SURPRISE, SURPRISE
JASON
"Excuse me, sir, but this is a black tie event," the man at the door stated in monotone.
"Do what?" Jason asked.
"A necktie is required for entry, sir."
Jason was instantly annoyed. Even in his early 30s, he loathed a necktie and avoided them at all costs. In fact, he thought he looked quite dashing in his black suit and white shirt. Besides, Mel liked it when he looked relaxed. He happened to know that for a fact.
Not that he'd dressed himself especially for her or anything...
Damn, he even sucked at lying to himself.
"Look, man, I'm about to donate an extremely obscene amount of money to New York's finest in there. I'm sure that while I'm writing out a check with that many zeros, nobody's gonna even notice I'm not wearing one."
The truth was, Jason hadn't even brought a tie to New York with him at all.
"I'm sorry, sir. A tie is required. We do have a tie you can rent for thirty-five dollars, or purchased for fifty."
"Thirty-five bucks to rent a strip of cloth? Are you insane?"
"No necktie, no entry. And you have a line forming behind you."
"Well at least I'm not the only one running late," he muttered as he paid the man and snatched the generic, black tie from his hand.
In a matter of seconds, he expertly tied the tie around his neck and entered the dark ballroom of the downtown hotel. Apparently a slide show had just started, displaying information about New York's emergency responders, the importance of donating, and where the money would be distributed. He took advantage of the darkness by immediately jerking the tie from around his neck and discarding it in the nearest garbage can. Loosening his collar to its original state and instantly feeling more comfortable, he went in search of beer and was quickly ushered to his place card at one of the back tables. He scoffed at his location and strained to adjust his eyes in the darkness as he sipped on his beer.
He couldn't find her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find her in the crowded room. He didn't even know what she was wearing. Hell, she probably had no idea he was there. The slideshow seemed to last an eternity and the only thing keeping him from spending the show in the lobby, laughing insanely at idiotic YouTube videos, was the fact that Mel put this event together. He was damn sure going to respect it, no matter how much it pained him.
Hm, maybe he should go fish that necktie out of the garbage.
Finally, and not soon enough, the slideshow ended and the lights came back up. The volume escalated in the room and he was just about to stand when someone took the podium to talk even MORE about the city's emergency departments and to introduce the fire and police chiefs. Applauding at the necessary times, he kept his eyes peeled around the room. After scanning for what seemed like the millionth time, he finally spotted her at the front behind a small table by the stage. He smiled as he watched her stand to shake the
hands of the chiefs as they walked offstage.
A moment later, the party seemed to be underway again and people began milling around, the volume of their talking growing louder once more. Jason took this opportunity to finally approach her and groaned to himself upon closer inspection of her. She didn't see him coming so it allowed him to revel in her for a moment. He had never paid much attention to women's fashion until Mel came along and now he fancied himself a damn near expert. Her dress was short and dark and it hung just loose enough around her thighs to move as she moved. It cinched at the waist then went the rest of the way up her chest and stopped at her collar bone, leaving a pair of thin black straps to wrap around her neck. The dress glittered black with dark blue stripes running the length of it. Her hair fell loose down her shoulders and Jason drew in a breath as he prepared to talk to her.
Nikki and Kate Hanson were nearby and they saw him before Mel did. He had to admit, he was a little surprised to see them and his heart sank as he knew that if they were here, then their husbands were here,
too. Which ultimately meant Taylor was present, as well. Jason was now beginning to regret his not-so-surprise appearance.
Nikki smiled and waved and he winked at her as Mel turned herself around and fished through a box that sat in a chair behind her. Walking up behind her, he leaned in her ear and said quietly, "I told you I couldn't stay
away."
Startled, Mel shot up and turned to face him, the blood draining from her face in an instant. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. True, the last time he'd seen or spoken to her was the last time they fought in his hotel
room, but the beauty of their friendship is that they didn't hold grudges with each other. In this case, however, if he'd wanted to surprise her, which he did, he definitely succeeded.
He tried to laugh off the odd greeting. "Wow, I didn't mean to scare you like that. I'm sorry."
"Uh, wow," she said, gaining her composure. "Jason. What are you doing here?"
"Donating to an important cause, obviously. Why didn't you invite me to this thing yourself? I had to hear about it last minute from someone else. Where's your other half?"
"Um, he's not here," she responded nervously. "It's just me and the girls tonight."
"Oh, okay. A little girls' night, that's nice."
"Yeah. Um, listen, Jason, about the other week, with the article and me being so upset--"
Jason waved her off with his hand. "I've already forgotten about it. Water under the bridge. Tensions were high, we both said things...it's done and over now. No worries. If it were still an issue, I wouldn't have shown up to support you tonight."
