RC.

Ch4 ..... E

Tonight I've invited Lisa for dinner. The last thing I should do when I feel down is stay alone!

As she arrives with her arms full of shopping, I quickly take some of what she's carrying.

T:"Come in! Come in!"

Lisa:"Mmmmm !!! It smells good already!!"

Lisa is one of my biggest fans! It must be said that she often tastes my recipes before anyone else! She walks over to the steaming pans.

I stop her in her stride.

T:"Say, nosey! It's a surprise !"

Lisa pouts but she knows there's no point in insisting.

Lisa:"I've brought all we need to make a couple of Cosmos!"

T:"Ouuuuuh you! You know I love you !! You're really collecting stars today!!"

Lisa gives me a big smile as she proudly gets her virtuals out.

Lisa:"I got some olives and some goat's cheese to go with it too. . ."

T:"Great! We've got exactly what we need to make a perfect aperitif!""Well! At least we're not gonna starve to death!"

Lisa:"Sweetie, we're gonna be chatting all night! I had to get us equipped!!"

Lisa:"Do you have anything to squeeze the lemon with?"

T:"Yes, in the drawer, there."

We cheerfully settle into the kitchen, preparing our evening.

Lisa is beginning to know where things are and she manages to find two cocktail glasses.

Lisa:"You know what? When all is said and done,  who needs guys?"

T:"You're right! A girl's night with a good cocktail and a good meal, that's the life!"

Lisa:"Me, I'm losing heart!"

Lisa stares at me, still holding the squeezed lemon.

Lisa:"Seriously! We're in this huge city, you'd think we'd easily find what we're looking for! But no ! I'm always meeting the wrong type of guy!"

I giggle at my friend's falsely-jaded face.

T:"One day, we'll find him, Prince Charming I mean!"

Lisa:"Oh yeah ?! I wonder where he's hiding! It was all very well telling us tales when we were kids, but now it's a whole different story!"

T:"If we had been told the truth, do you think we'd still have wanted to be princesses?"

Lisa:"Probably not, we would rather have been on the bitches side!"

T:"Still, do you remember how fairytales always ended with the same old:... and they lived happily ever after", but they never stipulated whether they stayed together or not!"

Lisa:"Another scam!"

We both laugh whilst I continue preparing the meal.

T:"Or, princes have simply changed their appearance. Before they were knights, now they are sexy businessmen . . ."

I stay dreamy for a moment, which Lisa obviously notices.

Lisa:"Are you referring to something in particular or are you just philosophising?"

She's staring at me , a big smirk on her face.

T:"Well ... See, me for instance ... I'm falling for my boss."

This time, Lisa puts her lemon down and rubs the tip of her nose with the back of her hand.

Lisa:"Are you searious?"

T:"I think so, unfortunately . . ."

Lisa looks at me sideways.

T:"Listen, I know it's a bad idea, okay?"

Lisa:"That's not what I said . . ."

T:"I can't help it!! This guy has something that ... that makes me... I don't know! Whenever I'm with him, my heart feels so young again!"

Lisa:"Tayla ..."

T:"For example, I have to go with him to Houston for work, next week, and I'm completely excited about the idea!"

T:"And who in the world gets excited about leaving for a day with his boss, for work?"

T:"And though I keep repeating to myself that it's silly, that I mustn't go down that road ... It's no use!"

T:"I feel lost and it irritates me!"

Lisa puts a hand on my shoulder to calm me down.

Lisa:"Hey, Tayla calm down ... You mustn't feel guilty."

T:"I don't know ... Honestly, the chick wants to sleep with her boss, doesn't it make you think of Cassidy?"

Lisa:"No way! It's nothing like Cassidy!!"

T:"Really ? And where is the difference?"

Lisa:"The difference is that she doesn't fall for them, she's just a social climber."

T:"Yeah, okay, she does set her sights on everybody who's anybody. I'm not that pathological yet."

Lisa smiles at me kindly.

Lisa:"You can't control your feelings, sweetie. It just happens to you."

T:"Really, I'm afraid of what I feel ... If it were just physical attraction, I could deal with it. But, it's becoming an obsession ..."

I sighs.

Lisa:"I think you just need to put things into perspective. Even if it is easier said than done."

T:"I don't even know if it's feelings or just physical attraction."

Lisa:"Time will tell you."

T:"Have you ever felt something similar...?"

Lisa:"Of course ... It's the kind of thing that consumes you from the inside. . ."

T:"It is eating away at me! I think about it all the time!"

T:"Fortunately, he is away this week, I don't have to see him . . ."

Lisa:"Then now's the time to reflect on all this.  You'll see how you feel when you see him again."

T:"Lisa, I'm afraid I'm getting in too deep. . ."

Lisa:"Don't worry. First of all, you've got me here to watch over you and I know you're a sensible girl, you won't do anything stupid."

T:"Hmm ..."

I cut my onions, unconvinced. I don't feel very sensible when it comes to Carter ...