A TIME TO HEAL

CHAPTER TEN

ALL I thought of as the days passed by was the dinner date I was having with Kelvin and his girlfriend, Alex. I didn't bother telling my therapist any of this because I introduced Kelvin as a friend not someone I had feelings for.

It was Saturday and I sat on my sofa thinking of cancelling and giving an excuse. I could send my regrets and forget about the whole thing, but I didn't want to disappoint Kelvin. It was my turn to make an effort for the sake of our friendship, and I couldn't drop the ball. He had been by my side through my worse, so I stopped thinking about my feelings and considered his.

I dragged myself from the front of the TV and went to the bedroom to find something sensible to wear. I found an old fancy gown after upending my whole closet on the bed. It looked rumpled so I took it to the ironing board and pressed it. I took my bath and tried to do some makeup, I applied a shimmery lip gloss and concealer to my face. I tried a smokey eye but made a mess out of it so I went to the bathroom sink and cleaned my whole makeup to start afresh. I decided to settle for the routine I was used to, so I used a concealer then dabbed on a little powder. I just wanted to look presentable.

I found an old beaded Burberry clutch I got myself two Christmases ago at the back of my closet and filled it with a pack of unsweetened gum, hand sanitizer and my phone. I took one last look at my bed before leaving the bedroom, ignoring the pile of clothing dumped in the middle. I walked into the living room and grabbed my car keys from the bowl in the middle of the center table. I raced to the door while checking my wrist for the time. The traffic was likely to be moving towards another end so I relaxed.

I drove to Kelvin's apartment and made it in one piece after swerving in and out of several lanes in order to get out of the traffic jam. I wasn't expecting there to be any but the little there was moved easily. I knocked gingerly on the door and I saw a warm face smiling at me as the door opened.

"You must be Fatimah, I'm Alex. Come in," she gestured.

"Hi Alex, I've heard so much about you." I entered the apartment and Alex walked behind me.

Alex was wearing a sparkling gold short dress with spaghetti strap and a twinkling jewelry on her neck. "Not as much as I've heard about you. Kelvin talks about you non-stop."

"I'm sure that's an exaggeration," I said.

"Not exactly."

She pointed me to a sofa as we entered the living room. I handed her the bottle of wine I brought along and took the seat she offered.

"I'll be right back."

"Okay." I bit my lips. I had not seen Kelvin yet.

I distracted myself by taking the time to gaze around the room. The living room was small but looked cozy. Kelvin really utilized the space, it felt occupied but not clustered. The walls were painted white and a large TV was hanging from the wall in one corner of the room, there was a full length mirror at another corner. He had several small paintings hanging on the walls also. There was one in particular that was captivating, it had a drawing of a curvy girl with calabash well balanced on her head and her hands on her waist. The floor was carpeted with a thick, fluffy rug and the look was finished with some African themed throw pillows thrown around the sofas. I liked the overall look, it was so Kelvin; loud yet calming.

"Would you like some wine?" I heard Alex ask as she came back into the room.

"No, I'll pass. I'm on a strict diet and alcohol is forbidden."

"Oh, I forgot. Kelvin told me about it."

"He did?" I was surprised. How much did she know exactly?

"Speaking of Kelvin, he should be back in few minutes." She looked at the wall clock hung high above the TV. "He ran to get some yogurts. He was flustered about the whole dinner, he even cooked and we all know Kelvin never cooks." She laughed before sitting on the sofa across from where I was seated.

He did make me salad but I guessed that didn't count for cooking so I laughed with her. "He didn't have to go through all the stress for me. I'm sure everything will be perfect."

"I tried telling him that but he wanted to do it his way. Men!"

"Hmm. Thanks for inviting me, it was kind of you."

"I was curious," Alex said with a wave of her hand as if to dismiss the appreciation. "What do you do?" Alex got more comfortable on the sofa as she tucked her feet behind her thighs.

"I work at the same firm as Kelvin but under a different department."

"Yes, I think he said something like that." She nodded.

"He told me you work at a law firm."

"Yes, I do. Did he tell you about how we met?"

"I'm not sure he did." He probably didn't bore me with the details because he knew I'd find it exasperating.

"Well, we were in the same bus going to work. I saw him stop at the same bus stop as I, and I concluded hastily that he was stalking me. I guess I was being paranoid. I confronted him and he laughed in my face. He laughed so hard that I had to join in and we laughed at the silliness of it all. Anyway, I apologized and flirted a little before giving him my complimentary card. He called me few days after and the rest as they say is history."

"That's so romantic," I said, hoping I was portraying the right degree of excitement.

"Yes, it is," Alex replied, beaming. "Every day is like Christmas here."

I could imagine. "That's great to hear."

"It's great that Kelvin has a friend like you. He's so lucky."

"I'm the lucky one, honestly."

"Have you met his siblings?"

"I haven't gotten the opportunity." I smiled sweetly. I started biting on my fingernails then remembered my manners and dropped my hand on my thighs.

"I went along with Kelvin to visit them in their Uni. and they're very nice people."

I didn't need to know that, the conversation was getting boring. "Really?"

"Yes."

Was Kelvin ever going to return? I wasn't sure I could keep going with the conversation except she started a topic that didn't involve Kelvin. Alex was looking at me with curiosity in her eyes like I was a rare breed specie. I smiled and I could tell it was a cheesy one.