A Sudden Confession

It was the bugs that finally drove me indoors. Sure it was sunny, sure it was muggy, but that I could deal with to some degree. Bugs not so much. Insects, especially those that bite, seem to be fascinated by me, attracted to me even. I can only swat them away for so long before the entertainment value wanes.

Inside the house was not off limits by any means and there were a few people hiding out in there, so I was not being antisocial by going inside. Richard was in there as well as Dave, Kelly and his wife Kellie, and Jerry. I was cheerfully greeted and joined them, trying to not think too much about what else Scott was telling Sarah Jean. Time flew.

Time eventually flew the beer through my personage and the time to remove it had arrived. After I'd taken care of this vital mission, I emerged from the room of rest to discover that the size of our group inside had increased. Angela had arrived! I haven't seen her in years, was just talking about her and here she is. Scott must have told that story knowing she would be coming to the party. She looked good, really quite good. I have no interest in going into much detail as, well, I don't need any more violence from Sarah Jean. I was pleased to see her and was pleased to see that she was pleased to see me as well. Tucked away in the hallway, we quickly caught up on the past years as neither of us felt we had much of anything critical to report.

“It's so nice to see you again Patrick,” she enthused. The she smiled rather warmly at me while becoming distracted by her shoes. “You know I was always... fond of you.”

“As was I of you,” I returned. “I thought we were pretty good friends. Even after the... unpleasantness.”

She remained focused on her feet. “That was so awkward. I mean, I wanted to say something then but it seemed too soon after you two broke up and you clearly needed some time to adjust to everything.” Angela managed to look up at me to see my look of confusion. This seemed to give her the confidence to smile at me. “Oh dear sweet innocent Patrick. You never noticed?”

“Noticed what?” I quickly echoed.

“I had such a crush on you.” Her hand reached out for my chin, then snapped away as if I were a hot stove. “I would never do anything to have split you up but I wanted you to be available so badly.” She leaned in, invading my personal space. Shocked by this revelation, I braced myself with the wall behind me, allowing her to trap me. Her voice lowered and became breathy. I was far too aware of her nearness. “I spent nights thinking about you, wondering what it would be like to have you hold me close.” She paused, looking into my eyes as if she could see through them into my very soul. “I always imagined you as a... generous lover.”

It took a second but my brain processed that concept, breaking my surprise. “You've been talking to Sarah Jean, haven't you?”

Immediately she began giggling and fell back to the wall behind her. “I'm sorry,” she managed. “I just couldn't help myself.” I just gave her a sour 'I'm mad at you but not really mad at you' look. Now that my emotions were returning to normal, I could see some humor in her action.

Nice to see some things don't change.