Convincing Her (3 page)

“Angie, what the hell is going on?” The girl finally spoke up.

“I’m tired Teresa. Can he just leave tonight please?” Angie sounded
defeated as she slunk into her office chair in front of the small desk.

“If it bothered you for him to be here you just had to say so. Go on
Matt, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

The guy let out a long sigh, sizing Rich up and making the right
decision, “All right. See you tomorrow.” He slid off the chair after kissing
her again.

Rich turned to Angie, leaning over to give her a kiss on the cheek.
“Goodnight. I’ll call you later okay?”

“Goodnight Rich.” She whispered, turning away.

Rich waited for Matt to go first. When he was satisfied he was actually
leaving he stepped out as well. Somehow, he’d make this right.

“Tell me what to do Tyler. She won’t return my calls. She doesn’t
respond to my texts. I’ve tried to catch her at the coffee shop a few times but
she’s never there.” Rich gripped his phone tightly. After two weeks of being
shut out he was desperate. He had turned to the only person that truly knew how
Angie worked.

“It would really help if either of you would tell me what the hell went
on.” Tyler responded.

“If she hasn’t told you, she doesn’t want you to know. I fucked up. Help
me make it right.”

“It’s not that simple man. You know how girls are. You know how Angie
is. Just give it some more time. She’ll come around.” His friend let out a long
sigh. “For what it’s worth, I hope you figure this out.”

“C’mon Tyler, give me something. She’d laugh in my face if I brought her
flowers right?” He’d considered sending flowers, candy, hell he’d even thought
about getting her a gift card to the bookstore she frequented. None of that
would work.

“You know the answer to this. What does Angie do when she’s depressed,
or happy, or just bored?” Tyler chuckled.

“I don’t know. Just tell me.” He ran his free hand through his hair,
pulling it at the roots.

“She eats, dumb ass. She loves sweets, anything with a carbohydrate. Get
a fucking cheesecake or something. Then let her be. She’ll come around.
Shouldn’t you be focused on your finals right now?”

“Yes,” he growled into the phone, “I can’t focus knowing that she’s so
pissed at me.”

Another long sigh sounded on the other line, “Maybe she’s not pissed
Rich. When Angie’s mad, she lets you know. It sounds to me like she’s hurt. But
since neither of you will say a word about whatever the hell happened, I don’t
know what to tell you.”

“All right, I’ll get her a damn cheesecake. Does she like it plain?” He
already had his keys in his hand.

“Yeah, she likes it plain. Go to that bakery up on Tenth Street. She
loves that place.” There was a long silence, “Whatever you did, or didn’t do,
she’ll forgive you.”

“Thanks Tyler.
I’ll talk to you later.” He ended the call, on a mission to buy a cheesecake.

Three hours later, he’d dropped the treat off with her roommate who
surprisingly enough had apologized to him for having her boyfriend over all the
time. They’d broken up a day after his date with Angie, and from what he could
tell, Teresa actually seemed to care about Angie’s well-being. She couldn’t
answer when he asked why Angie wouldn’t return his calls. She just told him the
same thing Tyler had, to be patient. Patience was not a virtue he possessed,
not that he possessed many virtues at all anymore.

He’d sworn off women, yet somehow the fact that he was unavailable only
made them try harder. His only release was working out or shooting hoops at the
gym.

Rich knew he needed to hit the books. He only had two days before he had
to take his first final exam. His boss had let him off the hook without having
to put in his notice for the break.  He appreciated it. He enjoyed working
at the machine shop, though he had to admit he fucked off a lot. He was
grateful for the time to focus on his studies while he waited for Angie to
respond to his gift, if she responded at all.

He picked up
his sociology book, turned on his stereo and got down to business. Angie
wouldn’t want him if he flunked out of school. Not to mention his dad would
blow a gasket.

His roommate brought some Chinese food home and they shot the shit while
they ate. He’d turned off his phone, unable to resist staring at the screen
every five minutes.

“So you want to head out tonight? Blow off some steam before finals?”
Chris asked as he put their trash into a bag.

“I’m good. Thanks for the offer. I’m going to study some more.”

“What’s up with you, there hasn’t been a girl around in a couple weeks?”

He wasn’t sure how to answer. He and Chris had picked up women together
since they’d become roommates at the beginning of the semester. “I’m just not
feeling it lately.”

