7.5: Wake Up, It's Awkward

NOTE: You know the drill, if you're easily offended please read with caution

   Here's thing about afterthoughts. You don't have them until after whatever has happened has already happened and there's no possible way to reverse it, without altering the timeline. Even when you have them, or say something as the result of one, people know that it wasn't what you were thinking or doing, your mind just happened to drift there. There's no reversing it. I don't want to reverse the morning and make sure that the night never happens, I just sure as hell wish that the morning didn't exist and I didn't have to deal with everything. That would be the afterthought.

  "Ughh..mh..." Rosie mumbled, as I slept on, leaning against her. The many joys of having a rather scandalous night is you get to spoon afterwards. "What's...my back hurts..." She sat up, wondering who was still snoring. It, of course, was me, not a ghost. Her room wasn't haunted by anything other than her own thoughts. "Hazel! Oh..." She began thinking about last night, as she poked and prodded me to awaken.
    "Rosie...stop..." I groaned, wanting to sleep in. "Vacation..."
    "Hazel, please."
    "Ugh...fine." I sat up, suddenly aware that I was in her bed and last right wasn't an insane sex dream. Wonderful. "I'm...I'm... did we? We did..."
     "We should talk."
     "We have to."  I said, propping myself up with my elbows as I rolled out of bed.

      "Sorry for waking you."
      "No problem, it was your bed, after all."  I shrugged, trying to lift the heavy mood and replace it with a lighter, carefree one. "Sorry, this just..."
      "Yeah." She nodded. "At least we both have PJs that are cute."
      "At least I'm wearing something." I laughed. "Imagine how much more awkward this would be if I was naked."
      "If you take how awkward you just made it, add ten, divide by three, and add point nine seven every time you take a breath and subtract that from a hundred thousand billion, I'm guessing it would be a number in that range."
     "Didn't know that you were a math nerd."
     "I'm not, I just bothered to show up to class in middle school."
     "Hey, I was busy saving the planet and that one breed of rare birds you've never heard of."
     "I know, I'm kidding." She smiled as she readjusted her top.
     "It's getting hot in here..."
     "Yeah." I glanced at  her as she glanced at me. Neither of us were wearing much clothing, so it was rather humorous to think that we'd comment of the temperature being too high.
     "Want to go out to the balcony to chat?"
     "Yeah, good idea." I said, as I followed her to the outdoors.

   "So...we did that."
   "We did."
   "Thank goodness I didn't drink more... I probably wouldn't remember enough to talk about it."
   "I can't help but think that it would make things a little easier."
   "Don't you feel terrible?"
   "Yes." I confessed. I did. I always liked her, I still did, but I didn't think things would begin this way. You wouldn't place blame on either one of us; we were both at fault and I'd admit it. "I'm sorry..."
    "Don't apologize to me. I feel horrible, but it was good. Gosh. Hazel, we're good friends. Really good friends. I don't need an apology, but Gwen does. How will I tell her?"
    "I could..." I didn't wan to, but for her I would make the sacrifice of telling my roommate's girlfriend that we slept together. "Hey, at least we're not straight. Imagine if you, or I, was like, a guy... one of us could end up pregnant. That conversation would be even worse then the one you or I'll have with her."
    "Ya know, I probably should talk with her so you don't bring that up."
    "Probably. I swear, though... look, I'm... I con't know how to handle this. Rosie, I've never been part of a cheating whatever the hell this is before. I'm using poorly spoken humor to cope, okay?"

     "I understand it's tough for you, but dammit I cheated on my girlfriend who thought I shouldn't room with you  because I'd cheat on her and I did! I proved her right! I called her a bastard that night, but look at me." She looked down at her feet, as I wished I could help her.
   "I'm sorry... I want to fix this for you, I really do." Regret is a feeling you'll never forget. I regretted hurting Rosie, I regretted not being able to fix everything.

