The Innocent Lover

Chapter 5

Iris

Mary's heels clicked loudly on the pavement as she scurried into the car park from the front office. She looked ridiculous sprinting in stilettos, with her bag flapping in every direction.

Just why is she running so fast?

The car jerked to one side from the force she applied getting into it as she sighed, fanning herself in the process. I turned back to reading a post my grandmother had sent me; something about carrots healing eyes in two weeks when all of a sudden Mary jerked the car backward.

"We need to be ready to go out in an hour," she announced reversing the car.

"Where are we going?" I asked in confusion.

Why would we need to be ready when we have just finished work?

The car drifted by the gate, making both Mary and I jerk to the side as she spoke."Lille's. We gonna fine dine tonii-i-i-ight...we gonna fine dine tonight" she sing-songed, remixing the TikTok sound.

I glanced at her happy face as if it had the answer I needed. " Okay".

Her face dropped. "You don't want to go?" She asked, disappointment filling her tone.

I winced internally. "No. But I'll go if you're going".

I was tired and I hated crowds, but for her, I could do anything. She had been my pillar when I needed her back in the days and she still is, so enduring a bit of exposure wasn't going to kill me right?

"Thanks," Mary said the beam back on her face with her eyes still stuck on the road.

Soon, we pulled up in front of my house and Mary didn't waste any time on me.

"Be ready at exactly six o'clock, I'll come pick you up" she said and I nodded as I dragged my body out of her range.

Laughs echoed in our big yard when I opened the gate to see my grandparents nudging each other playfully on the lawn with savories between them like they were at a picnic. The sound of the gate closing was what brought them back to reality and they stopped abruptly, their smiles fading a little.

Shit, I just broke their sweet romance.

"Girlfriend is back," Grandpa announced snapping his fingers. Ever since he and Mary started hanging out I noticed slight changes in his behavior, but it wasn't this extreme the last time I checked.

"Morni_ ah! Evening," I stammered.

"You must be very tired to be mixing morning and evening like that," Grandma chuckled nibbling her biscuit, "Are they making you work hard already?".

"No, not yet, my workload is not yet hard. I'm fine".

"Really?"

"Yes Grandma, I'm fine really".

" You always say that," she replied.

I blinked, " Do I?"

" Yes"

Both of them answered in unison and burst out laughing right after. Such a sweet bunch they are.

"Oh right! Can I go out with Mary tonight?"

The laughing died and I wondered if I had said something strange.

"What?" Grandma asked.

"Huh?"

A smile crept up Grandpa's face. "Repeat what you just said".

"Oh, that. I was asking if I can go out with Mary tonight".