“All right, I’ll have fun for the both of us.” Chris shot him a smile
and headed out the door with their trash.

Rich took a shower, giving his dick a good tug to try and relieve some
of his stress. He still had a day of studying ahead of him tomorrow, but for
tonight he just wanted to get off and go to sleep. It didn’t take him long with
Angie’s face in his mind, remembering her weight on him as she straddled his
lap.

He grabbed his phone and lay in his bed, turning it on. The tension he’d
just released returned as he waited for the thing to start up. He had some
missed messages, and he scrolled through them quickly. One was from Tyler,
asking how it had gone. The other was from his brother, telling him that he was
going to be at the lake house over the break and inviting him to come as well.
That was a surprise. They hadn’t gone out to their old house on the edge of
their hometown in years. As he was about to type a reply to Pete, his phone
sounded again. His heart skipped a beat as he opened the message.

Angel: Thank you

Rich: U R welcome

He responded quickly, but kept it simple. He was back to waiting for her
to make the first move. Pleased that she responded to his gift at all, he put
his phone down and shut off the lights, trying to fall asleep. Just as he was
drifting, his phone sounded again.

Angel: I ate it all

He laughed.
He’d gotten her the biggest one they’d had. She was speaking to him again, sort
of. He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

Rich was pretty sure he passed his first final. He’d done well at
keeping focused despite the fact that he hadn’t heard from Angie again. He
wasn’t delusional enough to think a cheesecake would make everything better,
but at least it was a first step. He’d even talked to Pete about her a little
bit, ignoring his brother’s laughter at him being hung up on a girl. He’d
agreed to come down to the lake house for the break, mostly because he needed
to get away, but also because he figured there would be a lot that needed to be
done around the place that Pete just wouldn’t be able to do.

He and Chris shared a few beers that night in celebration of being one
step closer to the semester being done. They’d agreed to room together again in
the fall which took a load off his mind. He didn’t want to deal with having a
new roommate. After starting a text to Angie three times without sending he
finally passed out.

His phone alarm sounded early the next morning and he groaned. His next
final was going to be a killer. He hated calculus, and even after getting a few
tips from Tyler he wasn’t sure if he was going to do so well. Knowing he’d get
more done at the library he grabbed his bag and walked across the campus. There
were only a few other students there this early so he claimed a table to
himself.

An hour in, his head pounded and he regretted not grabbing an energy
drink on the way over. He reached into his pocket to find some change, figuring
a soda from the machine might help his headache.

A pastry bag dropped onto the table from above his head and he twisted
around, surprised to see Angie smirking down at him. “Hey.”

She held up two coffees, “Tyler said you’d be here. Thought you might
need some sustenance. Calculus is a bitch.”

“You’re my fucking hero Angie.” He reached for the coffee but she
twisted out of his reach.

“I have a condition.”

“Name it.”

“You get the coffee and donuts, cream filled I might add,
if
you
promise not to mention anything about the other night. Nothing, got it? It
didn’t happen. I’m going to help you with your calculus and you’re going to be
the jerk I’ve always known you to be.”

“Done, now give me the coffee.” He took the steaming liquid from her
hands, popping off the lid and taking a big drink. It was perfect, extra
strong. “You wouldn’t happen to have some pain meds in that big ass bag of
yours would you?”

She plopped down in the chair beside him, “That bad huh? Yeah, I
probably got something in here.” She rummaged around in her bag, pulling out a
small bottle of Tylenol. “Eat first or they’ll irritate your stomach.”

He dug into the bag and pulled out a donut, shoving half of it in his
mouth. “I didn’t eat breakfast. You’re a godsend.”

She reached into the bag as she took a sip of her own coffee, “Don’t you
forget it. So what’s hanging you up? I did pretty well in this class last
semester. Hopefully I remember some of it.”

He watched as she took a bite of her donut, licking her lips before she
chewed. “Why aren’t you studying? Don’t you have finals too?” He was still
focused on her mouth.

She took another bite, dipping her tongue into the filling and scooping
up a large dollop of cream. “That’s so good.” She moaned, closing her eyes.

He bit back his own moan, all thoughts of calculus gone.

She giggled, “There’s the Rich I know. Focus. We’re studying here.”

“You totally did that on purpose.”

