Things Have Changed For Me

I Do Care

I wasn't necessarily mad or upset. Well, I was a little upset but who wouldn't be? You get your heart broken and you're gonna be happy? I'd give anything to let things be that easy.

I was just sitting on my couch eating melted Cookie-Dough ice cream, and staring at my phone waiting for someone to tell me that it was all a joke. A stupid, well-played joke.

But that never happened.

After about a few minutes, and what seemed like hours, of waiting and complete silence, my alarm went off. I was too tired to reach for it, so I just let it ring on the counter and left the house.

I got to work around 10 minutes later. I was actually early, considering I didn't fix my hair or anything.

"You're late," my annoying manager said behind the counter. "I'm not paying you to be late."

"Sorry. I'll get to work." I didn't have the energy to argue or say anything back to him. More customers came in waiting to order before I even got my apron on. Today just kept dragging on and on.

•~•~•~•

It was still an hour before it was time to close. At nearly 11PM, none of us were doing much other than keeping ourselves busy by cleaning the tables or counting the money in the cash register.

The door's bell rang and some more customers walked in. "Ana?"

"B-Brendon?" I didn't know what else to say or do. I just stood there waiting for him to say something, or at least to order.

"What are you doing here?"

"I- uh, I work here. How about you?"

He looked guilty. And sorry. And I couldn't help but feel even more angrier. "I came to get a drink."

"Well, you order over there," I said, pointing to the cash register,"and I have to go clean the bathrooms now. So if you'll excuse me." I probably wouldn't have been so nice if my manager wasn't watching me. I grabbed the sponges and rags, and headed to the girl's bathroom. At least he couldn't follow me in here.

Or so I thought. I was nearly done, and I hear a knock at the door. "I'm almost done cleaning. Just one more moment."

"It's me."

"I'm cleaning. And this is a women's restroom. The men's is the next door."

A pause. Then the door opens. And there he is, standing there like he's doing me a some kind of favor. "Ana, I need to talk to you." I nodded, but kept cleaning the sinks. "I made a mistake. And-"

"What mistake? You didn't do anything wrong."

"I shouldn't have told Ryan or Jon that I was waiting for you. And I didn't know that Audrey would be there. I swear!" He talked slow, looking for the right words, and the right way to say them.

"It wasn't your fault. I was there at the wrong time and-," then I thought about what he had just said. "And what EXACTLY were you planning to tell me in that car? That you have a girlfriend? Or that you were leading me on? Huh Brendon?" Okay, I was nearly yelling at this point. And this surprised Brendon. And maybe you think I'm overreacting. But I did regret yelling at him after I did it. I won't tell him that, though.

"I- I don't know! I was going to- I don't know, Ana! All I know is that I'm sorry!" He didn't know what he was sorry for. Neither was I. "Why do you care so much anyways? It's not like you liked me or cared for me! So why did that matter?!" Good question.

And do you want to know what went through my head at that moment? I'm not some kind of girl who falls in love with someone right when I see them for the first time. I'm not the type who kisses someone because they're cute, or because I was bored.