I Trust You

It's All About Perspective

"You ready?" Vic asks, as she leans forward till her manicured tips touch her toes.

"Almost!" Grace shouts from her bedroom. "I just need to find something that doesn't stink."

Grace tosses the fifth shirt onto the floor after sniffing the it and almost hurling at the smell.

"Perfect." She mutters, holding up a white floral top. "I mean it looks a bit too floral for an afternoon jog but whatever."

Grace hastily shoves the shirt on and squeezes her toes into her running shoes before grabbing her phone and throwing open the door.

"Now I'm ready."

"Finally." Vic mutters, rolling her eyes as she closes the tap and seals her water bottle. "I thought you hopped out the fire escape."

"Fire escape?" Grace snorts walking towards the door. "Only idiots do that type of thing."

Vic throws Grace a harsh glare before playfully shoving her to the side and waltzing out the apartment.

After her phone call with Vic, Grace had made it home after 45 minutes in rush hour traffic and chose to prepare some popcorn and catch up on her latests binge; The Magicians. 20 minutes later Vic was at the door in her faded grey leggings and white shirt, swearing Grace's ear off about not being ready or ever on time.

"So where do you want to run?" Vic asks when they reach the ground floor of the apartment.

"Don't know." Grace shrugs, watching as the sun slowly sets. "Towards the Botanical Gardens maybe?"

"That sounds far." Vic mumbles a large frown on her face.

"You wanted to do this not me." Grace answers, moving towards the road, her hands lifted in surrender. "Let's just go before the sun fully sets and we're left running with the creeps."

The two step onto the sidewalk and begin a slow, lethargic jog.

"We really suck at this." Vic says, her breathing laboured after only a 10 minute, short sprint.

"Well what do you expect." Grace says, her arms above her head. "We never do this."

"I guess."

Vic breathes in deeply for the last time before lightly running towards the Botanical Gardens, a couple of meters away.

"So, how are things?" Grace asks, as they pass the closing drugstore.

"Um, great." Vic quickly answers, her gaze shifting towards the trees in the distance.

Mhmmm, great?

"Okay, so how was that date you went on with John?" Grace speeds up as Vic picks up the pace. "Was it romantic as usual." She mocks, her eyes fluttering.

"Yeah, you know John."

Vic's feet pound harder against the sidewalk as she leaves Grace behind, her breaths going out in short huffs.

"Yeah." Grace whispers suspiciously as she eyes her friend.

The two continue running in silence, Grace slightly behind but just as she drags her gaze away from a flock of birds perched on the power lines, Grace quickly breaks out into a full sprint, her hair tie falling and her feet smacking harshly against the pavement.

"Stop!" She shouts, tightly tugging Vic's shoulder backwards as red Hyundai speeds right in front of Vic, their hair billowing in the wind caused by the car's haste. "What's wrong with you?!" Grace shouts, watching as Vic's eyes change from a dull vacant green to an alert, vibrant forest.

"I don't know." Her voice thick and heavy. "I just..."

Vic tightly shuts her eyes as her pale skin turns a beet red.

"Vic." Grace croaks eyes, watching as silent tears run down her cheeks. "What's wrong?"

Grace gently pushes Vic towards a near by bench where the two sit in dead silence.

"I..." Vic starts but stops as another heavy silence settles over the two.

"I'm here for you." Grace reassures, leaning back against the bench and gazing at the darkening sky.

Vic had always been emotionally closed off, she was fun and hilarious but anything that hurt her she chose to stuff into the deepest, darkest part of her subconscious never to be opened again, unless something triggered it. Grace by now had learned that Vic responded better to silence then constant probing.

"John wants kids." Vic blurts out, her eyes blurry.

"That's nice." Grace carefully answers, watching for Vic like a hawk.

"That's not nice." She squeals, grabbing a handful of her hair. "I don't want them."

"You don't?"

"No, why would I?" She croaks out, her head turned to the sky.

"Well they're usually a representation of your love." Grace murmurs. "Like you love in a physical form."

"That's not true." Vic grates, shaking her head as her back slouches against the bench. "Kids just complicate things."

"Vic you-"

"No, don't start, Grace." Vic interrupts, her hand firmly placed on her temple. "Just look at me. My parents were happy before I came along. I was the end of their happiness, my birth was the start of  everything bad that has ever happened to them and they made sure I knew it.

"Parents don't just say things unless they mean it. Kids complicate things, you might be happy for a while but they essentially change what's already going right. John and I are happy, at least we were till all this baby talk started."

"Ever thought you might be saying these things because of what your parents said to you?" Grace mutters, gently placing her hand on Vic's.

"Yes, I am. They're my reference, Grace."

"You can't look at a situation from one person's perspective, Vic. Your parents aren't the default setting for what happens when a child comes along and you know it."

"I just don't want things to change." Vic whispers, her brows roughly furrowed and her cheeks are bight red.

"So, you want to stay on this one chapter of your life, huh?" Grace asks, lifting herself off the bench. "I'm not forcing you to have kids but what it looks like is that you don't want to start anything new; you're comfortable and happy, so why change things right?

"But what's great about opening a new chapter in your life is that it comes with all it's issues and situations, heart break and hard times but it also brings joy, new people, new, fresh experiences and a whole new perspective on life. Starting a new chapter forces you to see things in a different way and I think John knows that and he believes in your relationship and love for each other to know that you can make it through this new chapter; with all its mysteries.

"You can only stay in one situation for so long, Vic. Again, not saying go have kids but look at the real reason that you don't want kids, from my view it's fear and you know what Mrs. Cho says about fear."

"Don't let it control you, young one." Vic laughs, rubbing her tears away. " Then she whacks you with the menu."

"Exactly."

"I don't know what I'm going to do yet." Vic mumbles, standing up. "All I know is that my husband is mad at me and I better go fix that before we dive deeply into my messed up and warped psyche."

"Now that sounds like a plan." Grace says, giving her friend a tight hug as the air around them cools down. "Now let's head back. I have literally no clothes left, I have to do my laundry tonight."

"Look at you being all domesticated." Vic mocks.

"Shut up." Grace squeals, playfully shoving her to the side as the two jog back, the smell of pinewood from the near by trees in the air. "You're the one who's domesticated, wifey."

"Okay, now I'm leaving you."

And with that Vic breaks out into a full blown sprint, leaving Grace wide-eyed.

"Well, look who can run now, huh?"