Amanda sat there quietly as she continued to listen to Ruby’s story about her and Professor Warren.
“Lily and I were starting our freshman year when the boys were starting their junior year. The guys had gone away that summer on a hunting trip, and they came back looking more like men instead of boys. They were the girls’ eye candy that year. All the girls were wishing they could be either Bobby or Zachary’s girlfriend. I had always known that Lily had a crush on my brother Bobby, but it grew once we hit high school. I, on the other hand, continued to find Zachary to be the same cocky know-it-all that he had always been. The only thing that changed on him was his washboard stomach and pec.” Ruby said as she looked off into the distance as ventured down memory lane.
Amanda smiled. She was starting to see that underneath all that anger, Ruby still had feelings for the professor.
Ruby sighed, shook her head, and took another drink.
“So, then what happened?”
“Bobby started to pay more attention to Lily and asked her to Homecoming, and so out of kindness, Zachary asked me to go with him.” She hmphed.
“I guess I never realized that Zachary had a thing for me until he kissed me that night on the dance floor. It was then I realized I had always wished something would happen between him and me.”
Ruby poured herself another drink and startle to guzzle a little more.
“We dated the rest of the year and into the next with no problems. We were the quartet. Lily and Bobby were inseparable, and it was said to be the same for Zachary and me. Everyone thought we would get married. After Zachary graduated from high school, he said he wanted to go to a local college to stay close by until I finished high school, which he did. It wasn’t until my senior year that we really started having problems. He wasn’t responding to my calls, and he wouldn’t come home on the weekends as he had promised. I decided to go to the college and surprise him one weekend. When I got to his dorm, I noticed it was unlocked, and when I opened it, I saw him in bed with another girl, sleeping naked together.” ruby started to get a little choked up at this point.
Amanda reached over and put her hand over Ruby’s. “You don’t have to finish the story if you don’t want to.”
Ruby shook her head.
“No, I want to tell you. I haven’t talked about this in years. I’ve just kept it bottled inside and continue to stay angry at things that happened years ago.”
“So did he ever find out that you visited him on campus.”
Ruby shook her head.
“I did accidentally run into my brother that day on campus, and he could tell that I was upset about something. I didn’t want to say anything; after all, he was his best friend, and I didn’t want to ruin their friendship.”
Amanda nodded, understanding the position that Ruby was in.
“So, I went home and just cried all weekend, not telling anyone what happened.”
“Not even your best friend?”
Ruby smiled as she reminisce.
“I couldn’t keep it away from Lily for very long. That girl knew me better than I knew myself and could tell that there was something wrong. When Zachary finally decided to grace me with his presence, I made the first move and broke up with him.”
She laughed at the thought.
“You know what’s the funny part? He actually said that I had broken his heart when I rejected his love for me. Me? After that, I gave up on love. I finished my last year of high school and decided to only do things that made me happy. So, I traveled for quite a few years and then finally settled down, and I bought this little café, and I’ve been happy ever since,” she said and then hiccupped after.
Amanda looked at Ruby and could feel the heartache that Ruby must have felt and still felt after all this time. She must have really loved the Professor to refuse to find someone else to make her happy and fall in love with.
Ruby started to way in her seat, and Amanda knew that was her cue to help Ruby get upstairs to her apartment.
“Come on, Ruby. it’s time to get you upstairs.”
“See, I told you I’d be no good to anyone after that,” she slurred.
Amanda nodded. “You’re right. You did.”
Amanda was able to get Ruby upstairs to the apartment and laid her on the couch.
Ruby sighed.
As Amanda turned to walk out, she turned to look at Ruby and then asked.
“Ruby?”
Ruby’s eyes were closed, but she answered, “Mm-hmm?”
“Whatever happened to Lily and your brother Bobby?”
Ruby slowly opened her eyes and let out a breath.
“They got married not long after Lily graduated high school. It was a beautiful ceremony. While I was traveling, Lily called me, letting me know that she was pregnant, and made me promise to come back to be there for the birth. When I got back into town, it was Zachary who told me that they had died while on a road trip, and there were no survivors.”
Ruby started to cry.
Amanda moved back over to the couch to try and console Ruby.
But she refused, “Please, let me be. I just need some time alone. I’ll see you on Tuesday for your next shift.”
Amanda nodded and got up from the couch and headed out the door of the little apartment.
She headed back downstairs and noticed the next shift of workers had started to come in. she had filled in the other workers that Ruby wasn’t feeling well but would be back tomorrow.
The other workers nodded and began their shift.
Amanda went into the back room and grabbed her things before making her way out of the cafe. She kept thinking about the story that Ruby told her and wondered if she was doing the same thing with Hudson, holding onto anger from the past and not letting it go. She was so lost in thought that she hadn’t heard her name being called.
“Amanda,” the voice said and grabbed her shoulder.
She jumped. It was the first time her instincts didn’t let her know that someone was close.
When she looked up, she found herself staring into a pair of chocolate eyes.
“Calvin?”
“Yeah, I saw you walking, and you seemed pretty down, so I just wanted to come over and make sure you were okay?”
Amanda smiled and nodded, “yeah, I’m fine. Just a long day at work.”
“Aw, that makes sense,” he said as he nodded.
Amanda sighed and started, “Calvin, about last night—”
He held his hand up to stop her. “You don’t need to explain.”
“No, I think that I do. You see that guy is…”
“An ex-boyfriend.”
“Not really, more like an ex-bully. If that makes sense.”
Calvin looked at her confused then shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter what he is or was, I just wanted to let you know that I’m not seeing anyone.”
“So, how about a movie tonight then?” Calvin asked with a smile.