Unofficial First Girlfriend

CHAPTER 14

I woke up to the sound of a ringing phone booming inside the room. I stirred on the bed and extended my hands towards the nightstand. I was scrabbling for my phone, but I ended up knocking the scented candle out. I opened my eyes, and it was still dark. The sun hadn't risen yet. I noticed the faint light from the dresser before the ringing stopped.

Ugh.

I remembered I placed my phone on the dresser last night when I played a piece of meditation music. It had been relaxing a night to have the house all to myself. I was able to meditate for twenty minutes before I fell asleep.

I stood up as my phone began ringing again. If this wasn't an important call, I would really be cursing this caller.

It was Nick.

And it wasn't even 5 in the morning yet.

"Good morning," he greeted in an annoyingly cheerful voice.

"What?" I grumbled.

"I heard you're alone at home."

If he's thinking what I'm thinking...

"Dude, it's only almost 5," I reminded him.

He laughed. "No, I'm calling you if you want to go jogging with me."

"Since when did you start jogging?"

"Since today when I got up so early and have nothing else to do."

My friends seriously had so much free time on their hands, and it was annoying and amusing at the same time.

"What do you say?" he asked.

I had nothing else to do before I open the diner, so maybe I could go jogging today.

"What time are you gonna be here?"

"The question is, what time are you coming down? I'm already outside five minutes ago."

I walked over to the window and pulled the curtain aside. I could make out a guy standing across the street; he was wearing a black t-shirt and black running shorts.

"I'll be there in five."

"You won't even ask me to come in? It's freezing out here."

"No, it's not, and you lived in Paris. You have winter there. I'm sure you're doing fine right now."

After more than five minutes, I was out in the street in a tank top and running shorts, with a tumbler of water in my hand. Nick gave me a playful smile.

"You really wanna go jogging?"

I pointed a finger at him. "You interrupted my sleep, so forget about what you're thinking of."

"Sorry. But you know I can make it up to you."

"Yes, by going jogging."

He let out a tiny laugh and shook his head, and we both started walking. When we reached the corner street, we picked up our pace and started jogging. We were almost to the municipal track and field oval, and I was already catching my breath.

I hadn't jogged or exercised in a long time. My only exercise was tidying up the house and doing occasional laundry.

We slowed down, and I called for a break. I walked over to the bleachers and sat down.

"That's only like fifteen minutes, and you're taking a break already?"

I ignored him and drank from my tumbler instead. He extended his hand, asking for my water, so I handed him my tumbler.

"How many laps can you go?" he asked, handing my tumbler back.

"Five? With a five-minute interval each?"

"Okay, let's go," he urged and pulled me from the bleachers.

The oval was empty except for us. I had expected a few would be here when we get here, but maybe it was because it was a weekday and not many people jog here during the weekdays.

"You know what, you guys have so much free time."

"What do you mean?"

"Like Sab, sometimes she shows up at the diner before I open it for customers."

Nick glanced at me. "On a weekday?"

I nodded.

"Doesn't she have a job?"

"Not really. Well, this isn't something she likes to tell people, but she's a blogger."

Nick slowly came to a halt. "Really? I thought she worked in finance or marketing... something?"

"Used to. But she quit because she was no longer happy with her job."

"Wow," he muttered. "I think it's great that she knows what she wants to do with her life. That was really brave of her."

I nodded, and we started jogging again. "You should tell her that. She thinks people will judge her and be disappointed when they find out that she is just a blogger."

"She knows what she wants, and more importantly, she does it. I admire her for that."

We began talking about our other friends' lives as we jogged. We realized that they were all doing the things they like. They were either pursuing their passion and profession or marrying the love of their life.

Meanwhile, Nick and I were here, jogging, gossiping about them, and contemplating how our lives kind of suck. This wasn't supposed to be my life. I was supposed to work in the film industry, get married on a cliff, and build my own happy family. Instead, I was living with my boyfriend, raising my beautiful daughter, and managing a diner which I never even dreamed of.

"The diner was more of a necessity. I needed another source of income."

"But it's doing good, right?"

"You can say that," I replied. It was doing okay. Not that it would make me rich, but just enough to cover the bills and save a little for Naiah's education. "What's your plan after you get your degree?"

Nick shrugged. "No idea."

Classic Nick.

Other people might think he's living a dream life, but really, he was just fortunate enough to live in Paris. But he certainly didn't know what he was doing with his life. The number of times he shifted courses and transferred universities speak for how decisive he is about his life.

"I'll just figure it out when I get my degree. You know, cross the bridge when you get there."

"Can I just be the one living in Paris? It would be nice to contemplate about my life while on a boat cruise along the Seine River."

"Want me to take you to Paris?"

"Will Sunshine be mad if I get there first?"

He just chuckled in response and picked up his pace.