Duly Noted

by H. M. Shander

  “Aurora!” The female voice yelled after she said hello. “What the hell? You just leave without saying goodbye?”

  “Kaitlyn, I’m–” What? Sorry, because I’m not. Well? “I’m sorry for leaving without saying goodbye. I hurt my lower back and needed to hightail it out of there.”

  “I looked all over for you.”

  She buried her face into her hands, cradling the phone against her ear. “I’m sorry for that, but I hurt so bad, I couldn’t look for you. I knew eventually you’d get your phone.”

  “Are you okay now?”

  “Better, yes. But not a hundred percent.”

  Kaitlyn huffed. “Good. I’m sorry you got hurt. I was having a really good time with you.”

  Aurora smiled, recalling the closeness. “I was too. It was almost–” Erotic? Is it weird to think that?

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.” Sometimes your bestie understood what you wanted to say, even if you never said it.

  “Cool. So you want to hang tonight?”

  Slumping against the back of the kitchen chair, she said, “Yeah, it beats researching a major jerk.” She launched into discussion about her day with Matthew James.

  “I should swing by the restaurant and see if he’s there waiting.”

  Aurora glanced at the clock above her TV. “You wouldn’t make it in time to check.”

  “Actually, I’m not far away. I should. Text me a pic of the rat-faced bastard.”

  Aurora laughed and finding a quick pic, sent it. “There you go.”

  “Great, thanks. Oh, here it is. Wow, he’s handsome,” Kaitlyn said. “A jerk still, but a handsome one.”

  “Yes, he is.”

  “Okay, I’m going to have some fun. I’ll come over when I’m done.”

  Kaitlyn hung up and Aurora pondered the possibilities of what her friend would do. She almost wanted to be a fly on the wall, but she’d never make it in time. Instead, passing time, she tidied up. The scattered clothes were picked off the floor and she kicked the rest down the hall into the bottom of her closet, before she loaded the dishwasher and ran a cloth over the counter, and stacked up a pile of textbooks in the corner of the living room. It wasn’t Kaitlyn clean, but it was an improvement.

  She’d finished when Kaitlyn buzzed and came up holding her belly.

  “What?” Aurora asked.

  “That–” she said between quick breaths, “was a lot of fun.”

  “What did you do?” Aurora narrowed her eyes as Kaitlyn fell into the living room.

  “Oh I met him, walked right up to his booth and told him to Fuck Off and Die.”

  “What? You didn’t.”

  “Told him, and I used the words you told me, ‘That’s not how we treat our fellow brothers and sisters’ and then I told him if he ever touched you again, I’d break his neck.”

  Aurora’s eyes bugged out. “Kaitlyn!” She shook her head. “Well, thankfully he’s not coming back to the library, it was just today.”

  “Meh, whatever, it was still fun. You should’ve seen the look on his face.”

  “I wish.” Aurora sat on the couch, pulling a leg underneath her. Her bestie flopped down beside her, her hand falling on Aurora’s leg.

  “It was awesome.” Kaitlyn threw her head back on the couch, deep in thought.

  Aurora relaxed. “Want to watch a movie then?”

  “Sure, something scary.” Kaitlyn laughed when Aurora gasped. “Kidding. I know you hate anything with gore. What would you prefer?”

  “Something that will make me cry.”

  Kaitlyn cocked her head as she flipped through the expansive collection of DVDs. “Seriously, what’s up with that? You always want a tear-jerker.”

  “Sometimes, a girl just needs to cry to feel better.” And to let her emotions run freely without being judged. It hurt the way Matthew treated her. As much as she wanted to cry, she couldn’t. But a good tear-jerker would be a great excuse.

  “Fine. I’ll put in that Hazel and Augustus movie you love so much.”

  “I’ll make popcorn.”

  Chapter Nine

  Monday rolled around as Mondays always do. Way too early, and full of piss and vinegar. She hated Mondays, and today she’d hate it even more. Fucking Matthew James.

