I end up in the public park walking alone. I need some time to myself, and the fresh air is perfect. I suppose I look quite strange, all by myself with a serious expression on my face. So I decide to listen to my ipod, pull my straightened hair up into a high ponytail, put a piece of mint gum in my mouth, and break into a jog. That way I look like any other Sunday morning jogger, just slightly more fashion forward. After about an hour of jogging and thinking, I still don’t have a plan as to how I am going to keep my friends from helping me. I guess it sounds like quite a glamorous problem, and I guess I should be feeling thankful that I have such sweet friends. But at the same time I feel guilty, because I have no way of paying them back, literally and figuratively. You could argue that close friends are supposed to help each other in hard times, and that is all they are trying to do. But for me, it is just adding more stress to my already problematic life.
I break out my rhinestone studded phone out of my Gucci clutch that I got for my birthday two months ago. I check to see if I missed any messages from Ezra, Chance, or Hope.
Hope: Hey! :) we are still at ezra and chance’s apartment! meet you here in an hour?
Chance: Hey girl! ;) we are hangin in our apartment ;) text us about plans asap!
Ezra: Hey! could you meet us in about an hour or so? :)
I text back to all of them saying that yes, I would love to meet them there in an hour! Until then I suppose I will keep jogging in the park. But that is the choice a healthy person would make, I decide to stop at Subway for some lunch instead.
I eat there, and when I check my phone for the time, I am miraculously right on schedule to meet my friends at the apartment. When I arrive they are all sprawled out on the big purple couches in the center of the apartment. I have always loved how the modern styling of the interior of Ezra and Chance’s apartment matches their individual personalities so well. I greet them by hugging, of course. And once I am all settled in they seem to be quite anxious about something. I try to ignore the uncertain feeling in the room, and begin a conversation about every one's attire. But I stop myself mid sentence because I suddenly remember not to talk about anything having to do with fashion. This should be hard. So to distract myself and the others, I ask if they have all taken showers yet. Apparently they did when I was at the park, so they hand me two silver sequin lined purple cashmere towels, probably both of their yearly paychecks combined. I can’t blame them, because I am exactly the same way. So I thank them and head on into their overly decorated bathroom.
While I cleanse myself with their fruity body washes, I once again try to find a way out of my problems. After a few minutes of frustration, I turn to the purple, black, and silver shower radio and start singing on the top of my lungs to Taylor Swift instead. I have to use the CD input because radio stations never seem to get the memo that Taylor Swift is the best thing that ever happened. Thankfully Chance and Ezra know, so they have the Fearless Platinum Edition in their shower radio as an option for the smarter listeners out there.
As I finish up rinsing my hair, I put on the Taylor Swift bathrobe they have hanging on the door, the one every fabulous four member owns. I wrap a towel around my head, tie the bathrobe extra tight, and put on some hot pink sparkly fuzzy slippers. I walk out of the foggy bathroom looking like a spa girl. I hope my funny appearance distracts them from my problems. And I hope it distracts me too.
But when I enter the living room and find myself staring into intensely serious faces, I know my plan has failed. I have to fight back tears because I just wish that my friends knew that them caring about my problems just makes me feel worse. I just don’t want to talk about my dilemma at all, because I already know that I can’t go to Fashion Week, so that discussion is over. And my debt, well that is my own battle to fight. Plus they don’t have any money either, anyway! So they couldn't help even if they wanted to, unless some extreme miracle occurs.