She smiled, the color returning to her cheeks. "I'm glad you're here. I'm sorry I didn't invite you, I just--I thought you might be busy and that you wouldn't want to come to some little party--"
"Little party? Hell, look at this place. This is a huge turnout. I'd say I'm impressed, but the truth is, I'm not surprised. You throw an awesome party."
With that, Mel beamed at him and his night was instantly made.
Moments later, Mel was back to work again, lost and oblivious to her surroundings as she handled the goings-on of the room. Jason milled around, socializing with Nikki and Kate, shaking the hands of some of the
emergency crew in attendance and stopped for numerous photo ops.
Less than an hour later, he returned to the table that Mel still sat at. She sat there, still and straight, watching the party and waving to passersby. He helped himself behind the table and sat in an empty chair next to her, handing her a glass of wine. "Are you permanently glued to that chair or something?"
Mel laughed and graciously accepted the wine, downing half in the first go of it. "I try to stay in one place in case something should go terribly wrong and anyone should need me or something. I need to be easy to find."
"So that means playing wallflower at your own party? That's no way to have fun."
"I don't mind it. I organized it for others to have fun and to donate to a good cause. As long as I see smiles, that's all that matters for me."
Jason couldn't help but smile at her. "You're pretty amazing, you know that?"
He saw her blush again. "Well, I mean, I try to be a good samaritan, so...if that's what amazing means then okay, I'll take it."
"Don't be so modest. You know how amazing you are."
As she finished her wine, the live swing band that played began to slow it down a little. He held his hand out to her. "How about a little Moonlight Serenade?"
Mel's eyes glittered as she looked at him in surprise. "You know Glenn Miller? I would have never guessed."
He raised his eyebrows in response. "Even after all this time, I'm still so full of surprises."
She placed her hand in his and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor. He spun her around one good time before he pulled her against him, taking her hand in his. "See there? You deserve to enjoy your own party," he said to her.
"I'm just so impressed that you know this music!"
"Yeah, don't get too excited over it. This is the only song I actually know."
"You tricked me," she giggled.
He smiled back at her. "Sure, but now look at you. Out here, having fun, and making every man in this room jealous of me. Has anyone told you how beautiful you are tonight yet?"
She bit her bottom lip shyly and her eyes darted around. "Uh, well..."
"Every single day, someone, somewhere, should make sure to tell you how beautiful you are. It's only the right thing to do."
She slapped him playfully on his chest. "Stop saying all that stuff, you're making me blush."
"You know me, I tell it like it is."
"Okay, then. Tell me something, Mr. Big Shot. I'm not supposed to ask this question, but it's you, so I can do what I want."
"Oh, WOW," Jason laughed. "I'm excited already."
"How much did you donate tonight?" she asked deviously.
"Well that's a little personal, don't you think? he asked, amused.
"Oh, well, I guess you're right. A man of your caliber must keep some things a mystery, I suppose."
Jason grinned from ear to ear at her. She was flirting with him. He highly doubted she realized it, but he would take it, most certainly. Feeling playful, he spun her around yet again and brought her back to him. "Well if you MUST know..." and then he leaned over and whispered the amount in her ear.
She broke away from him instantly and gaped up at him. "Oh my god, Jason!" She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. He knew it was merely out of appreciation, but a man could dream, couldn't he? "I can't believe you!" Then she lowered her voice and smiled. "You truly are a great man. Thank you so much."
"Anything for you," he winked.
-------------------------------------------------------
MEL
Two days later, after a fabulous weekend of female-bonding, photo shoots, and fundraising, Mel bounded inside her house, anxious to reunite with her man and her cat. Dropping her suitcase off in the foyer, the house was silent. "Tay!" She called Taylor's name as she looked around the house. "Honey, I'm home, I have so much to tell you!"
She saw him enter the room out of the corner of her eye and her face lit up until she saw him full-on and then she frowned. He looked murderous and she even took a step back, startled at his expression. This was completely unexpected. "What the hell is this?" he asked hatefully, as he shoved a weekly tabloid magazine at her, the pages flying around his hand.
Barely catching the magazine, she was completely dumbfounded. "Um, what am I looking at?"
"You shouldn't even really need to see it," he sneered at her. "You were there."
Impatiently, Tay grabbed the magazine from her hands and turned the pages to what he wanted her to see and then shoved it back at her. "There. Right there. Every last sordid detail, played out in pictures. And you think I'm such a fool."
She looked through the pictures of the benefit in New York merely two days ago. What a bunch of sleaze balls these publications were. The headline wasn't exactly flattering, but it was a sleazy tabloid magazine, so that was to be expected. The pictures didn't depict anything that didn't happen. A picture of she and Jason talking, a picture of them dancing, a picture of them laughing. There was absolutely nothing incriminating besides the lies that were written out in the accompanying article. "Tay, I don't understand..."
