About That Sunday

Chelsea: Wants and Needs.

Another mediocre brunch in an overpriced restaurant with Ryan. He was relentless in his attempts to get closer to me. Since his premier, he has called multiple times a day begging for us to get together.

Truthfully, it was only a matter of time until I caved. I did miss the way things were before life got in the way. The way things were before our parents died, before Ryan became famous and I graduated from Law School. I missed us as children and how we'd team up against anything and anyone. The Marin siblings were a force no one could stand up against. Although years have pasted and Ryan and I have gone our separate ways we still excelled. Now it was just separately.

"So Chels." Ryan spoke as he bit into his cob salad. "How is she?"

"How is who?" I stirred my soup in my bowl as I attempted to avoid directly answering him. "When are you meeting with the director of that action film you told me about?"

"Don't do that." Ryan placed his fork down on his plate. His eyes locked on mine. We stared at each other silently while our waitress filled our glasses with water.

"Don't do what?" I answered him nonchalantly.

"Stop going full defense attorney on me. Cut the bullshit Chelsea. Have you talked to her?"

"I have but not much." I lied.

"Does she seem okay? I still think we should have called the police."

"She's okay Ryan. She told me to say thank you to you."

'I'm only half lying.' I thought to myself while I sipped my soup.

"Please tell her I'm asking about her, if you speak to her again that is." Ryan seem genuinely concerned for her. It was sweet seeing him like that. It made me wonder if there was a deeper reason.

"Do you have a thing for her Ryan?" I asked while trying to seem uninterested in his answer.

"No but you do." His eyes burned through mine.

His words caused me to lose control of my soup. In sheer shock I spit my mouth full of food back into the bowl. A few people seated nearby turned to look at us. I needed to regain my composure and quickly. I politely grabbed my napkin and dabbed my lips before returning it to its place on the table.

"Excuse me?" I spoke quietly in an attempt not to draw more attention to our conversation.

"You've seen her, aside from that Sunday morning?" Ryan spoke formally again. He was matching my tone.

"I have." I said flatly.

"And why is that?" His poker face was starting to fade away and a small smile was lingering on his face.

I shook my head and tried to conjure up some sort of an answer.

"To be honest, I'm not sure. She needs someone."

"And that someone is you?" For some reason Ryan's smile made me uncomfortable. This entire conversation was making me uneasy.

"I doubt it, but when she calls I feel the need to go."

"Wait, she calls you?" Ryan's blue eyes grew wide as he spoke.

"Once, she called once." I felt myself shift in my seat and I thought about the irony of this. I was the lawyer not Ryan and it felt at this moment that I was one the stand being cross examined.

"So she has your number? I knew she was gay!" Ryan nearly screamed.

People were now staring at us. It's not everyday someone as famous as my brother sat at a restaurant and screamed about someone being gay.

"Ryan shut up people are staring." I spoke through gritted teeth.

"They stare anyway. I knew it. I gave here every single inch of my charm and she barely blinked. And you're definitely into her." Ryan took another small bite of his salad and gently pushed the plate away from him

"Stop Ryan, she's so fucked up right now. She just needs someone. It's not like that."

"But you want it to be?"

"No, and stop with the questions. When do you leave for Los Angeles?"

"Tomorrow."

"No more questions until you get back."

Ryan chuckled and pulled out his wallet. He placed two hundred dollars on the table and stood up.

"That should cover it."

We walked out of the restaurant and said our goodbyes while people stopped to take pictures of him. It was something I was uncomfortable with. Fame never appealed to me the way it did to Ryan.

"When I get back I'll have more questions."

"I'm sure that you will."

"Chelsea, I love you. Just so you know."

"I know Ryan, me too."

Ryan shook his head. He knew I rarely said it back but I did love him in my own way. He was my brother and the closest thing to a friend that I have.

_______________________

The next few hours of my life was consisted of meetings and paperwork. I sat through them and pretended to listen as much as I could. Anna was there with me taking my notes and answering some of my basic questions.

The entire time I sat there my mind was on mine and Ryan's conversation. I couldn't stop thinking about her. I wanted to be sure that she was okay and I couldn't understand why. Why did her well-being matter so much to me?

'I barely know her.'  I thought to myself.

"Chelsea?" Anna's voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Is tomorrow okay for this meeting?" Anna slipped me a small piece of paper with a confusing smile. "I just got an email requesting it."

I looked down at the paper and saw a very familiar name.

'Jessica Lowe, seeking legal aid and advice. Paid consolation.'

'What the fuck.'

"What time?" I answered coldly, knowing very well that Anna remembered me walking Jessica to the elevator during her last visit.

"2pm, I can prepare the conference room if you'd like."

"The way it is now is fine." I shot her a death glare.

"Yes ma'am." Anna smiled and began to take notes again.

Truthfully I was beginning to resent her. Jessica Lowe was slowly starting to unravel me. First it was Ryan's relentless questioning and now Anna was harassing me with her witty looks and her passive aggressive meeting scheduling.

I stood from my seat only to be stared at by a room full of my middle aged peers.

"Chelsea, we haven't finished with the meeting." One of my balding coworkers so nobly noted.

"I'm well aware Robert, and if you don't mind I'll be standing the rest of this meeting, continue." I gestured with my right hand for them to carry on and like the corporate minions they were they continued on with their meeting.

The entire time they spoke I found myself thinking of her more and more. What could she want from me? I defended the rich against tax law not rapist.

But that's what Jessica did to me. She was like a puzzle. A case that I wanted to win but couldn't. I couldn't win because it wasn't my case or my fight to win and yet I found my mind lingering on it and her.

Jessica Lowe was a puzzle that was mesmerizing and missing many pieces. Someone did that to her someone rendered her incomplete. They ruined her and no matter how much someone put her together there would still be some missing pieces that disturbed the picture as a whole.

A broken masterpiece.