   "It," She began sniffling. "Our relationship was going to end, anyway. we were on a roller coaster that only headed down, this was just the extra pull of gravity we needed to crash down."
   "I'm sorry."
   "Stop apologizing. Please."
   "I apologize because I have nothing else to say. I want you to know I care and I want you o know that I want to fix it, but how to I tell you that? How do I tell you? I don't know, so I apologize."
   "You don't have anything to say? Neither do I. Look at me, I'm crumbling."
   "Aren't we all?"
   "I don't know. Stop! I need stuff to make sense again. Please, make it make sense. I slept with you, but I have a girlfriend. I'm a cheater. I obviously have feeling for you, but I don't know what those feelings are. What are they hiding as? Just make sense to me."
   "I like you."
   "That doesn't make sense."
   "I know...when the hell does liking someone ever make sense?"
   "Stop yelling!"
   "I'm not."
   "Well... I should stop yelling."
   "If you want. Whatever you want."
   "Didn't want to cheat... didn't mean I didn't want you, I just didn't want to cheat."
   "We both wanted each other at that one moment. Rosie, I still want you."

   "No, Hazel, no." Se backed away, bringing her arms to her face. "You can't." I knew I couldn't. I knew Rosie was a forbidden fruit, but you always want something more when it is forbidden, don't you?
   "I'm sorry. I felt like I should be honest. get all the feeling on the table."
   "I said no apologizing..."
   "You either get me apologizing or saying the ugly truth or using attempted jokes tat fail."
   "I want all of that. All of you, but I can't. You don't understand."
   "Neither do you. I feel like crap. I never wanted to hurt you. Ever. And I did by getting closer to you. Rosie, last night was great, but the aftermath is catastrophic."

   "It has to be. If it was any other way, it wouldn't be us."
   "Is there an us?"
   "Who knows? There's a me and a you and if you put it together, somehow you lose a bunch of letters and get a U and a S."
    "Spelling and love didn't both coordinating."
    "Nothing does... I've decided though. I know what to do."
    "What?"
    "It's cowardly."
    "I don't care."
    "I'm going to tour France for the next few months. Go on a wine extravaganza."
    "What about Gwen?"
    "I have to tell her the truth. I'll call her, tell her I did something and I can either pay to fly her out here or tell her on the phone. I'm running low on money, but I can't go back yet."
    "Will you break up?"
    "I don't think she'll take me back. I don't think I want her to."

    "You don't want her to?" I asked, my eyes shining. Rosie didn't want Gwen to take her back. That means... maybe, maybe she'd consider me. I wouldn't push her, we'd have our months apart, but maybe, just maybe.
   "Look, I need a break. Time alone."
   "So do I... in Washington, though."
   "I'm going to get ready and shower... I think I'll begin my wine tour tonight."
   "I'm going to go look for cheesy souvenirs so that way maybe we can have one second during this morning that isn't awkward."
   "Knock, knock."
   "Huh?"
   "I just thought of something I did with my parents. I'd go to their bedroom and knock on their door and say knock, knock."
   "Aww, you must have been an adorable kid."
   "You probably were too."
   "Who's there?"
   "Huh?"
   "Your knock, knock joke."
   "Oh! Duh. Wake up."
   "Wake up who?"
   "Wake up, it's Rosie... only this time I think it would be wake up, it's awkward."
   "Defiantly." I laughed. "I"m going to go get dressed. Ya know, shoppers general appreciate that."
   "Yeah, generally." I opened the door, stepping inside her room. I gathered up my clothing and quickly walked, or ran, depending on who you asked, to my room. I got dressed, applied a generous amount of makeup to hide how little I slept because I was with Rosie doing things we weren't going to talk about anymore. I began my journey to a cute boutique, casually strolling through the streets of suburban Paris. I stepped into the gift shop and was greeted by a plump lady who, like most in France, spoke French.

  "I'm looking for a sorry your girlfriend cheated on you with me gift. Any ideas?"
  "Français! Parler français, s'il vous plaît. Mais, vous avez besoin d'un cadeau d'excuses?"
  "Stupide américain. Anglais, s'il vous plaît." I said, sighing. If I learned one thing from my trip, other than cheating is messy, it was how to say 'Stupid American. English, please.'
   "You need an apology gift, oui?"
   "Oui. Something nice, ya know?"
   "You cheat, how do I know? I do not cheat."
   "Didn't say you did."
   "The implications, though."
   "It seems like I have a horrible habit of offending the French... this really isn't my country."
   "We can tell."
   "I probably should head back to the bed and breakfast..." I sighed, turning to go.
   "You need romance advice, oui?" A petite, blonde teenager turned towards me, smiling.
   "Oui." I said, not expecting real advice. Teenagers were teenagers, after all.