"Really? You don't? Because *I* do! I understand how your sorry excuse for a girls' weekend was really a ploy to get me out of the picture so you could meet up with HIM! How many times has he slept in our bed already, Mel? HOW MANY TIMES?"
"What in the fuck are you talking about?"
He was breathless, in a rage, pacing the room in front of her as he spoke. "How much more obvious can it be? The last two times you were in New York, alone, and he shows up? Come on, how dumb do you think I am?"
"Tay, I wasn't alone! Ike was with me the first time and Nikki and Kate were both there this time! You know that! Ask them all!"
"I don't need to ask anybody anything. I'm not blind!"
"I didn't even know he was gonna be there that night! I didn't invite him!"
"You can stop lying to me now! So, what, he just magically knows you're throwing some huge soiree and then shows up out of nowhere? Are you seriously, bold-faced lying to me right now?"
"No, I am not LYING to you, Tay, that's pretty much exactly how it happened! I have NO IDEA how he found out because I DID NOT TELL HIM! You sat right there beside me on the plane last week and watched me do the seating chart! His name wasn't even on the list!"
"Oh, yeah, with that extra seat that just conveniently kept popping up, I remember that. Because you didn't just conveniently delete his name off of there because you knew I was watching. You can't fool me, Mel! I can
see what's going on right in front of my nose!"
Mel stormed off to retrieve her laptop from her luggage and rejoined her fiancée. "Here. You wanna fucking see the original lists and the final drafts? They're all right here! Here, you can have everything! All my emails, my schedules, everything! As a matter of fact, take it to a fucking technician and let them pull all my so-called secret shit out so you can see it all! HERE, TAKE IT!" And without waiting for a response to him, she tossed it Frisbee-style toward him, as it shattered against a table leg beside him, barely missing him.
He was startled only momentarily before returning to his original state, advancing toward her, wiping the sweat from his upper lip. "I'm done, Mel. I've had it. No more, this is it. If you truly love me, if you WANT to marry me, you will end it with him. Right now, you get rid of him. Lose his number, his address, all his contacts, everything. I don't want you having anymore to do with him. I'm tired of that bastard coming between us!"
Mel was absolutely livid. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. And she would have cried had she not been so incredibly pissed off. "HE ISN'T COMING BETWEEN US, TAY, *YOU* ARE! YOU AND YOUR GODDAMN CRAZY ASS ILLUSIONS ARE WHAT'S COMING BETWEEN US! IT'S YOU!"
He paused and stared at her, lucidity flickering in his eyes. His voice lowered, he came closer to her once more. "You choose. Right now, you choose. It's either me or him. Once and for all, it's me or him."
Mel's eyes darkened, matching his rage and she advanced herself closer to him until she was in his face. "I will NOT choose," she responded through gritted teeth. "Because there is nothing there to choose. I love YOU. I don't have feelings for him that way. I don't know why that is so goddamn hard for you to grasp."
He took a step back, never taking his eyes off of her. "No. You choose. This is it. If you want to marry me, you will choose. You are never to see or speak to him again. Is that clear?"
"You can go to hell first," she responded a little louder this time. "Because if this is foreshadowing of what my life is going to be like with you, then I don't want it. That's not me. You will NOT control me and you will NOT tell me who to see and who not to see. I refuse to live my life that way. Soon I won't even be allowed to see my own family. You want me to stay cooped up in this house all the time like your little pet or something? Is that what you want? Because it won't happen. Not with me. I'll kill you first and you know it. If you EVER so much as THINK of laying a hand on me, I will murder you in cold blood and not ever think twice about it. Keep THAT in the back of your mind BEFORE YOU START THROWING ORDERS AND DEMANDS LIKE THAT AT ME! If YOU want to marry ME, you'll fucking keep yourself in check and realize the kind of fucking crazy you're really dealing with!"
"Stop being so goddamn melodramatic. If you really think life with me is that fucking bad, let me give you a reason to think so, shall I? You wanna see my crazy? I'll show you my fucking crazy!" He walked past her and retrieved a wooden baseball bat from the foyer closet and calmly returned to the already-busted laptop.
And then he finished it off.
Tossing the ball bat aside, he wiped his brow with his sleeve. "There. You want a reason to leave me? There it is. I don't need that bullshit anyway, BECAUSE EVERYTHING I NEED TO SEE IS RIGHT THERE IN FUCKING PRINT!"
"OH THAT'S REAL CUTE, TAY! REAL FUCKING CUTE! IT'S A GODDAMN TABLOID MAGAZINE! WHAT'S CRAZY IS THAT YOU'RE GETTING THIS FUCKING UPSET OVER A GODDAMN TABLOID! THERE IS NOTHING IN THOSE PICTURES THAT ISN'T STRICTLY PLATONIC AND YOU DAMN WELL KNOW IT! ANY MORON LOOKING AT THOSE
PICTURES COULD SEE IT!"
