Under My Skin

Chapter 3

At work that evening, my father put me on the sales floor. It was the slow season. He thought if he put a woman upfront, then it would motivate buyers. 

For the third time that morning, I wiped down the counters. I'd much rather be in the back with my mother designing and crafting new pieces for the winter season a few months out, or even doing repairs.

Sulking over the counter, my head popped up as a familiar cheerful voice captured my attention.

"I heard you went on a date," my best friend said as her straight black hair swayed from the momentum of hopping onto the stool in front of me, which was reserved for clients.

"How'd you find out?"

It wasn't like Jade moved in my family circle or had much time to snoop with her new job as a teacher's assistant. Moreover, she was still in school for her master's in education. My eyebrow raised as she flashed a mischievous smile.

"Well," Jade reached into her bag and pulled out a pint of lemon sorbet before tucking her silky hair behind her ear. 

"I went to the house between classes to bring you this because you haven't responded to any of my texts. But I guess that's because you've already moved on."

"My aunt set me up with her neighbor, and I didn't want to be rude."

"Saying no to a date isn't rude," Jade reminded me. Her stern tone brought out an inner mother's voice in a consoling and empowering manner.

While digging into the sorbet she brought for me, I shared the details of the date and a little bit of Enzo. We shared the sorbet since I grabbed two spoons from the back. As I wrapped up the spark notes version of the date, the second interrogation of the day began.

Jade took the pint and asked, "Why did he move? How does he maintain two jobs? Has he ever been arrested? Does he have any hobbies with a busy work schedule like that?"

I shrugged and took the pint back. "I didn't ask too much."

"He said he wants a wife, and you didn't ask too much. Really?" She asked while snatching the pint back. Her dark brown eyes narrowed at me in disapproval.

"I'm not good at interrogating people as you do. I just take them at face value," I muttered and relinquished control of the sorbet. I knew I wasn't getting it back at that point.

"I know. That's how you ended up with Jeremy," Jade commented with the spoon still in her mouth.

I pointed my spoon at her and concealed my laughter. "Jeremy is a nice guy!"

"Look at you. You weren't attracted to Jeremy at all. I can imagine how that made your phobia even worse. That's like a creeper trying to grope you in a bar on lady's night."

Jade slapped the spoon out of my hand and onto the floor with her spoon. Then she pointed it at me and locked my eyes in her dark gaze. 

"You need to stop going for the safe option. Take risks, or you're going to die a lonely old woman with over a dozen cats."

She was right. My entire life I went with the safe option. I didn't know how to do anything different. Making mistakes in my family was an unspoken sin. I only did the things I knew how to do and never strayed far from my comfort zone. The thought of stepping out of the box filled me with unimaginable and paralyzing anxiety.

"Is Enzo a safe option?" 

Jade tossed her spoon into the empty sorbet container with an exasperated groan. Her round eyes rolled and her eyelids fluttered.