  As she staggered down the hall, she was rather proud of her efforts the previous day. Her home, for the first time since she’d moved into it a few weeks ago, sparkled. Clothes were washed and put away, dishes sat neatly stacked in their cabinets, as opposed to piled beside the sink. She even managed to hang up a few personal pictures but passed on displaying a family portrait. It’d be too hard to see daily, especially with her Daddy coming for a visit, so she hung up one of Carmen’s canvas prints. From the room that still housed her belongings. The room she wasn’t supposed to enter, and yet, wasn’t allowed to empty. Carmen’s storage closet. I wonder if Daddy has a whole floor he doesn’t touch at home filled with Momma’s stuff.

  With a huff, she sighed and made herself a cup of coffee. Nope, she wasn’t looking forward to seeing anything related to what she thought was a Matthew James sized fiasco. Maybe, hopefully, Kaitlyn’s sudden appearance was hushed up. She really hoped no one heard the jerk ask her out. Cause that’s what he was. A class-A jerk. A quick Google search revealed only his age– thirty-seven, nearly twice hers. It grossed her out knowing his age, and it made her shudder. Constantly.

  Finishing her coffee, and taking a couple more pills, she left for work with a grocery list in her purse. She wanted to make her Daddy a special dinner, his favourite– homemade mac and cheese.

  Aurora couldn’t get over how different the air was here in the big city versus Fort Mac. She expected it to be smoggy and smoky, but instead it was clear, tainted with the hint of blossoming flowers and leaves. Summer was slowly approaching, and she couldn’t wait to spend her summer months here.

  The stage dismantled, she was beyond pleased to see the area back to a regular section of the library. Gone were the plants, the chairs, the tables, anything purple and gold, and the boxes of pretentiousness. Relief washed over her.

  Steps away from where the display had been, she glanced through the poly film blocking off the newest addition, hoping to steal a peek at Nate. However, the opaque plastic wall made him as easy to find as sharks in a river. Growling, she marched away.

  “There you are,” a voice called out behind her. Spinning around, she expected to see someone else, and instead came face to face with her boss. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”

  “What’s up, Sarah?” She didn’t like the overly excited expression on her face. Something was up.

  “We wanted to thank you for your help on Saturday with Matthew. You helped us out in a pinch.”

  “Really?” Aurora raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t do anything more than pass him books.” And wear that ridiculous cape and hat.

  “Regardless, you were there to help. The lines ended up being more than we expected and we sold out the books we had here, and the others have all been checked out.”

  “Great?” She wondered where this was going.

  “He was rather fond of you, and told us how much he appreciated you.”

  I’m sure he did. She rolled her eyes.

  “He’s coming back. At the end of summer for a huge two-day event. And he’s personally requested you to assist him. Isn’t this wonderful?” She clapped her hands in excitement. “We’re going to push hard to get the new addition open by then. We’re calling it the Matthew James Wing. Isn’t it great?”

  She surely didn’t think so, but nodded an affirmative.

  “Oh, he left this for you on Saturday. He took off quickly, and returned before we closed for the night to share with us the good news about a return visit. Here.” Sara thrust a beige envelope towards her.

  “Thanks,” she smiled weakly as she flipped the envelope over and over. “He’s really coming back, eh?”

  “Yes. And with more time to plan, we can make this visit HU
GE. The board’s meeting all this week to think up wonderful ideas. You should join us since you’ve been requested and all.”

  “Nah, I’m good, but thanks.”

  Sarah turned on her heels, dancing her way to the back office.

  “Well, at least someone’s happy.”

  Even with her back to him, she heard his smirk in his voice. “Nate.”

  “Aurora.” A twinkle formed in his eyes before he thumbed in Sarah’s direction. “Is she always like that?”

  “As long as I’ve known her.” Which really isn’t very long since I’ve only been here a couple of weeks. “Crazy, isn’t she?”

  “Better than a bitchy boss, I suppose.” Nate stared at her hands, at the envelope. “What’s that?”

  “Have no idea, but I’m not interested in it either.”