"OH YEAH, MEL, REAL PLATONIC! YOU MEAN PLATONIC JUST LIKE THE WAY YOU FUCKED HIM ALL OVER CABO? WHAT, YOU THINK I DIDN'T KNOW?"
"I DON'T GIVE A FUCK IF YOU KNOW OR NOT! YOU WANT THE DETAILS, TOO, TAY? YOU WANNA KNOW HOW IT HAPPENED? BECAUSE THE REALITY IS, THE SEX WAS SO GOOD I STILL REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY!" She watched Tay nearly stagger backward at the blow, but at that point she didn't care anymore. She was too pissed off to care about anything. "AND IF YOU RECALL, TAY, YOU DIDN'T EVEN WANT ME THEN ANYWAY!"
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING? OF COURSE I WANTED YOU, I ALWAYS WANTED YOU! IN FACT, I EVEN BEGGED YOU NOT TO GO!"
"WHAT, SO I COULD PLAY THIRD WHEEL TO YOU AND THE WIFE YOU MORE OR LESS REFUSED TO LEAVE FOR ME? AND WHILE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT OF 'IF YOU LOVED ME,' IF YOU REALLY AND TRULY LOVED ME BACK THEN IT WOULDN'T HAVE TAKEN SO LONG FOR YOU TO LEAVE HER! IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN THAT HARD! YOU WOULDN'T HAVE KEPT RUNNING BACK TO HER, UNABLE TO MAKE A DECISION! *YOU* LEFT *ME* ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS AND I'VE DONE NOTHING BUT BE HERE! SO SUE ME IF I WANT TO KEEP A CLOSE FRIEND AROUND! WHY WOULD I NOT? HE IS THE ONLY PERSON ON THE FACE OF THIS PLANET, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF MY PARENTS, TAY, WHO HAS NEVER LEFT ME! EVER!"
Her throat now sore and groggy, she fished her phone out of her pocket and headed up the stairs.
"Where are you going?" Tay asked. "Is that him on the phone? Are you running straight to him now?"
She turned around halfway up the stairs, the phone on her ear. "No, I'm calling my mother! I need her to get my room ready, because I'll be GODDAMNED if I'm spending another night under this roof with YOU! AND I'M
TAKING THE CAT!"
----------------------
Her mother wanted to talk about it. Mel didn't want to rehash any of it, but she humored her over tea late that night anyway. "Mom, I don't understand it," she said, the tears falling from her eyes. "Why do things have to be so hard with him? This was supposed to be easy."
Susan put a comforting arm around her daughter. "Sweetheart, love is never easy. And it's different for everyone. Some relationships are simply more passionate than others. And trust me, I think your
relationship with him has enough passion to cover the entire county." She chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. Then she was serious again. "In all honesty, honey, I really think he might need to seek out a
professional."
"I do, too," Mel sniffed. "But I'm so afraid to tell him."
"Are you afraid of his temper?"
"God no," Mel laughed, wiping her eyes. "He's a screamer, but I know he's harmless. No, I just--I don't want to offend him. I'm afraid it'll hurt him if I suggest he see a shrink. I don't wanna do that to him."
"Things like that are hard sometimes, but necessary. As much as I hate to say it and as much as I know you'll disagree, I strongly believe the two of you need counseling before you get married. Unless--unless today
changes things."
Fresh tears sprang to her eyes and she shook her head. "I can't stop loving him. Of course I still want to marry him. I just--I just wish...I mean, it's not my fault Jason is a man..."
Susan rubbed Mel's back as she hung her head. "I think Taylor is intimidated by Jason. I think he's aware at how very different and acute your connection is with him. I think he's having a hard time seeing where the line is right now. What the difference between a romantic and platonic relationship are."
"Is it wrong for me to still be close to Jason?"
"I don't think it's wrong to have friends, no. I quite like Jason, actually."
Mel sighed and lay down her teaspoon by her cup. "Mom, I'm not feeling so well. I think I'm gonna go ahead and go to bed, okay?"
"Need me to tuck you in?" her mother asked, smiling at her and tucking her hair behind her ear.
Mel smiled as she scooped Fred off her lap and stood up. "No, I think we'll be just fine."
Hours later, Mel awoke in the middle of the night in excruciating pain. It was nothing like she'd ever felt before. She could barely creak her mom's name out loud enough. When she finally did, her voice came out so wrangled that both of her parents showed up at her bedroom door. Mel looked up at them as she was doubled over in pain. "I think I need to go to the hospital."
