One Last Time

Chapter 4 | Sunrise

BANG!

"Maya Analise Salvator! What the hell do you thing you're doing?!"

Ronnie freaking Val Dayes

I tiredly reach for my phone to check the time. Great, it's 6:20 in the morning. She could've picked a better time to wake me up! And to slam open my bedroom door nonetheless. "C'mon! I came all the way here after only dropping my stuff at home from the airport. That's how much I missed you," said Ronnie.

She jumps on my bed and cuddles with me. I groggily turnover to hug her tightly until she hits my shoulder for me to stop. We laugh as we break apart then decide to sleep a bit more to build up our energy for the day. When it was close to eight, Ronnie ran down to cook breakfast while I go take a shower. By 8:45am, we finished eating and head out to catch up on what we missed. Ronnie drove us with her Mercedes-Benz to Queens Park. We used to hang there a lot when we were in high school.

We've reached the park then walked along its meadows, reminiscing our adolescent years. We chatted all the way to the small bridge over the pond filled with ducks. I took out a bottle of water, drank half of it, then gave the rest to Ronnie. She happily accepted it as she gave me the other half of her sandwich. It's the usual exchange we do since high school and became second nature to us as we grew older.

"Aah, I miss doing these stuff with you. I can't seem to catch a break now-a-days," said Ronnie.

I chuckled, "Well, you are great with what you do so there's no surprise when you're a high demand from clients." Ronnie knew she wanted to be an event planner every since she organized my 18th birthday party. She became more determined in college after the success of my 21st birthday being one of most-talked about party of the year. She went all out with reserving an entire bar, planned competitive games, fireworks and especially getting Maroon 5 to play at the party.

"Anyway, have you thought of doing anything else other than being a librarian? I just don't want you to regret anything," said Ronnie.

I think about it and nothing pops up. I've been working at The Salvator Library for five years. Most of my life I have been in-and-out of school while working side jobs. I think the time I was really out and about was back when I was a kid. Maybe I should start doing something more adventurous in my life, but I don't even have any idea what I want to do or where to start. This is Ronnie's kind of thing, not mine. I replied, "I enjoy what I do, Ronnie. I'm not exactly sure if I want to change that. Although, if I do ever decide to want some excitement in my life, I could use your area of expertise. You've always been the fun one in this relationship."

I nudge her jokingly to ease the tension, noticing how serious she turned. She looks at me in the eye, trying to see if there's any lie behind my words. The face she makes is oh so familiar that it's starting to hurt. "Hey, aren't I supposed to be asking you these questions? I know I said you're great at having fun but that's different than applying it to your free time. Don't be such a workaholic," I exclaimed. Ronnie drops the sad face then slaps my arm teasingly. Naturally, I shove her back in the same manner. She said, "Ugh, who has time for men now-a-days. I'm financially successful, my life is stable, I enjoy what I do, and I have you. I'm in no rush to marry."

"You can date and not marry, Ronnie. You can also date then get married. I know deep down you're craving for a life partner. And, you can do it whether I'm here with you or not. You can stop holding yourself back from that part of your life." I know Ronnie has been turning down opportunities to date since what happened years ago. Aside from her family, she made me and work her priorities. I'd rather she focuses on herself and start living her life more than supporting mine. We're adults now. She should start getting used to it, especially my absence. She purses her lips while tilting her head, preventing any tears to  escape. I cleared my throat to stop myself as well from getting emotional.

I gave her the most reassuring look I can. I even squeezed her shoulders for great measure. Fortunately for her, I didn't mind that she changes the subject. "Why don't we go to the library? I haven't been there since I left for my business trip," she chirps.

Wait a second.. the library?!

~ The Salvator Library ~

"You can visit the place tomorrow, Ronnie! You must be tired from your trip. After all, you did say you went straight to my place once you arrived," I reasoned with Ronnie. Obviously, all my attempts failed since we're now walking straight to the entrance of The Salvator Library. Ronnie huffs, "I don't know why you're all worked up about me coming here, but I don't care. If you want me to leave then hurry your ass up so I can check out the place faster!"

As we walk further into the library, Ronnie suddenly stops right at the center. I paced myself, finally standing beside her and see that there's a few "Caution: Wet Floor" signs circling it. A startled yelp came out of Ronnie and I as Reed comes out from one of the bookshelves. "Didn't expect you to be back so soon! I specifically remember you said that you'd take today off," he said. Ronnie turns to me wide-eyed, clearly demanding for an explanation. I have been working alone all these years so it's no surprise how Ronnie's reacting about the situation.

I coughed, "Yeah, my best friend arrived back in town after her business trip and she wanted to catch up. Ronnie, this is Reed. He's volunteering to help out for the summer." Ronnie smirked at me as she shook hands with Reed. "So, what's with the yellow fairy ring?" she asked. Reed looks at me first then to Ronnie saying, "I mopped the area thinking it's best to cleanse it from any remnants of the embarrassment it got itself into yesterday."

I'm gonna kill him