Earth (Complete)

Twenty seven

I found myself at the park in the city the following day. Dylan was blatantly ignoring me and for lack of the knowledge of where he spends his days when he's not with me, I thought I'd consult with a friendly face and ask him.

"Hi." I said in the sweetest tone. Bernard the hotdog guy look startled but greeted me. "You probably don't remember me-"

"Jane." He smiled suddenly. "Dylan's girlfriend, right?"

Confusion filled my gut. Was that what he thought we were the day we met? "Sorta." I replied uncertainly, but he didn't seem fazed about it.

"It's been quite some time since we last seen each other. How have you been?"

"Oh, um, great, thanks." I replied, but tried to get to the point quickly, and as politely as possible. "I was just wondering... if you know where I might find Dylan."

He frowned, "You don't know where he is?"

I felt stupid as soon as he asked that question. Of course, I'm Dylan's girlfriend. I should know where he is. I shook my head. "You see, he's not really talking to me right now. So... I thought I'd come ask you if you've seen him."

He shrugged. "I haven't."

Disappointment.

"Not yet, at least."

Hope.

"Not yet?"

"No. He usually comes by around two thirty to pick up some lunch." Bernard replied and I smiled.

"Alright. Thank you."

"Hey, Jane." Bernard called.

"Yeah?"

"You want a hotdog? On me."

Two thirty was only fifteen minutes away, so I walked across the park to the bench we sat at before, sat down, and waited, eating my free hotdog. And on cue, fifteen minutes later, Dylan appeared by the hotdog stand. I wiped my hands free of crumbs on my dress, and made my way towards him.

"You want some ketchup?"

"Yeah. Loads." Dylan smiled and accepted his hotdog. "Thanks man." He paid and turned, stuffing a huge bite into his mouth. But as soon as he laid eyes upon me, his calm demeanor faded. "What do you want, Jane?" he questioned through a mouthful of sausage and roll.

"I wanna talk."

He began walking, "About what?"

I scurried to keep up with him as his large legs took him further and further away from me. "About what happened. At the wedding."

"I thought we'd gone through this, baby girl."

"Not quite." We rounded a corner and headed deeper into the city. Cruzers rushed past us. People in the street darted to get to their three o'clock meeting and we were pressing through it all. I pushed past several angry people yelling into their phones and tried to keep up with Dylan.

But after we hit the heart, I shrunk beneath the organized chaos, like a little mouse drowning in too much cheese. Suddenly, a hand pulled me into a nearby alley. Dark and wet, it smelt of gasoline and oil and Dylan let out an exasperated breath.

"Haven't you had enough?" He questioned instantly. "We had fun. That was it."

"Bullshit. It was more than that."

"More?" He laughed humorlessly. "More? Oh, Janie. You're living in a little fantasy world." He shook his head. "Is this the part where I tell you I love you? Huh? Is that what you want me to say? I love you, Janie. I can't stand to be without you, Janie. My life doesn't make sense without you, Janie."