what happened in a small town

part six

Monday morning
Marla is sitting on the stairs of the social building in the Country Club, very calmly, and Joan is standing behind her in a nervous state, walking back and forth in an area that does not exceed ten centimeters behind Marla, wearing black pants and a wide white shirt. Her turmoil is due to another reason that lies between her phone, which the other can anticipate but does not.  She doesn’t care right now to have any deep conversation or get into a cycle that won’t be broken, not now anyway.
She was wearing clothes that she deliberately chose very simple, wide, sky-blue pants, a white cotton shirt with a small rabbit drawn in the middle, and white sneakers. She braided her hair into a long braid and remained sitting at the top of the stairs like a little girl who had come to get a day’s work, which was her apparent excuse for sitting here.
The sun Is perpendicular to her, illuminating her unintentionally. She listens to a random playlist of a movie from the 90s through her earphones. The music gives her the relaxation she needs as if she is swimming in water with caressing waves, crossing it gently without moving her. Her raised foot sways with the rhythm of the music. She loves soft songs because her mind is stuck with memories that she cannot erase even if she wants to. She forgot the music of the previous year and a half, she forgot everything civilized in this house. 

She is about to see Harry and his mysterious girlfriend, Anne She did not decide to sit on the stairs, but who would refuse a clearer view in addition to enjoying the beautiful morning weather that she was missing?
“What are we doing here on the stairs of the building? For heaven’s sake, let’s sit inside and wait for them to arrive.”
Marla exhaled and raised her head back, looking at her, she had not been rested since she came to pick her up. Something was going on in her life, but she wanted to delay that conversation as much as she could. Her voice was rising above the sound of the headphones as she placed her hands on her back so that she would pay attention every two minutes. She gave her a worried look and then repeated it. she looked at her in annoyance. “What’s your problem? Sitting here isn’t forbidden, maybe a little weird but it’s normal for people looking for work in the club, and I don’t want the mean girls from school to see me and do what they failed at in high school.”
“With the fact that you’re here waiting to see your ex with his future fiancée, it won’t even take time to destroy you.”
She doesn’t know whether she said it spontaneously or meant to hurt her because she actually felt hurt. She didn’t stop loving him even when she chose to leave. She just wanted him to follow her, to take a step outside the control of his nobility and emotions with his mother, who took advantage of that to keep him by her side, to stop him from figuring life outside her choices.
She swallowed her breath and opened her eyes, answering sarcastically. “Who doesn’t want a wide frontal view for that photo.”
Joan cursed, then occupied herself with her phone for a minute. Then she went back to walking nervously behind her, directing her nervous impulse towards her, shouting in a muffled tone so as not to arouse suspicion or give an unflattering image of herself in the appearance club.  “Is it appropriate when they come and see you sitting on the steps of the building like this, listening to music as if you were a homeless person waiting to work in the kitchen to feed her family?”
“I hope to be the girl who has a family,”  Marla murmured to her in unfading sadness. The other felt her bad example. Do not tell a person who lost his parents anything like that. This is the first human rule that every human being knows, but for some reason, we never abide by it. She went on to answer her.  “Is it appropriate, logical, and natural for them to find us inside leaning against a wall waiting for them to come, and the people inside do not know what we are doing, and sitting here will make me see better?”
“Do you want to make a video of it? I forgot how crazy you are.”
She has been forgotten. This is the truth that she has to deal with. She has disappeared for years and no one has called her or even tried to look for her. She sends a message on an app saying that she is fine and they are just taking it. It is difficult to see the world moving on without you and forgetting you. It makes you feel small.  You are a nobody not only to the world but to the small group of people with whom you have a relationship.
“Marla, come back to reality now.”
She felt a kick in the middle of her back. She kept repeating that she had to raise her eyes and look. She wanted her to look towards the side gate, and at the gate, she felt something she would hate. It would hurt her and bother her to see it. She knew, but she was safe from seeing. Seeing something was different from hearing it, but she… Like humans, she can’t fight her curiosity.  The first thing she looked at was Harry coming with calm steps, wearing plain blue jeans and an unbuttoned white shirt with a white cotton sweater underneath, and as usual, he wore a white sports hat to protect him from the sun during his morning commute.
