Can I see the message?
Whenever Daisy wears that kind of smile, I know she's about to talk about me being in a relationship. So, when she said she wanted to have a conversation, I already knew it was going to be about Eric. She always brings him up these days, ever since he asked her to convince me that he was interested. I decided to wait and see how this would unfold.
"Sadie, can we talk for a bit?" Daisy asked, her tone unusually gentle.
"We can, but if this is about your uncle eyeing me, I'm not interested," I said with a small smirk, hoping she'd drop the subject quickly.
"Guess what? Eric came for a totally different reason today," she said, her voice filled with intrigue.
"What reason?" I asked, now slightly more interested in what he was here for.
"It was my dad who called him, actually…" Daisy started, but I cut her off.
"He called him here for what?" I interrupted, now genuinely curious.
"He's here to celebrate the new house my dad bought. Eric's with my dad in the living room right now, helping plan the party," Daisy said, shrugging her shoulders.
"And how exactly does that concern me?" I asked, arching an eyebrow at her. She hesitated for a moment, as if debating whether to share the real reason behind her excitement.
"Well, I was hoping you'd go on a date with someone. Just one date," she finally revealed, her voice tinged with hope.
"No," I said firmly, shaking my head. This conversation was going exactly where I knew it would.
"Sadie, why are you so against relationships? Eric is a good guy, I swear! I’ve known him my whole life, and he’s not like those random strangers at the bar. You should give him a chance. At least let him show you who he really is," Daisy insisted, her eyes pleading with me.
I sighed deeply, feeling the pressure mount. I got up from my bed, needing to escape the conversation before it overwhelmed me.
"Where do you think you're going?" she called after me, standing up too, her voice growing sharper. "Is this because of Leo? Why are you letting Leo's negative vibes influence your life?"
She hadn't finished her sentence before I whipped around to face her. "Leo has nothing to do with this."
"Then tell me why you won’t give love a chance?" she pressed, her voice rising in frustration. "Eric is handsome, has a solid job, and a good reputation. All I’m asking is for you to consider being his friend for now. You can take it slow. If it turns into something, great. If not, at least you tried. Why won't you share what’s really going on inside that head of yours?"
"Daisy, just leave me alone, please. I'll make my decision when I'm ready, and you'll know when that time comes."
"Fine," she sighed, defeated for the moment. "Let’s drop it, then." But her hurt was palpable.
"Okay, let's change the topic," I offered, trying to diffuse the tension.
She shook her head, her face clouding over with emotion. "It hurts, Sadie. I’m trying to help you, but you’re rejecting every opportunity I present. You’re shutting down on me."
She walked up to me, her eyes softening. "The truth is, you're still hung up on Leo. That’s what’s stopping you from moving forward, isn’t it? Either you’re scared to start again or, deep down, you're thinking about going back to him."
Her words hit me like a punch. Anger bubbled up inside me, but I said nothing. Daisy stormed out of my room, slamming the door behind her, leaving me standing there, frozen. Silence fell over the room, the heavy kind that weighed on my chest. Daisy didn’t understand what I needed emotionally. And there was no way I could explain it to her. Even if I did want to be in a relationship, the truth was, I wasn’t looking for something ordinary. What I really wanted was something different, something forbidden—a fleeting experience with an older man.
I walked back to my bed, guilt already gnawing at me for how Daisy had left. She was only trying to look out for me, and from her perspective, she probably thought she was doing the right thing.
By noon, when she still hadn’t come back, I decided to go check on her. I found her asleep in her room when I gently pushed open the door. I lingered for a moment, not wanting to disturb her. Just as I turned to leave, she stirred.
"Hey," she mumbled groggily as she rubbed her eyes.
I sat on the edge of her bed, unsure of how to begin. Before I could say anything, she asked, "Have you thought about what we talked about?"
I hesitated for a moment before replying, "Can you give me two more weeks? I need to clear my head of everything."
"Two weeks?" she repeated, tilting her head. "What’s clouding your mind?"
"Daisy, it’s complicated," I said, glancing at the floor.
She scooted closer to me, her expression softening again. "Well, think about it. My dad’s celebration is coming up, and spending some time with Eric at the party isn’t a bad idea. I’ll be with my boyfriend, and I don’t want you sitting around, feeling bored."
"I know, and I get it," I muttered, standing up and walking towards the window, needing space again.
The silence between us stretched on, but eventually, she came to stand beside me. I tried changing the subject. "What should we eat? I’m hungry."
She laughed, but I could tell her heart wasn’t in it. "Food can wait. We still need to sort this out."
I laughed, but she didn’t join in this time.
"If you hadn’t come to visit, I would’ve started working at one of my mum’s companies," she said suddenly, breaking the light mood. "I invited you here so you’d stop thinking about Leo, so you could focus on something new. The house celebration, the picnic—I’ve been planning all of this so you could have a chance to meet someone."
Her words stung, especially since she didn’t know the real reason I was avoiding dating. My feelings weren’t what she assumed. I wasn’t pining for Leo; I was grappling with something much more complicated. I had feelings for her dad, feelings that were growing stronger by the day.
Before I could respond, she excused herself to the restroom. The second she left, my phone buzzed with a new notification. Nervously, I glanced at it and quickly opened the message. It was from the blind date app. My heart raced as I read the first few words: "Dear Stella, Congratulations…"
Panic surged through me. I stuffed my phone back in my pocket just as Daisy returned from the restroom. She eyed me curiously, but thankfully, she didn’t say anything.
"I need to use the restroom in my own room," I blurted, needing to escape.
"You said you were hungry though," Daisy teased. "Let me make your favorite meal. Maybe it’ll help you relax."
We both laughed, and I rushed out of her room. As I descended the stairs, I heard her call out, "Be careful!"
"Okay!" I shouted back, almost running in my haste.
The second I was in my room, I locked the door and raced to the restroom. My fingers shook as I pulled out my phone, my breath shallow with excitement and fear. The message opened up immediately:
"Dear Stella, congratulations! Your application to meet the person with serial number 534953 has been approved. The meeting will take place at King's Royal Hotel this Saturday at 7 pm…"
Joy surged through me. It felt like I had won the lottery. I wanted to scream and dance and jump for joy. But reality hit me hard as I looked at myself in the mirror. How was I going to explain this to Daisy? I couldn’t tell her about the blind date. She’d never understand, especially since it involved a man much older than me.
To keep Daisy from discovering the truth, I deleted the message from my phone. But then I realized I needed an excuse to leave this weekend. A brilliant idea came to me—I’d tell her that the company I had applied to for a job had finally gotten back to me.
"Daisy!" I called out, already rehearsing my lie.
"In the kitchen!" she called back.
I rushed into the kitchen, barely able to contain my excitement. "Guess what?" I said, standing in front of her with my hands on my hips.
"You know I’m terrible at guessing," she teased, turning to face me. "Have you changed your mind about dating Eric?"
"No!" I shouted gleefully, loud enough for anyone in the living room to hear.
"Then what is it?"
"The company I told you about—the one I’ve been waiting to hear from—they finally sent me a message. They want me to come for an interview this Saturday."
Her eyes widened. "This Saturday? That’s the same day as the house party. Let me see the message."
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