The History Of You And Me

September 2021.

"Anyway, we broke up again. This is the last time though."
I smile because I'm pretty sure she said that last week.

"Sure."
I say sarcastically and she gives me a scoff in response.

"What's your deal with this place? Every time I come here you're always working on it."
She says referring to my ever-improving garden. I'd initially thought it was perfect as it was, but then I got on Pinterest and the rest is history.

"I like to come out here. It's peaceful."
I say to her honestly. The house is so big yet so suffocating.

My newfound love for gardening has been accommodating. It also gets me out of the house so it all works out.

"Well you've done a great job with it."
I give her a smile then take my gloves off to go pour myself a glass of wine.

"Do you think?"
I ask slightly tilting my head as I stand up.

I know I've been working hard on it, but it really doesn't hurt hearing someone else say you've done a great job.

She nods her head with a smile and I continue my journey to the kitchen.

"Isn't it a little early for that?"
I ignore her ask. I stopped keeping track of times and days.

That's usually what happens when you're unemployed. You wake up and there's a whole 24 hours that awaits you.

You have to then figure out how you're going to occupy that time. Drinking wine helps me with that. I can't exactly explain how, I just feel not so sucky when I drink. I guess it takes my mind away from a lot of things.

I choose not to say all that though.

I instead pour her a glass of orange juice and then join her back in the garden where she seems to have joined me in planting small flowers.

"So you broke up with him because he was on his phone too much?"
I ask now chugging my third glass of wine today.

"Yeah, clearly what's on his phone is more important than me. I choose to not settle for douchebags. Not anymore at least. I swear you got lucky with Olli. Boys today are just trainwrecks."
I chuckle at her dramatics.

Jess is our neighbor's teenage daughter who likes visiting me from time to time. I'd first met her when she came with her father to introduce themselves after we'd moved. They'd brought freshly baked sweet puff pastries that didn't last a week.

Jess came to collect their dish a few days later but ended up staying longer than she'd been planning. We'd chatted up a storm until her father came to fetch her in the evening.

She'd then started coming more often and I guess I didn't hate that very much. I preferred it.

Lisa and her husband migrated about 6 months ago, and that not only leaves me jobless, it leaves me friendless too.

The only other friends I'd had outside of Lisa were the other people who'd worked for her, and some other ladies from the practices that were in the same medical center. I suppose calling them friends is a stretch. The only thing I'd had in common with them was the fact that we worked in the same building.