Why does she insist on focusing on Harry and explaining to herself what he is wearing?  Because she wanted to delay seeing who was next to him, but already her eyes fell over her, a frozen look, and then the scene came back to life.
Mysterious Ann; A green-eyed, soft-bodied blonde in a short green summer dress, as is the fashion color this summer. She wears sexy, beautiful, and fashionable things. She holds Harry’s arms close to her like a girlfriend who does not forget about her prince. She knows that he is a special man and the target of some girls, so she clearly declares that he belongs to her!
Well; done.
Her fingers go through her soft tresses to pull them back so that they fall smoothly over her entire back. Her glasses are white and transparent, protecting her from the sun and showing the beauty of her eyes. She appears to be one of the women the songs are made to.
Now she laughs for a long time. Harry makes a joking comment to her. He can actually make the girl with him laugh. She clings to his arm more and buries her head in his neck, whispering something funny and secret in turn, and they share a laugh.
Is she intentionally doing this to make all the girls and guys see?!
He has a girl he is happy with, and she is a princess that he is the only one who deserves her, or it is normal between two lovers and she is the one who has the problem.
Fuck the ads.
An advertisement knocks on the doors of her head. A girl with a braid smiles foolishly and wears an array of colors suitable for a clown. She says in a stupid, cheerful tone, “Don’t bother your old boyfriend when he’s with his new girlfriend.” The next shot is of a girl sitting on a staircase with her head in both hands, looking miserable, and her handsome old boyfriend and his beautiful girlfriend. The new ones come laughing like movie lovers, and then the foolish clown storms into the scenes, saying, “Dear, don’t bother your old lover when he’s with his new girlfriend, but let these questions kill their fun. What is that session you’re having?”   Why isn’t she angry and nervous and creating a movie scene to identify her?
Don’t bother her, let him take care of it. Leave your mark without abandoning your dignity.
She’ll post it on social media, attend a girls’ theater session, and she’ll get on stage and talk about the perfect way to annoy your ex-boyfriend when he's with his new girlfriend.
Damn, Fuck the videos, Fuck Harry for not coming with her and her bad choices, Fuck the necklace hanging around her neck that he gave her and she hid under her clothes, Fuck the dresses and yellow hair.
They are approaching. Joan urges her to get up, but she cannot move. She kicks and shakes her to get up. She tries to calm her down without speaking, but she fails. When only steps separated them, the perfect woman stopped and smiled stupidly at them. He finally noticed her presence. He did not notice until he was in front of her, hugging his eyebrows and automatically moving a step away from Anne.
“Why are you sitting here Marla?”She pretended that she did not hear the music, so she took off her headphones with an above smile and raised her head from her arms. “Good morning to you too.”
He smiled nervously, which pleased her. At least her presence had an effect. She was smiling as if she was not doing anything, shaking her feet and exchanging glances between them. He repeated his question differently. “Is everything alright?”
“Yes, are you okay?”
She answers him with a question, and he repeats his direct question, and Anne exchanges a look between them, evaluating her from the bottom of her gaze.                                          “Why are you sitting here?”
“The last time I was here it was okay to sit anywhere in the club and enjoy the music.”   She did not give him a chance to respond, she rose with a graceful movement, her lips pursed.   “But it seems like a lot of things have changed and I have to accept it, and I was sitting here to meet Mrs. Lazura.”
She said and turned around, grabbing Joan’s astonished fingertips to continue the conversation. She pulled them into the social building while Harry remained staring at the door. Anne looked at him, waiting for him to explain to her what had happened, but he remained distracted, and she was disturbed by the hesitation of his name. He shook his head and looked at her.
“What?”
She raised the glasses on her head and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Are we going to go in or will we stay here until she comes out and continue your chatting?”
He gritted his teeth together in attention to what he had done, shaking her head and picking up her hands again. “No sorry, I just got lost.”
“I see, who’s that girl?” She walked up the stairs next to him, the question emanating from her mind to her tongue.
He doesn't lie or take parts of the facts, he sighed and exhaled. “It’s Marla, my ex-girlfriend who I told you about.”
Her eyebrows rose in realization, and a defiant look flashed in her eyes. Behind the challenge, there was a fear that only she knew the reason for, but she tried to calm herself down by saying that the return of a ghost from the past does not mean that it has control over the present.
Or that’s what she wanted to believe.
**