  “So let me have it.” Having grabbed it, he ran his finger across her beautifully handwritten name. He waved it in front of her. “Who’s it from?”

  Aurora cringed. “Matthew James.”

  “Ah.” He lowered his hand a bit and leaned against the wall. “And? How was the show?”

  Heat flooded her face in a fraction of a second, and a ribbon of disgust ran through her. “It was… unpredictable.” She searched his face for a sign of emotion, any emotion. “It went so well that he’s coming back at the end of summer for a two-day celebration.”

  “Whoopee doo,” Nate said. “Glad I’ll be done here by then.”

  “Wish I could say the same.” She kicked the cart with her foot. “Dammit. I hate that you were right.”

  “About?”

  Those brown eyes of his danced as she spoke. “Oh, shut up. You know. Mr. Pretentious. He really is a class-A certifiable prick.”

  “Such language, and from one of his biggest fans too. What happened? Mr. Pretentious forget to sign your book?”

  He laughed, but she didn’t return the feeling. Instead she ripped the envelope from his hand and stormed away.

  Soft footprints approached from behind. “Hey, I was kidding. Geez, lady, take a joke.”

  “I’d rather not, thank you very much.”

  “What did he do to make you turn on him?”

  She wanted to tell him it was none of his business and yet, she also wanted to tell him everything. As if keeping this a secret from him would be a terrible thing. Her face flushed, and she fanned herself with the envelope while she debated telling him.

  Again, he stole it from her, but this time opened it. His face screwed up and tightened. “You had a date with him?” She avoided his eyes. “Really?”

  She hung her head in shame as the ripped envelope and card fluttered to her feet. “It wasn’t a date, really.”

  “So you’ll go on a date with Mr. Pretentious, but when I show up at the club that you invited me to, you take off. Guess I know what you go for in guys.”

  A sharp inhale before meeting his gaze. The moment she did, she wished she hadn’t. Betrayal hung over him, washing clean his normal chipper expression and replacing it with disgust. The silver ball of his tongue piercing perched between his teeth and made him sexy, but it was overshadowed by the air of sadness.

  “And I thought you were different.”

  Although he marched to the construction area, she hoped he’d turn around. He didn’t. She fetched the mess at her feet, and opened up the card.

  Dearest Aurora,

  Sorry about the way our dinner turned out. I’m not sure where things went wrong, but I’d like to make it up to you. Please call me. My personal number’s on the back.

  Yours, Matthew

  “Uggg,” Aurora grunted and walked over to the nearest recycling container, tossing in the envelope and card. “Fucking jerk,” she added as she shoved it to the bottom of the bin.

  Overextended emotionally, she backtracked to the staff room and rooted through her purse. I need a quick fix. The container where relief should be was empty. No matter how many times she shook the container, nothing spilled out. “Dammit,” she cursed and slammed a palm into the door of her locker. A quick glance to the clock. Still two hours away from a lunch break when she could run home and get more. Double checking in case one pill hid in the depths of her purse, she dumped the contents across the bench.

  Wallet. Phone. Notebook. Emergency tampon. A pill bottle with a dozen Percocet. A few coins. Lipstick tube. Another pill container with five Flexeril. A set of keys. An empty Xanax container. No little blue pill. Fuck. She stared at the two pills she did have. Combined, they would work and take the edge off. A little annoying voice in the back of her head, likely the pre-med voice she once listened to, told her to never mix them. However, at this moment, she wanted to escape her emotions. To feel blah. To not care. She stared long and hard, debating.

  “Fuck me,” she growled and cleaned up her personal mess. It wasn’t going to happen today.

  After restocking her travelling containers with more pills at lunch, she returned a little lighter in her steps. Keeping an eye roving about for Nate, she did her work at a distractingly slower pace than normal. Where was he hiding? She didn’t see him. Anywhere. And she desperately wanted to talk to him. Explain things better. She hated that Matthew James had interfered in something between them. But what was between them?

