Love At Last

SHOCKING REVELATION

Following the event that occurred yesterday, I felt bad for what had happened but I decided to shrug it off and focus on my work. I couldnot afford to space out during work hours over some petty argument. I worked harder and more meticulously than usual to keep unnecessary thoughts away.

“How about Cayden?” Jarod asked me. He kept trying to converse with me even over littlest things. Maybe he felt sorry for his attitude the last time.

“He’s long gone,” I replied straightforwardly. I did not think to sugarcoat my words to hide anything in particular. I just voiced how I felt at the time and nothing more. Even without looking, I could feel Jarod’s intense stare. He must have been thinking about the reply I gave. To ward off any suspicion, I turned to return the stare and feigned a brief smile. I then walked out to serve the customers that kept flooding my bakery.

For a brief moment, I remembered what Cayden said concerning Jarod sabotaging my work. Though I decided not to shrug it off this time, I did not let it affect my pace. I decided to ask Jarod directly but still, I did not want to feel bad if Cayden turned out to be wrong, I had to ask Jarod circumspectly. ‘How though?’ I thought.

The morning ‘rush-hour’ were always the busiest hours of the day. I and my staffs did all we could to maintain the smooth running of the bakery.

“Here’s your order, sir,” I served a customer a cup of coffee and doughnuts laced with chocolates.

“Thank you,” he replied.

“I got really tipsy yesterday, you know? I could have said something I shouldn’t have,” I overheard two customers discuss between themselves.

Owing to what I just overheard, an idea on how to get the truth from Jarod came to mind. I just had to make him tipsy and ask my questions. That way, if Cayden was wrong, Jarod wouldn’t be able to remember and I wouldn’t have any reason to feel guilty. It felt like a win-win situation for me. “That’s it,” I muttered. My mind was made up. I was going to take Jarod out for drinks, get him tipsy and get the truth from him. I hoped Cayden was wrong though.

Later that evening, I proposed the idea to Jarod and of course he hopped on it. I had told him I wanted the two of us to go out and celebrate our teamwork, and that I wanted to take him out for a treat. Without further questioning, he agreed to come with me as he also craved an alone time with me.

I took him to the place I and Cayden had drinks. We ordered the Tennessee whiskey and in no time, we both were completely absorbed in the moment. I knew for a fact that getting Jarod tipsy would be a piece of cake as he loved to drink. I, on the other hand had to be careful, knowing full well I had a pretty low tolerance for alcohol. I had to remain sober so as not to fall into my own trap.

Few minutes later, Jarod started getting really tipsy. I discerned it was the right time to throw my questions at him. I was completely sober at the time, so I didn’t have to worry about forgetting our conversation.

“Did you do it?” I asked.

“What?” He was speaking under the influence of alcohol.

“My mailbox. The mail from the competition supervisor, was that you?” I asked, keenly peering into his eyes, hoping for a ‘no’.

“Oh, that?” he giggled. “Yes, that was me.” At that moment, I didn’t know exactly how to react. I felt angry and betrayed. How could Jarod take decisions for me and act the way he did. Even without Cayden being in the picture, he still tried to take control.

I felt a throbbing pain in my chest instantly. Why in the world would Jarod even conceive the idea of sabotaging my efforts? We were supposed to be friends.Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org

“Hey, Jarod!” I turned to him and held him by his collar. “Snap out of it, Jarod. Why would you do that?” I shook him vigorously by the collar.

“I’m sorry, Lily. I still don’t know why I did what I did. Forgive me please,” he pleaded.

“I’m ashamed of you, Jarod,” I cried out, still shaking him continuously.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized still.

“How could you?!!” I cried out further. “We’re supposed to be friends, Jarod. Friends!” I exclaimed loudly.

“I’m sorry, Lily. I really am,” he kept crying out.

The bartender was not pleased with the attention we drew to ourselves and so he politely asked that we excuse ourselves and settle our differences outside.

I let go of his collar roughly and tried my very best to hold back my tears, covering my face with both palms in utter disappointment. I had seriously hoped Cayden was wrong. Even without being present, he still had a say in my life. I felt so betrayed and heartbroken. I bowed my head, using both hands to support it as I thought hard on what could have made Jarod act the way he did. That fell far from my expectations of him. I tried really hard, but couldn’t fathom just why he acted the way he did.

“Ma’am?” the bartender called out gently.

“He should leave,” a familiar voice said. “Leave,” the voice repeated.

The voice sounded like Cayden’s but why would he be here of all places, and at the same time I was? I raised my head and to my greatest awe, I saw Cayden glaring at Jarod.

“You’re the one who needs to leave, Jarod,” he repeated.

“Cayden?” I called out. I didn’t expect to see Cayden anywhere around the perimeter of that place.

Cayden only turned to stare at me for a brief moment and directed his attention back at Jarod. Jarod on the other hand was too tipsy to grasp the situation at the time, so he just glared back at Cayden.