The day I wrote a song about you

Chapter 3: No

Somehow, I managed to arrive late to every single one of my appointments with Riley that week. Mornings were not my thing, and I found 10 am really inconvenient.

I tried, I really tried. But this new bed engulfed me in the deepest sleeps I had ever had.

I offered to invite Riley for lunch after my session on Friday so I could apologize for messing up her schedule. She accepted, but she also gave me the option to change my therapist, so I could at least, arrive an hour later.

It was perfect.

With an hour more of sleep, a cool shower and the fact that I parked right in front the clinic, I felt pretty confident that Friday. Like everything would go smoothly for me. Just before getting inside, I took a cigarette out and lit it up beside the clinic's door. I watched people pass by as I smoke. The streets were really busy that morning. People running errands, cars, taxis and bikes filling the road. Men and women in suits talking on their phones rushing around. One or two walk of shames. One of two, because I wasn't very sure of the second one I saw. The first one was pretty clear. A girl with a tight black dress, heels in hand and smudged mascara, trying to fix her hair into a messy bun.

The guy, though, was pretty clean since he wasn't wearing make up, but his hair was all messy, his shirt was wrinkled and he walked cautiously, as if he was hiding something.

He got fucked in the ass, if you asked me.

I narrowed my eyes distractedly as I took the last puff of my cigarette. Before I could throw it out, a really blonde ponytail caught my attention. Cara was in the parking lot, closing the door of a really old red truck. It looked so old that if you closed the door with a little bit more strength than usual, the vehicle would fall apart.

The skater had that concentrated look that she had sometimes, almost as if she was angry. Her sportswear and tight ponytail always giving her that serious expression. She grabbed her bag from the backseat and took it with her. I wondered what she was keeping in there that she didn't want to leave it inside the truck.

Just before she passed me by, I startled her with my voice. "Hey."

She turned her head towards me, her eyes a little wider, watched as I stepped onto the cigarette and lowered her head a little. "Hi."

Before she could turn around and walk inside, I grabbed her by the arm. "Wait."

Quickly retracting her arm, she looked at my hand horrified, her green eyes piercing the floor in shame after noticing what she did. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to scare you."

"It's okay. I'm sorry. It's my fault." She mumbled.

I frowned as I stared at her normally fierce expression, now looking like an scared puppy. "Uhm- I was just wondering if you wanted to grab a coffee sometime?"

Cara then glanced up at me and narrowed her eyes, studying my expression. As if she couldn't believe I just asked that to her. "I don't like coffee." She spoke slowly.

I licked my lips, a little smile pulling up the corner of my mouth. "It doesn't have to be coffee, whatever you like to drink."

She blew out her cheeks pensively and then shook her head before taking a step back, her body already facing the door. "No."

And she walked inside.

My mouth was a little agape as I cocked my head incredulously. I was left there speechless. I had never been turned down before. A sudden sharp pain hit my chest. I let out a laugh before I rubbed it, slowly sobering up.

"Ouch."

She had really hurt my ego. It had physically hurt and I thought that was funny.

Cara, you don't know what you just did.