“Yup, sure did. As for your question, I took two of my finals yesterday.
I think I okay. I don’t have another one until Friday.”

“Lucky.” He chugged more of the coffee forcing himself to look away.

She frowned for a moment, “I just realized I don’t know what you’re
doing on break. Are you going to your parents or what?”

“Actually, I’m going to hang out with my brother at our family’s lake
house.”

“Now you’re the lucky one. Wait, you have a brother?” She popped the lid
off her coffee and dipped the rest of her donut inside.

“Yeah, he’s nineteen. His name is Pete. We’ve never really been very
close, at least not since we were kids.” He was a little nervous about being
stuck around the guy all summer.

“Well, sounds like that might change.”

“What about you? Are going home?” He didn’t like the fact that he wouldn’t
see her for a couple of months.

“No. I’m not sure what I’m doing yet. I might just be staying with Ty
and Cam. Get a part-time job or something. Join the real world for a while.”
She frowned, “I’m not sure if I can deal with them though. They’re so in love
right now.”

“I’m sure they’ll behave if you’re around.”

“I’m not worried about that. Hell, I’d love to get an eyeful of that
action.” She gave a small laugh, “I just mean the way they look at each other.
Like they see into each other’s souls or some shit.” She shuddered at the
thought.

He laughed at her response, “So you’d be all right seeing them get it
on? You are a dirty girl. I bet that’s what you read about. Do your books have
the worlds ‘quivering member’ in them?”

She stuck her tongue out at him, “Only some of them.”

He shook his head, relieved that they were finally getting along again.
“I’ll never understand women.”

“So quit trying.” She pushed his book in front of him, “C’mon, I don’t
have all day.”

“You’re so pushy.” He flinched when she punched him in the arm. “All
right, we’ll study.”

So they did.
For four hours. She didn’t need to know that he already knew most of the stuff
she told him, after all, he was pretty good at playing dumb.

Later than night he called Pete, tying up the remaining arrangements for
the summer. Turns out his brother wanted to bring a couple of friends and a
girl he’d been dating for a couple months. Rich was okay with that. Considering
how much work would probably need to be done he figured a few extra pair of
hands wouldn’t hurt anything. He was actually pretty excited about getting to
know his brother again.

He dialed his mom, thinking it would be a good idea to let her know
about their plans.

After four rings he thought he was going to get her voicemail, but she
finally answered, laughing on the other line before offering her greeting.

“Hey mom, what are you doing?” He couldn’t remember a time when he’d
heard his mom laugh like that.

“Your father is just being funny. How are you?”

The world must have flipped on its axis. Not only was his mom laughing,
his father was being
funny
? “I’m good. I talked to Pete earlier.”

“How is he? I tried to reach him last week but he never returned my
call. I worry about that boy sometimes.”

Rich wasn’t sure he’d ever heard his mom say she worried about anything.
“Uh - he’s fine. We’re actually planning on going up to the lake house this
summer. Have you and dad been up there lately?”

“I’m sure that place is a mess. You boys will have your hands full. Will
it just be you two?”

He hesitated, not sure if Pete wanted mom to know he was bringing a
girl. “No, he’s going to bring a couple of friends.”

“Well just be careful, don’t be throwing any wild parties.”

He sighed, “We won’t.” If he was being honest with himself he’d admit
that he liked the concerned tone of her voice.

“I’ll make sure your father gets the water and electricity turned on.
And what’s that thing where the internet is in the air?”

“You mean Wi-Fi?” He laughed.

“Yes, that. We’ll make sure you have access to that. Still weird if you
ask me.” She muttered. “Don’t let him drink too much, and if he has sex with
any girls you make sure he’s careful. I’m not ready to be a grandmother.”

His mouth dropped open. He’d never heard his mom talk about sex. She’d
left the house completely when his dad had the talk with him.

“Are you drunk?” He had to ask.

A low peal of laughter drifted over the phone again, “No, I’m not drunk.
Can’t I just be in a good mood?”

“Well, yeah.” He ran his fingers through his hair, “I’ll make sure he’s
careful.”

“Good. If you need anything just call us. I’ve been trying to learn how
to text. You can text me if you want.”

“What did you do with my mother?” He joked, flopping down on his bed.

“Hush, I’m not that old. People change.”

The words rang in his ears, “You think so?”