The Talks We Have is a book in a series. It describes a blossoming friendship between an unexpected pair of university students. When this friendship is put under the lens of social media is up to them to decide what is going to happen next. Will th...
After our talk with Aileen yesterday, I went straight to bed. I didn't have the psychological, emotional, or physical capacity to deal with the problems piling up on me. I slept for a solid eight hours, and I was beyond happy about it.
My sleep schedule never disappointed me. I could sleep, even if I had things to do; I let myself rest. In the past it wouldn't have been like this, my mind would have been too wired on wishing to get things done and feeling like a failure if I didn't. However, I had moved beyond that season of my life. I was rational, and the rational thing was to get some rest when I was feeling tired. That was the purpose of Fridays in my schedule. On Fridays, I usually didn't have any responsibilities. I stayed in, made myself some breakfast, ate it in peace and then went on with my day. This consisted of catching up on my assignments, assigned readings and TV shows with Aileen. This Friday, was nothing out of the ordinary. We made ourselves a nice lunch and after our weekly Batchelor session, we went to hot yoga on 31th Street.
In the evening, we watched the game Alex was playing. Aileen being the basketball connoisseur caught me up on the rules and positions of players in the game. Her father was a basketball coach and the knowledge of the game rubbed on her.
Saturday rolled around before I could blink. I was feeling refreshed. I made myself some coffee and checked my phone for new messages. Around ten, I put on some leggings and a hoodie and packed my school bag with a spare set of clothes, wondering if I could get some schoolwork done after the session at the coffee shop. I didn't know if it would be too pushy, to text Alex, if he was still coming. But then, a "ding" sound saved me from overcontemplating.
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His text made me giddy inside. After all, it had been ages since I had convinced Nicole to join me. It didn't go so well. While putting on my running shoes, I thought that maybe I should have left a note for Aileen.
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I opened the front door and there he was with his gym bag slung over his shoulder. "Ready?" he asked.
I nodded. "So we are taking the subway, the one on 8th Avenue and then we walk to the studio," I started to explain our route.
"Great," he smiled and asked, "so your roommate ... she wasn't angry, because I kept you out for too long?"
I noticed that he was pretty straightforward and he quickly picked up on signs of what was happening with people around him. "No, she was fine. You know, it's just that your reputation precedes you and she doesn't foster trusting feelings towards the male species itself, so..." I tried to explain as much as I could about Aileen, without letting him know too much about her past.
