Read Part 1 here.

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“Sasha needs a friend,” a breathless Ashley said to me. We had just spent the last twenty minutes playing with Sasha outside. I didn’t run often but Sasha always made sure Ashley and I got the exercise we needed.
“No, she doesn’t. Sasha, do you need a friend?” I asked her. My perfect dog looked at me for a few seconds then ran off to get one of her chew toys.
“You see! She is happy with just us,” I said as I sat on a garden chair.
“Whatever you say,” Ashley responded and sat down next to me.

I picked up my phone and started mindlessly scrolling through social media. I noticed that I had a notification on Instagram. I found that strange because I hadn’t posted anything on the app in a long time. I clicked on the notification and to my surprise, it was James.

It had been six months since James sent me that awful breakup message and Ashley and I went to Samfya. I enjoyed myself for the most part but I spent a lot of time trying to decide whether to finally reply to James or to just let him go. I chose the latter.

“Ash! He just liked my picture!” I exclaimed.
“I need more information. Who are you talking about?” Ashley asked.
I hesitated. “James.”
“Don’t do it Abby. Give me your phone,” Ashley insisted.
“I just need to know what happened. I just need closure,” I thought out loud.
“No you don’t,” Ashley went on, “You’ve gone six months without knowing what happened and now that you think you can move on, you want closure? Nothing good comes out of closure!”

I sat for a few seconds holding my phone close to my chest. I played with the idea of sending him a message to ask how he was doing. I knew Ashley wouldn’t like the sound of that. I didn’t like it either but I felt I needed answers.

“I’m doing it,” I told Ashley. She looked at me in disbelief and told me how about I knew that wasn’t a good idea.
“I just need answers Ash,” I maintained.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Ashley mumbled as she got up and entered the house.

A: Hello James: How are you doing?
J: Hello Abby. I’m great. How are you?
A: I’m alright too.

After 5 minutes of thinking of what to say next, I continued:

A: Would you like to meet up for lunch on Saturday? Just to catch up.
J: Sure! I don’t mind. Just give me a time and place?
A: Noon at Mint Lounge?
J: That’s fine with me. See you then.
A: See you!

I couldn’t believe how well that had gone. I picked Sasha up and went into the house to let Ashley know what just happened.

“Okay. Make sure you let me know how it goes,” Ashley said.

Saturday was two days away but I was already feeling nervous. I kept myself busy for the next two days and didn’t think about my date lunch with James.

Saturday

I woke up at 9 am on Saturday. I cleaned the house, loaded my washing machine and made a breakfast sandwich.

“You know what Sasha, today could be a really good day for your mom or it could be a bad one.” I paused for a second. “I really hope it’s a good one.”
With pricked ears, Sasha watched me for a moment and then walked away.

After an hour, I went to look through my wardrobe hoping I could find something decent to wear. I told myself that I didn’t want to look like I was trying to impress James. After debating with myself for a while, I settled for a yellow dress that ended just above my knees, paired with white sandals. My hair was braided so styling it didn’t take a lot of work, a simple bun would do. I looked at myself in the mirror and convinced myself this was okay for lunch with a friend. In any case, that’s all it was.

I heard Ashley let herself into my house. She agreed to be with Sasha while I was out.
“Maybe Sasha does need a friend,” I thought to myself as I walked out to meet her.

“Someone looks extra pretty,” Ashley said with a smile.
“Thank you. Is this too much?” I asked.
“Well, you never wear dresses. I didn’t even know you owned any,” she teased,” I suppose you kept this for a special occasion.” I rolled my eyes at her, told her I would be back soon and left.

Mint Cafe was a twenty-minute drive from where I lived. I arrived at the restaurant ten minutes before 12. I stepped out of my car and wondered if people could tell that I really needed to use the bathroom. I straightened my already straight dress and made sure my bun was still intact. I looked at my pocket mirror a few more times and started walking to the door of the restaurant. My legs felt like they forgot how to work so I had to remind myself how to walk without falling.

I finally got to the door and spotted him seated at the table closest to the window, looking down on his phone. He looked as handsome as ever in a white t-shirt and blue jeans. The simplest outfits always looked good on him. He finally saw me walking towards him. He stood up and stretched his arms out for a hug. I smiled awkwardly and hugged him and then found my seat. In my mind, I could hear Ashley telling me how disappointed she was that I didn’t go for a handshake instead.

“You look good Abby,” James said after a few seconds of us sitting in awkward silence. I returned the compliment.
“Thank you. You look good too.”
One of the waiters came and took our orders. I ordered a Shandy because I wasn’t sure I could stomach any food. We sat in silence again and I why I thought this was a good idea. He kept looking out the window. He wasn’t any more comfortable than I was. I took a deep breath and decided to start what was about to be a difficult conversation.

“Was there someone el-,”
“I’m engaged,” James interrupted before I could finish.

Part 3 here.

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Hello beautiful people! It is day 21 of the Afrobloggers Winter Blogging Challenge! Only one more day left of the challenge. This weeks theme is “Storytelling”. Today I share part 2 of what is supposed to be a 3 part story but I’m not sure anymore. I hope you enjoyed this part and are excited for tomorrow.

Let me know in the comments, are you someone who goes looking for closure? Do you willingly have awkward meetings with your exes? Let me know in the comments!

Follow the blog so that you don’t miss out on the next part. Also, find all WinterABC 2021 related posts here!

Thanks for reading.
Love,
Wonani Xx