JASON
"Excuse me, sir, but this is a black tie event," the man at the door stated in monotone.
"Do what?" Jason asked.
"A necktie is required for entry, sir."
Jason was instantly annoyed. Even in his early 30s, he loathed a necktie and avoided them at all costs. In fact, he thought he looked quite dashing in his black suit and white shirt. Besides, Mel liked it when he looked relaxed. He happened to know that for a fact.
Not that he'd dressed himself especially for her or anything...
Damn, he even sucked at lying to himself.
"Look, man, I'm about to donate an extremely obscene amount of money to New York's finest in there. I'm sure that while I'm writing out a check with that many zeros, nobody's gonna even notice I'm not wearing one."
The truth was, Jason hadn't even brought a tie to New York with him at all.
"I'm sorry, sir. A tie is required. We do have a tie you can rent for thirty-five dollars, or purchased for fifty."
"Thirty-five bucks to rent a strip of cloth? Are you insane?"
"No necktie, no entry. And you have a line forming behind you."
"Well at least I'm not the only one running late," he muttered as he paid the man and snatched the generic, black tie from his hand.
In a matter of seconds, he expertly tied the tie around his neck and entered the dark ballroom of the downtown hotel. Apparently a slide show had just started, displaying information about New York's emergency responders, the importance of donating, and where the money would be distributed. He took advantage of the darkness by immediately jerking the tie from around his neck and discarding it in the nearest garbage can. Loosening his collar to its original state and instantly feeling more comfortable, he went in search of beer and was quickly ushered to his place card at one of the back tables. He scoffed at his location and strained to adjust his eyes in the darkness as he sipped on his beer.
He couldn't find her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find her in the crowded room. He didn't even know what she was wearing. Hell, she probably had no idea he was there. The slideshow seemed to last an eternity and the only thing keeping him from spending the show in the lobby, laughing insanely at idiotic YouTube videos, was the fact that Mel put this event together. He was damn sure going to respect it, no matter how much it pained him.
Hm, maybe he should go fish that necktie out of the garbage.
Finally, and not soon enough, the slideshow ended and the lights came back up. The volume escalated in the room and he was just about to stand when someone took the podium to talk even MORE about the city's emergency departments and to introduce the fire and police chiefs. Applauding at the necessary times, he kept his eyes peeled around the room. After scanning for what seemed like the millionth time, he finally spotted her at the front behind a small table by the stage. He smiled as he watched her stand to shake the
hands of the chiefs as they walked offstage.
A moment later, the party seemed to be underway again and people began milling around, the volume of their talking growing louder once more. Jason took this opportunity to finally approach her and groaned to himself upon closer inspection of her. She didn't see him coming so it allowed him to revel in her for a moment. He had never paid much attention to women's fashion until Mel came along and now he fancied himself a damn near expert. Her dress was short and dark and it hung just loose enough around her thighs to move as she moved. It cinched at the waist then went the rest of the way up her chest and stopped at her collar bone, leaving a pair of thin black straps to wrap around her neck. The dress glittered black with dark blue stripes running the length of it. Her hair fell loose down her shoulders and Jason drew in a breath as he prepared to talk to her.
Nikki and Kate Hanson were nearby and they saw him before Mel did. He had to admit, he was a little surprised to see them and his heart sank as he knew that if they were here, then their husbands were here,
too. Which ultimately meant Taylor was present, as well. Jason was now beginning to regret his not-so-surprise appearance.
Nikki smiled and waved and he winked at her as Mel turned herself around and fished through a box that sat in a chair behind her. Walking up behind her, he leaned in her ear and said quietly, "I told you I couldn't stay
away."
Startled, Mel shot up and turned to face him, the blood draining from her face in an instant. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. True, the last time he'd seen or spoken to her was the last time they fought in his hotel
room, but the beauty of their friendship is that they didn't hold grudges with each other. In this case, however, if he'd wanted to surprise her, which he did, he definitely succeeded.
He tried to laugh off the odd greeting. "Wow, I didn't mean to scare you like that. I'm sorry."
"Uh, wow," she said, gaining her composure. "Jason. What are you doing here?"
"Donating to an important cause, obviously. Why didn't you invite me to this thing yourself? I had to hear about it last minute from someone else. Where's your other half?"
"Um, he's not here," she responded nervously. "It's just me and the girls tonight."
"Oh, okay. A little girls' night, that's nice."
"Yeah. Um, listen, Jason, about the other week, with the article and me being so upset--"
Jason waved her off with his hand. "I've already forgotten about it. Water under the bridge. Tensions were high, we both said things...it's done and over now. No worries. If it were still an issue, I wouldn't have shown up to support you tonight."
