The Boyfriend (Experience)

Chapter 3: "Ugh, put on your t-shirt, ALREADY!"

“Wow, you’re really such a good cook!” Shell comments, impressed. “I envy you Everleigh. I mean I worked at the diner for six years however the only thing I can prepare is a boiled egg!”

“There is nothing to feel depressed about.” Everleigh admits. “I only cook dishes which are tasty and quick to prepare. I’ll give you some recipes.”

“Thank you!” Shell exclaims.

I stay silent munching on a spring roll. I’m so overjoyed because not only I am eating Chinese cuisine for free but also Sam managed to bring Monique along. She’s eyeing me, green-eyed.

“So Everleigh,” Mr. Aiden sparks up a conversation. “Where are you from?”

“I’m a New Yorker.” My other “half” answers. “Still I was born in Italy and grew up here until I was six. Then after I have graduated high school in Quebec, I moved around. I was a make-up artist in Seoul, a bartender in Madrid, a curator in Paris, a guesthouse manager in Stockholm and a substitute Art teacher, here.”

Nobody says a word.

“Is there something on my face?” Everleigh wonders.

“No,” Sam finally talks. “It’s just that you’re young but it seems like you’re wiser, more cultured than us.”

“Please,” she begs. “Don’t call me that! I’ve only been to touristic spots! And it’s not like I climbed Mount Everest or walked on the Great Wall of China. By the way Sam, you look like someone who would be a fantastic traveler. You should do that, girls like guys who have travelled a lot. It makes then interesting, open-minded, cultivated.”

Magically, Sam who is a mood breaker, smiles all smitten about himself.

“Anyway, mind me but how did you guys met?” Monique suddenly changes the subject.

What’s up with her? Why does she have to cause tension when everything goes smoothly? Yeah she’s so angry that somebody else took the limelight away from her.

“Monique, why don’t you fu-“

“Sweetie,” I am cut by Everleigh. “You don’t want to be rude in front of your friends, don’t you? Besides they don’t know our story, quite?”

I nod helplessly.

So Everleigh invents this story that we met each other three weeks ago. She was to settle down in our island because her ex, “Conrad” works here. After having unpacked, she went to Moon Bar where she was supposed to see Conrad.

However their reunion turned into a fight. Unhappy, she was about to storm off when a “loner”, yep that’s me, asked if everything was okay and talked for the whole night. In the end, she got herself horribly drunk and she lost conscience.

In the beginning of this week, she didn’t feel good and, ahem, her period was late. So she decided to find me to sort things out if we had a turn of events. And then she adds the part we fought because I assumed it was impossible since we didn’t do anything in particular. And the other one how she got my address from Shell. In conclusion, she isn’t pregnant according to the obstetrician and I, like a gentleman, proposed about expanding our relationship and here we are.

Thankfully, everyone is persuaded. Monique keeps her mouth shut. She was planning on embarrassing me but she failed.

After lunch, my ex-girlfriend excuses herself and storms off. Sam, Aiden and I are playing football outside while Shell and Everleigh are cleaning out the table. Sometimes, when I stop for breath, I raise my head and look inside. Unluckily, Shell doesn’t show any effort on baking but the “master chef” stays cool-headed and fix any fiasco my friend caused. Her actions make me reconsider about her. Sure, she acted like a psycho earlier but her having woken up early to prepare me breakfast, fretting about my lateness, getting along with my friends, creating last-minute back up stories, being calm and solving troubles show how truly she cares about me. She is a candidate to the list of people I definitely want to spend my life with.