  Nothing, really. A bud of friendship, maybe something romantic. It had only been a week or so but she was intrigued by him. Yes, intrigued was a good word. He had no love for the rock star that was for sure, and he let those feelings show. He comforted her during that wicked storm and didn’t think she was acting childish. Derek never understood her fear of storms, and always laughed at her cowardliness. Plus, Nate was cute too, in a handsome way. That dark hair, those brown eyes. She shook her head.

  Although he’d already asked her out, it would never happen. She was too damaged to ever make a relationship work. She never needed the reminders, but Derek proved it. She’d been with him for two years, her high school sweetheart. Then after the accident, he couldn’t handle the way she’d changed; physically and emotionally. Everything changed after that day. Everything.

  “Hey, Aurora, phone call for you. Long distance,” Sarah called out to her.

  For a heartbeat, she worried it was about her father, because otherwise he’d call her cell. Plus, he was due to visit tonight. Panicked that something bad had happened, she raced to the phone and pressed the blinking button. “Hello?”

  “Aurora?”

  “Yes, this is she.”

  “Ah, great.” The voice on the other end paused a moment. “It’s Matthew.”

  Her heart sank. For real?

  “Matthew James.”

  “What do you want?” Her voice changed from panicked to irritated in a microsecond.

  “I wanted to talk to you. Find out why you stood me up and sent your demonic friend in your place.”

  She tapped her foot, and glanced around. No one was around. Two staff members out of earshot were the closest people. “I heard what you said about me. How easy I was to manipulate and how you’d have me eating out of the palm of your hand.” Anger built in her core and she turned her back to the open door. “I’m not that type of girl, so go fuck yourself.”

  The receiver was away from her ear, but she heard him call out, “Wait, Aurora, please.” She put the phone back against her ear. “Geez, you are feisty.”

  “What do you want?”

  “Please, my lady, understand that I meant no harm. I was talking to my manager, and that’s how things are with him. It was all in fun.”

  “Whatever.”

  “No really, I wouldn’t have asked you out if I didn’t mean it.”

  “You’re just a typical jerk-faced toad. You like an easy score at every place you visit.” She stood tall, as she cradled the phone against her shoulder, stealing glances towards the door. Which was now closed. Great. Someone had overheard her conversation.

  “I’m not. I swear.”

  “How am I supposed to believe that?”

  “Wel
l, for starters, I’m across the country calling you.”

  “So what? That proves nothing.”

  He sighed. “Fine, do you have a pen handy?”

  “Sure–” She grabbed the one nearest the phone and ripped a receipt off the till.

  “When you go home, Google ‘Rebecca Gordon’ and then call me.”

  “Why would I do that?”

  “Well, my feisty one, when you do, perhaps you’ll understand.”

  “Humph.”

  She said goodbye, more politely this time, and hung up. Thinking hard, she remembered she’d thrown away his card. She raced to the recycling bin and dug through it, searching through the mounds of paper. Finally, she found her prize and pulled it out, flipping it over and staring at the back of the card. The number was within her local area code, and although that could put him anywhere within northern Alberta, it meant he lived closer than she expected. She folded up the card and tucked it into the depths of her pocket.

  ***

  “Daddy,” she exclaimed, dropping her belongings by the door. “What are you doing here?”

  He rolled the newspaper he was reading down and looked her squarely in the eyes. “Princess, I told you I was coming.”

  “I mean, what are you doing in the apartment?”

  “Since I’m the one that pays rent on this place, don’t you think I’d have a key?” He folded the newspaper perfectly and set it on the table. His demeanour changed from amusement to chagrin.

  Shaking her head, she walked into the kitchen, needing a glass of water for her dry throat.

  “How was work?”

  Conversations were always so limited to such trivial topics. Work. School. The weather. That was about it. Never anything personal. They avoided those discussions as the couple of times they tried, it was awkward and weird. Daddies weren’t for sharing private thoughts. Mommas and sisters were. “It was good. Not overly exciting.”

  “Well, that’s life. Sometimes it’s good when it’s not exciting.”