She smiled, the color returning to her cheeks. "I'm glad you're here. I'm sorry I didn't invite you, I just--I thought you might be busy and that you wouldn't want to come to some little party--"
"Little party? Hell, look at this place. This is a huge turnout. I'd say I'm impressed, but the truth is, I'm not surprised. You throw an awesome party."
With that, Mel beamed at him and his night was instantly made.
Moments later, Mel was back to work again, lost and oblivious to her surroundings as she handled the goings-on of the room. Jason milled around, socializing with Nikki and Kate, shaking the hands of some of the
emergency crew in attendance and stopped for numerous photo ops.
Less than an hour later, he returned to the table that Mel still sat at. She sat there, still and straight, watching the party and waving to passersby. He helped himself behind the table and sat in an empty chair next to her, handing her a glass of wine. "Are you permanently glued to that chair or something?"
Mel laughed and graciously accepted the wine, downing half in the first go of it. "I try to stay in one place in case something should go terribly wrong and anyone should need me or something. I need to be easy to find."
"So that means playing wallflower at your own party? That's no way to have fun."
"I don't mind it. I organized it for others to have fun and to donate to a good cause. As long as I see smiles, that's all that matters for me."
Jason couldn't help but smile at her. "You're pretty amazing, you know that?"
He saw her blush again. "Well, I mean, I try to be a good samaritan, so...if that's what amazing means then okay, I'll take it."
"Don't be so modest. You know how amazing you are."
As she finished her wine, the live swing band that played began to slow it down a little. He held his hand out to her. "How about a little Moonlight Serenade?"
Mel's eyes glittered as she looked at him in surprise. "You know Glenn Miller? I would have never guessed."
He raised his eyebrows in response. "Even after all this time, I'm still so full of surprises."
She placed her hand in his and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor. He spun her around one good time before he pulled her against him, taking her hand in his. "See there? You deserve to enjoy your own party," he said to her.
"I'm just so impressed that you know this music!"
"Yeah, don't get too excited over it. This is the only song I actually know."
"You tricked me," she giggled.
He smiled back at her. "Sure, but now look at you. Out here, having fun, and making every man in this room jealous of me. Has anyone told you how beautiful you are tonight yet?"
She bit her bottom lip shyly and her eyes darted around. "Uh, well..."
"Every single day, someone, somewhere, should make sure to tell you how beautiful you are. It's only the right thing to do."
She slapped him playfully on his chest. "Stop saying all that stuff, you're making me blush."
"You know me, I tell it like it is."
"Okay, then. Tell me something, Mr. Big Shot. I'm not supposed to ask this question, but it's you, so I can do what I want."
"Oh, WOW," Jason laughed. "I'm excited already."
"How much did you donate tonight?" she asked deviously.
"Well that's a little personal, don't you think? he asked, amused.
"Oh, well, I guess you're right. A man of your caliber must keep some things a mystery, I suppose."
Jason grinned from ear to ear at her. She was flirting with him. He highly doubted she realized it, but he would take it, most certainly. Feeling playful, he spun her around yet again and brought her back to him. "Well if you MUST know..." and then he leaned over and whispered the amount in her ear.
She broke away from him instantly and gaped up at him. "Oh my god, Jason!" She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. He knew it was merely out of appreciation, but a man could dream, couldn't he? "I can't believe you!" Then she lowered her voice and smiled. "You truly are a great man. Thank you so much."
"Anything for you," he winked.
-------------------------------------------------------
MEL
Two days later, after a fabulous weekend of female-bonding, photo shoots, and fundraising, Mel bounded inside her house, anxious to reunite with her man and her cat. Dropping her suitcase off in the foyer, the house was silent. "Tay!" She called Taylor's name as she looked around the house. "Honey, I'm home, I have so much to tell you!"
She saw him enter the room out of the corner of her eye and her face lit up until she saw him full-on and then she frowned. He looked murderous and she even took a step back, startled at his expression. This was completely unexpected. "What the hell is this?" he asked hatefully, as he shoved a weekly tabloid magazine at her, the pages flying around his hand.
Barely catching the magazine, she was completely dumbfounded. "Um, what am I looking at?"
"You shouldn't even really need to see it," he sneered at her. "You were there."
Impatiently, Tay grabbed the magazine from her hands and turned the pages to what he wanted her to see and then shoved it back at her. "There. Right there. Every last sordid detail, played out in pictures. And you think I'm such a fool."
She looked through the pictures of the benefit in New York merely two days ago. What a bunch of sleaze balls these publications were. The headline wasn't exactly flattering, but it was a sleazy tabloid magazine, so that was to be expected. The pictures didn't depict anything that didn't happen. A picture of she and Jason talking, a picture of them dancing, a picture of them laughing. There was absolutely nothing incriminating besides the lies that were written out in the accompanying article. "Tay, I don't understand..."
