Never Too Late

Chapter 2.0: The Past and The Future

                That same night after Alex arrived, we headed for Sam's Log Cabin, some random diner we were quite fond of, just to, you know, cool off, hear about the things Alex has been doing, why he's paying the rent while he was gone, and you know, life. I rode with Ken, and Alex rode with Laura and Harvey. I kinda' wished Alex rode with us, so he'd get a glimpse of me with my new moved-on vibe. There was that part of me that really wanted him to be jealous. As I was riding the car with Ken, I just sat in silence, thinking about what Alex would've been thinking and what I should do to make him jealous. Ken probably noticed my unusual silence, but the diner was just a quick drive ahead, and he was too busy driving. We weren't really serious with the whole taking-the-fuck-buddy-to-a-whole-new-level thing, but I just didn't want to be alone.

So there we were, at the diner. We had just ordered for our meal when Laura and Harvey decided to start a conversation. I was seated right next to Ken, and we were across Harvey, Laura, and Alex.

"So, Alex." Harvey started. "How's the job in Seattle?"

"Yeah, we heard you were crazy busy." Laura added.

"Oh, that, yeah!" he replied. "Very stressing. I had to manage all the products and keep an eye on the workers and stuff... you know, taxes, demands, sales, etcetera, etcetera."

"You still look good though." Laura kidded with a very erotic tone, and she winked at him. "I could still have sex with you if you want."

"Hey!" Harvey laughed. "That's not fair! Your vagina's my property."

"It's good to share." Alex laughed.

Ken was enjoying that conversation, and he was laughing with them while I was struck in silence. I help Ken's arm, you know, the act-like-you're-intimate thing.

"That's actually very amazing!" Ken sounded a bit fond of Alex. "You already have a career!"

"Thanks, Ken." He said. "Unfortunately, I took a leave, as everyone knows."

"Yeah, why is that again?" Ken asked.

"Oh, I just wanted to take a break." Alex laughed. "It's exhausting to keep working. I earned enough for now, so I just wanted to see some friends and my ex-girlfriend."

Alex pointed at me when he said 'ex-girlfriend', so Ken already got the implication. He's not an idiot. Ken laughed and looked at me. I guess he thought we weren't serious. I wish that was the case.

"You two are exes?" Ken asked me.

"Yeah." I nodded and smiled, trying to not make a big deal about it. I could feel Laura and Harvey's stare and giggle. "It's okay. It's wasn't serious. It's just a sex thing."

"A sex thing." Alex repeated as he chuckled at me. "Yeah, just like a banging urge."

"So, it's pretty much like our thing?" Ken smiled at me.

"Something like that." I replied. "Just out of boredom. High School was hella' boring."

"Ha! Liyah's a slut!" Laura laughed as she pointed her finger at me.

"I don't wanna hear that from you!" I laughed back at her.

"So, Alex." Ken called. "What do you plan on doing for the next months? Are you going to the University too?"

"Yeah, I actually enrolled." He replied. "Business Major, hopefully."

"That's great!" Ken continued. It's like Ken didn't give a shit that Alex was my ex. I thought I probably shouldn't too. "You already have working experience in business, and you're taking a degree!"

"Yeah, it's actually the first decision my parents agreed on." Alex laughed.

"How're your parents?" I asked.

"They're great." He said. "I just don't think they'd be fond of the whole thing we had."

"Yeah." I nodded and laughed. "We stirred things up in Seattle pretty badly."

"You never told me the details about your visit in Seattle!" Laura complained. "You just said it was fine. I didn't know it didn't go well. What happened?"

"I don't..." I stuttered again. "I don't really want to talk about it. What's past is past. We should be focusing on the now and not drowning ourselves with the shit that life has put together for us."

"What about the future?" Alex asked me with a smile, and I just turned to look at him. "Don't you think about the future?"

"What's there to see in the future?" I threw the question back. "Work and work, then die?"

"I don't know what's in the future." Alex replied. "But wouldn't it be interesting to find out?"

"No." I crossed my arms as I answered Alex with a very cynical tone. "I'm not interested."

I stared at Alex for a moment, and he did too. He kept smiling at me, but I played the whole bitchy ex-girlfriend thing. It was kinda' fun.

"Geez, why are you guys talking about serious stuff?" Harvey laughed.

"I actually thought they were talking about time travel." Ken laughed with him, and there goes my Ken-is-not-stupid speech.

Anyway, we just talked about some funny shit the rest of the time. I tried my best not to get into another conversation with Alex. Ken seemed to be having fun, so I just enjoyed the dinner as well. Still, I wanted to make Alex jealous, and I had several months to pull it off.