Chapter 36: Me and You

“This is yet another night that we have stayed in the cafe talking until it closed,” Laura said to Alex.

“Yeah, it’s been great. It’s like we can talk about anything together. I love that about us,” Alex responded.

“‘Us’?” Laura repeated with a questioning tone, “Is that where we’re headed?”

“No. ‘Us’ is where we already are,” Alex stated matter-of-factly.

Something was different, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She was a committed girlfriend to two different men. The third man now was dancing around having the same arrangement. What did a title of girlfriend mean if she was everybody’s partner, girlfriend, or “us” couple?

“Do you wanna stop at the all night diner on your way home to have coffee and apple pie a la mode like we did last night? Alex suggested, already excited about the food, the drink, but most of all, the opportunity to spend more quality one-on-one time with Laura.

Laura could hear the happiness and hope in his voice and if she missed that clue, his eyes were also dancing with delight. She could not deny him nor break his heart by sharing that she was already an official ‘us’ with his two best friends who had pledged to her their love and commitment. Alex would probably do likewise and she would be back at square one.

NO. She could not entertain the thought of becoming the third girlfriend. He’s happy as is. He’s happy, so he won’’t ask for more if she just quickly changed the topic from being an ‘us’ to freshly baked, homemade pie, a hot cup of freshly brewed coffee and daring to dream of topping that dessert with even more richness: hand churned vanilla bean ice cream.

Food talk would replace relationship talk in a diner. Yes. Or, “You know Alex, maybe I’d better call it a night and bypass the diner’s pie.”

“Bypass pie? Blasphemy. Tonight is Michigan blueberry. Surely if we can talk about anything and everything we could talk about this. Why no diner tonight after three days of doing the exact same thing together? It’s...nice. I literally have come to look forward to it. It is the capstone to my day.”

“Well...”

“No. Never mind. I don’t want to push myself on you. But, once you’ve found your soulmate after so many years of solitude, you want to be with that soulmate as much and as often as possible. Right?”

“Alex,” Laura sighed and ultimately conceded as she said, “Ok. I’ll go to the diner with you.”

“Yes.”

They went to the diner and found their booth, ordered their shared meal and beverage, and waited for their waitress. This time, instead of sitting on opposite sides of the booth, after Laura slid in, Alex followed suit on the same side and put his arm around her. Laura wondered what was going on: three for three?

He whispered into her ear, “Oh Laura, most lovely, would you be my girlfriend and soulmate? Think of it; just me and you against the world. We can spend the years sharing lives of the mind and an indestructible connection with one another.” Laura asked to be excused at that crucial moment.

Several minutes later she left the ladies room ready to accept her title for the third time. And Alex was waiting, blissfully oblivious that she was already a girlfriend to his two best friends. He was focused on giving that title to her. He was looking forward to an end to the competition and a beginning of a lifelong romance.

“For my soulmate, Laura, an Irish Claddagh friendship ring with your birthstone, a diamond, inside the heart. Will you be my girlfriend and travel the world with me, just me and you?”

“Yes. Of course. Thanks Alex,” she replied and hugged him with joy, realizing that Alex was probably the safest and therefore the best choice. The burden of having to tell Ricky and Don that she had made a different and final choice, however, overshadowed the moment with Alex. This realization was emotionally burdensome and prevented her from catching his infectious enthusiasm at what should have been the beginning of one of the happiest times of her life.

The announcement of commitment, the gift of expensive jewelry, and the hugs and kisses were not as much of a surprise the third time over but, because of the giver and his pure intentions, still were precious and special.

This heavy challenge to stop with any one, two, or all three would prove to be hers to bear until she figured out a course of action. She realized that she had to figure out her next steps to undo two out of three yeses without breaking anyone’s heart. As time passed at the diner, she became increasingly confident that Alex was the right choice. She was equally aware that she needed to tell the other guys that she did not choose them. She was just not sure how to preserve the former and perform the latter.