"Really? You don't? Because *I* do! I understand how your sorry excuse for a girls' weekend was really a ploy to get me out of the picture so you could meet up with HIM! How many times has he slept in our bed already, Mel? HOW MANY TIMES?"
"What in the fuck are you talking about?"
He was breathless, in a rage, pacing the room in front of her as he spoke. "How much more obvious can it be? The last two times you were in New York, alone, and he shows up? Come on, how dumb do you think I am?"
"Tay, I wasn't alone! Ike was with me the first time and Nikki and Kate were both there this time! You know that! Ask them all!"
"I don't need to ask anybody anything. I'm not blind!"
"I didn't even know he was gonna be there that night! I didn't invite him!"
"You can stop lying to me now! So, what, he just magically knows you're throwing some huge soiree and then shows up out of nowhere? Are you seriously, bold-faced lying to me right now?"
"No, I am not LYING to you, Tay, that's pretty much exactly how it happened! I have NO IDEA how he found out because I DID NOT TELL HIM! You sat right there beside me on the plane last week and watched me do the seating chart! His name wasn't even on the list!"
"Oh, yeah, with that extra seat that just conveniently kept popping up, I remember that. Because you didn't just conveniently delete his name off of there because you knew I was watching. You can't fool me, Mel! I can
see what's going on right in front of my nose!"
Mel stormed off to retrieve her laptop from her luggage and rejoined her fiancée. "Here. You wanna fucking see the original lists and the final drafts? They're all right here! Here, you can have everything! All my emails, my schedules, everything! As a matter of fact, take it to a fucking technician and let them pull all my so-called secret shit out so you can see it all! HERE, TAKE IT!" And without waiting for a response to him, she tossed it Frisbee-style toward him, as it shattered against a table leg beside him, barely missing him.
He was startled only momentarily before returning to his original state, advancing toward her, wiping the sweat from his upper lip. "I'm done, Mel. I've had it. No more, this is it. If you truly love me, if you WANT to marry me, you will end it with him. Right now, you get rid of him. Lose his number, his address, all his contacts, everything. I don't want you having anymore to do with him. I'm tired of that bastard coming between us!"
Mel was absolutely livid. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. And she would have cried had she not been so incredibly pissed off. "HE ISN'T COMING BETWEEN US, TAY, *YOU* ARE! YOU AND YOUR GODDAMN CRAZY ASS ILLUSIONS ARE WHAT'S COMING BETWEEN US! IT'S YOU!"
He paused and stared at her, lucidity flickering in his eyes. His voice lowered, he came closer to her once more. "You choose. Right now, you choose. It's either me or him. Once and for all, it's me or him."
Mel's eyes darkened, matching his rage and she advanced herself closer to him until she was in his face. "I will NOT choose," she responded through gritted teeth. "Because there is nothing there to choose. I love YOU. I don't have feelings for him that way. I don't know why that is so goddamn hard for you to grasp."
He took a step back, never taking his eyes off of her. "No. You choose. This is it. If you want to marry me, you will choose. You are never to see or speak to him again. Is that clear?"
"You can go to hell first," she responded a little louder this time. "Because if this is foreshadowing of what my life is going to be like with you, then I don't want it. That's not me. You will NOT control me and you will NOT tell me who to see and who not to see. I refuse to live my life that way. Soon I won't even be allowed to see my own family. You want me to stay cooped up in this house all the time like your little pet or something? Is that what you want? Because it won't happen. Not with me. I'll kill you first and you know it. If you EVER so much as THINK of laying a hand on me, I will murder you in cold blood and not ever think twice about it. Keep THAT in the back of your mind BEFORE YOU START THROWING ORDERS AND DEMANDS LIKE THAT AT ME! If YOU want to marry ME, you'll fucking keep yourself in check and realize the kind of fucking crazy you're really dealing with!"
"Stop being so goddamn melodramatic. If you really think life with me is that fucking bad, let me give you a reason to think so, shall I? You wanna see my crazy? I'll show you my fucking crazy!" He walked past her and retrieved a wooden baseball bat from the foyer closet and calmly returned to the already-busted laptop.
And then he finished it off.
Tossing the ball bat aside, he wiped his brow with his sleeve. "There. You want a reason to leave me? There it is. I don't need that bullshit anyway, BECAUSE EVERYTHING I NEED TO SEE IS RIGHT THERE IN FUCKING PRINT!"
"OH THAT'S REAL CUTE, TAY! REAL FUCKING CUTE! IT'S A GODDAMN TABLOID MAGAZINE! WHAT'S CRAZY IS THAT YOU'RE GETTING THIS FUCKING UPSET OVER A GODDAMN TABLOID! THERE IS NOTHING IN THOSE PICTURES THAT ISN'T STRICTLY PLATONIC AND YOU DAMN WELL KNOW IT! ANY MORON LOOKING AT THOSE
PICTURES COULD SEE IT!"
