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14.
“ What did I do?” He asks for the umpteen times.
I stare hard at the door and imagine him standing on the other side with his head hang low and his shoulders bent in resignation. He had been left outside my door for the past hour and he had tried communicating by phone, banging hard on the door and finally shouting through the door.
He must be tired by now.
“ I am not leaving without an answer.” He warned me through the door. “ I am creating a nuisance outside your door so don’t blame me if you see this on tomorrow’s news.” He warned further.
His face lit up like a 40-watt lightbulb when I open the door at last. “ Go away! I don’t want to ever see you again.” His face fell faster than a complete blackout.
“ What did I do?”
“ Nothing much.”
“ Then why am I being punished like this?”
I was about to slam the door in his face when he squeezes himself into the house through the small crack. “ Hey!” I protest.
“ I am not leaving till we get this ironed out.” He informs me firmly.
“ Have it your way.” I sneer.
“ As a friend you owe me an explanation.” He insists.
“ As a friend you shouldn’t have taken advantage of me.” I retort.
“ I took advantage of you?”
“ I hear an echo in the room.” I say sarcastically.
“ How did I take advantage of you?” He asks with his face twisted with painful reluctance.
“ You really want to know?”
“ Yes.”
“ Fine.” I sigh. “ You led me into thinking there is more to us than ~”
“ Than what?” He asks anxiously. I stared hard at him, unable to believe that he is this dense. I pick up the magazine from the table and shoved it into his hands.
“ Read the last paragraph.” I requested before moving towards the couch. He glanced through the article quickly and sighed before joining me.
“ It’s not true.”
“ What is?”
“ I am not getting married soon.”
“ But the rest is true?”
“ I can’t deny that.”
Suddenly I burst out laughing while he looks at me like I have gone crazy. “ I knew it.”
“ Knew what?”
“ You were just rehearsing your kissing scenes with me!” I laugh. “ And to think I took them so seriously. I should have seen it.”
If I saw hesitation and even hurt on his face, I did not recognize it because I am too much into denial. I had a change of heart simply because I was afraid to lose his friendship so I chose to ignore the issue. All I want is to end the whole episode and continue our friendship as if nothing had happened.
“ You really think I was just rehearsing with you?” He roared abruptly.
“ Then what is it?” I challenged.
For a moment, he looks like he is lost for words. His mouth opens and closes without a sound then he closed it firmly. Without another word, he stood up from the seat and starts towards the door.
“ Inagaki kun?” I call after him but he opened the door and left, closing the door softly behind him. |
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