This story starts out with me in jail... and ends with me in jail.
But that's sort of suitable for a story about myself, is it not?
This is more or less a telling of me falling in love with a man I gravely didn't deserve, and him changing my life in...
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The red-eye I had switched my flight to, was soon to be listed as one of the worst possible decisions I have ever made. Ever.
Yet somehow, bailing Derek out of jail made it kinda worth it. Worth the slight sensitivity in my eyes from lack of sleep, and the irritated ticketing clerk that gave me a cold welcome when I arrived late to the gate.
Yeah... somehow that was all still worth it, and this proclamation was going on the list as some of the craziest shit I have ever admitted to myself.
It just genuinely felt good to talk to Derek.
Besides Alex, there weren't many people I've met in the last few years that didn't treat me differently. I kept ties with Christian for so long because in addition to him coming from a direct line of powerful businesses, he also never hesitated to tell me when my previous partners were cheating, or my old accountant was money laundering.
Sure, my auditors would've caught that money laundering eventually... Christian just had the balls to tell me and everyone in the boardroom, in the middle of a company meeting.
It was that level of honestly that felt like a breath of fresh air amidst the the congestion of kiss-asses.
Derek was less brazen with his honest approach than Christian was, but it felt good. Our conversations felt good. I knew I had thrown him off his game last night, but he still managed to make conversation. Keep conversation. He just had this personality that felt goofy and fun, and I liked that.
It had been a while since I pursued anything goofy or fun.
Not that I was going to pursue him, I reminded myself. That was when I thought back to the way the lady in the lobby had smiled at him, and I quickly tried to shake the memory.
The thirty alarms I had set the night before, was my first boss fight of the morning.
Getting Herold into his carrier, was my second.
"Herold, please." I whined to this stubborn nightmare of an animal as he hissed at me from under the couch. It wasn't even the carrier that bothered Herold, it was the fact that I was trying to get him in it at four in the morning. "Please!" I sighed, attempting another swipe to get him out from under there. He just swatted my hand away.
The watch on my wrist was reminding me that I really really didn't have the time for this.
"Alright. That's how you want to play things Herold? So be it. You're staying." I decided, pushing myself from the ground to my feet. I took a few steps away, watching as Herold slowly creeped out from under the couch.
When I made a move to grab him again, he sprinted out of the living room with unnatural speed, and I sighed one final sigh.
This was how I managed to find myself on this plane alone, heading back to New York. My eyes could barely keep themselves open, regardless of the multiple coffees the flight attendant had brought me.
