerize anyone. Debora swallowed hard before giving him an answer.

"I liked the long hair better." She truly liked long hair better, but the lack of hair on Adam's face wasn't the thing that affected her, it was his eyes and his overall manly structure.

He interpreted otherwise:

"You still haven't forgiven me..."

"Let's talk." She encouraged him.

He walked ahead of her into the apartment. When he saw Joel in the kitchen, he waved at him through the glass door and continued his way into the living room. Debora followed after him, and because she wanted to be done and over with, she started her speech by grabbing a long piece of paper from the pocket of her sweater and reading it out loud.

"Joel told me about your misdiagnosis." She started. "I must tell you that I'm really sorry, and I cannot imagine all that you went through..." She lost control of her paper because Adam had pulled it down and looked at her in the eyes.

"Don't read to me, Debbie, please! Talk to me." He pleaded.

Her eyes met his, and she felt so ashamed. She humbly realized that she was no better than him; she also made mistakes; even if they were legit, they were mistakes. Debora started sobbing and covered her face in her hands. When she felt his hands wrapped around her, her heart jumped, and she stopped crying, feeling awkwardly comfortable in that embrace. There was no sexual attraction anymore, just care and warmth.