"OH YEAH, MEL, REAL PLATONIC! YOU MEAN PLATONIC JUST LIKE THE WAY YOU FUCKED HIM ALL OVER CABO? WHAT, YOU THINK I DIDN'T KNOW?"
"I DON'T GIVE A FUCK IF YOU KNOW OR NOT! YOU WANT THE DETAILS, TOO, TAY? YOU WANNA KNOW HOW IT HAPPENED? BECAUSE THE REALITY IS, THE SEX WAS SO GOOD I STILL REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY!" She watched Tay nearly stagger backward at the blow, but at that point she didn't care anymore. She was too pissed off to care about anything. "AND IF YOU RECALL, TAY, YOU DIDN'T EVEN WANT ME THEN ANYWAY!"
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING? OF COURSE I WANTED YOU, I ALWAYS WANTED YOU! IN FACT, I EVEN BEGGED YOU NOT TO GO!"
"WHAT, SO I COULD PLAY THIRD WHEEL TO YOU AND THE WIFE YOU MORE OR LESS REFUSED TO LEAVE FOR ME? AND WHILE WE'RE ON THE SUBJECT OF 'IF YOU LOVED ME,' IF YOU REALLY AND TRULY LOVED ME BACK THEN IT WOULDN'T HAVE TAKEN SO LONG FOR YOU TO LEAVE HER! IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN THAT HARD! YOU WOULDN'T HAVE KEPT RUNNING BACK TO HER, UNABLE TO MAKE A DECISION! *YOU* LEFT *ME* ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS AND I'VE DONE NOTHING BUT BE HERE! SO SUE ME IF I WANT TO KEEP A CLOSE FRIEND AROUND! WHY WOULD I NOT? HE IS THE ONLY PERSON ON THE FACE OF THIS PLANET, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF MY PARENTS, TAY, WHO HAS NEVER LEFT ME! EVER!"
Her throat now sore and groggy, she fished her phone out of her pocket and headed up the stairs.
"Where are you going?" Tay asked. "Is that him on the phone? Are you running straight to him now?"
She turned around halfway up the stairs, the phone on her ear. "No, I'm calling my mother! I need her to get my room ready, because I'll be GODDAMNED if I'm spending another night under this roof with YOU! AND I'M
TAKING THE CAT!"
----------------------
Her mother wanted to talk about it. Mel didn't want to rehash any of it, but she humored her over tea late that night anyway. "Mom, I don't understand it," she said, the tears falling from her eyes. "Why do things have to be so hard with him? This was supposed to be easy."
Susan put a comforting arm around her daughter. "Sweetheart, love is never easy. And it's different for everyone. Some relationships are simply more passionate than others. And trust me, I think your
relationship with him has enough passion to cover the entire county." She chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. Then she was serious again. "In all honesty, honey, I really think he might need to seek out a
professional."
"I do, too," Mel sniffed. "But I'm so afraid to tell him."
"Are you afraid of his temper?"
"God no," Mel laughed, wiping her eyes. "He's a screamer, but I know he's harmless. No, I just--I don't want to offend him. I'm afraid it'll hurt him if I suggest he see a shrink. I don't wanna do that to him."
"Things like that are hard sometimes, but necessary. As much as I hate to say it and as much as I know you'll disagree, I strongly believe the two of you need counseling before you get married. Unless--unless today
changes things."
Fresh tears sprang to her eyes and she shook her head. "I can't stop loving him. Of course I still want to marry him. I just--I just wish...I mean, it's not my fault Jason is a man..."
Susan rubbed Mel's back as she hung her head. "I think Taylor is intimidated by Jason. I think he's aware at how very different and acute your connection is with him. I think he's having a hard time seeing where the line is right now. What the difference between a romantic and platonic relationship are."
"Is it wrong for me to still be close to Jason?"
"I don't think it's wrong to have friends, no. I quite like Jason, actually."
Mel sighed and lay down her teaspoon by her cup. "Mom, I'm not feeling so well. I think I'm gonna go ahead and go to bed, okay?"
"Need me to tuck you in?" her mother asked, smiling at her and tucking her hair behind her ear.
Mel smiled as she scooped Fred off her lap and stood up. "No, I think we'll be just fine."
Hours later, Mel awoke in the middle of the night in excruciating pain. It was nothing like she'd ever felt before. She could barely creak her mom's name out loud enough. When she finally did, her voice came out so wrangled that both of her parents showed up at her bedroom door. Mel looked up at them as she was doubled over in pain. "I think I need to go to the hospital."