Memories Of Paris

𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐬

For the sixth time this week, it was up to Gabriel to close the bakery which meant that for the sixth time this week, he had to do extra work. But if there were no employees left, who else was going to do it but the boss?

Besides, he couldn't complain because he had volunteered to do that all week. Well, for a few months actually. Almost a year. At least he was doing what he loved which was more than many people could say.

The real reason why he was doing all this extra work was that he needed something to do. He didn't want to go home alone and spend one more night alone. It had been eleven months since Alex had broken up with him and he was still trying to get used to the fact that he wouldn't be at his home.

Not that he ever really was. During their relationship that lasted less than half a year, they spent most of it not only in different cities but also in totally different countries. He still lived in France and as far as he knew, Alex hadn't moved from the United States.

They had now spent almost thrice as much time broken up as they were in a relationship. He shouldn't miss him this much and he definitely shouldn't love him anymore. But he did. So much.

He could still remember what he had said: I don't trust you. If he wanted maybe he could have found the right words and convinced him to give him another chance. Instead, Alex had said I'm sorry and hung up. That was it, the goodbye and the end of their relationship.

The reason why he hadn't tried all that was because he had heard it in his voice. How much he hurt him with all that Leo-thing, how much he had tried with him and failed, how tired he was and how unhappy he had become. With him. Because of him. That's how he knew not to try begging for a second chance.

With Leo-thing, he meant spending so much time with his ex-husband instead of Alex. The fact that Leo had relapsed had really scared him. Unlike in the past when he had divorced him and left him all alone, Gabriel wanted to help him. While doing that, he hurt Alex and made him doubt their relationship. And the rest was history.

When it was time to close the bakery, he did it with a tired sigh, knowing that he had a morning shift tomorrow too. That meant waking up before 5am to start baking so they were fresh out of the oven when the first customers came.

Besides his cat Bernadette, there was someone else at his home when he got there. It was dark because all the lights were off but the television lightened up the living room enough so that he could see Élise Codieux's familiar face. His best friend was in her pink pajama shorts and a top and she had popcorn on her lap.

"Je ne voulais pas être seul ce soir."
(I didn't want to be alone tonight) That was all she said without taking her eyes off the television. Because they had been friends for almost twenty years, she knew that his home was always open for her and most of the time she didn't even bother telling him that she was coming.

"Pourquoi? Il s'est passé quelque chose au travail? Avez-vous vu Lincoln? Vos parents vont bien?" (Why? Did something happen at work? Did you see Lincoln? Are your parents okay?) Dropping his bag to the floor, Gabriel quickly ran to the coach and looked at her better, making sure that she wasn't physically hurt.

"Parce que je m'ennuyais. Non. Non. Oui," (Because I was bored. No. No. Yes) she answered like a robot. At first, he was just very relieved to hear that nothing had happened but when that was over, he was just angry. She should know better than start with that because of course he worried.

"Je ne sais pas pourquoi j'ai posé des questions sur Lincoln. Si tu le voyais, tu coucherais avec lui et rentrerais chez toi."(I don't know why I asked about Lincoln. If you saw him, you would just sleep with him and go home) Chuckling, he sat down next to her. She playfully hit him on the shoulder but didn't deny it because he was right.