   "Here iz what you do. You do not force zee love. The love is from zee heart, oui? Oui. You cannot force zee heart. You wait and if the heart lets you love, you love. If the heart does not let zee love out, you are not for them. If zay have a foolish heart, zay are, how you say? The heart does what the brain iz not ready to do. The brain not ready for them to love again, but zay say nothing? Zee heart, their heart, that iz what tells you. You wait for the heart."
   "You wait for the heart... thank you. Does everyone stop and give you love advice here in Paris?"
   "Oh, no!" She laughed. "Zee world is scarted of zee heart, because we cannot do our tests on it. I bring clarity, oui. I help zee lost hearts and lost tourists. Mostly tourist, see France, we get lots. Oui, lots."
   "Oh... well, thank you."
   "You are welcome. Remember, wait. Wait and the hearts tell you."
   "Wait and the heart tells you..." I whispered, as I walked away. Rosie's brain was a mess, as was mine, but maybe our hearts would find each other. There was no way to tell, other than to let our hearts take their time...

7.4: French Wineries and Mistakes

 Author's Note: Yeah, there's no language of the not good variety in this chapter, I just wanted to say hey and thank you for reading and not being, I appreciate it. So hey and thanking you for reading. More specifically, thank you for not being illiterate, so you're able to read my legacy. You're awesome.☺

  "We have a few hours before the sun sets and we have to go back to the bed and breakfast. I was thinking I could purchase my wine making machine and have it shipped to our house, then we could maybe tour the winery, if you'd like, then go outside and you could harvest a few rare grapes and see if you can find any seeds." It was the third day of our vacation and so far Rosie and I had only done tourist activities, like visiting the Eiffel Tower, eating delicious pastries, and visiting breathtaking museums that were much better than Appaloosa Plains' crummy artsy museum.
  "Sounds like a plan."
  "A good one, hopefully."
   "It is." I said, looking around the winery we had just stepped inside.I glanced around at the crates of wine that varied from being weeks, to months, to decades, to centuries old. The air's sweet, but musty aroma of grapes filled my nostrils as Rosie began browsing the racks.
  "Puis-je vous aider?" A pretty French woman stated. What was she asking? I thought back to French class, wishing that I was as good at foreign language as I thought I was. Aider meant help, I knew that, so she must be asking if she could help us. 
  "Oui." I replied to her. "Outils de vin? S'il vous plaît? Wine tools? Please?"
  "Hey, Hazel," Rosie smiled at me as if to say 'I'll handle this' and I instantly felt foolish. 
  "Oh, yeah. Sure. Sure." Rosie began speaking to the lady working the register in rapid French. In a few moments she had purchased he win making equipment and had it shipped to Appaloosa Plains, Washington, USA.
   "The tour now?" I asked, eager to learn about what interested Rosie so much.
   "Sure." She smiled and began walking, leading me around the place. "There are several tasting rooms up here, along with the stock that's available to purchase. In the back there's also wine making machinery were you can purchase wine making lessons or rent a machine. Now, if we go down the stairs to the basement, we can see some really neat things."  

   "Like what?" I asked, as I began climbing down the stairs.
   "Oh, I wouldn't want to spoil it..."  She chuckled, as she teased me; my imagination began running wild with possibilities of what was in the basement of an ancient French winery.
   "Really? Because I'd be fine with it." I glanced around the basement. There were barrels upon barrels of wine, but nothing I would consider spoil worthy. "What's down here?" 
   "Well, if we take a step this way..." She led me to another room. "We can see a three hundred year old barrel of wine that survived the Révolution Française, or French Revolution."
    "Interesting." I said, even though I thought the opposite.
    "Go over to that wall."
    "Why?"
    "I've heard some rumors within the wine community and would like to see if they're true, that's all."

    "Okay, why not." I shrugged and walked over to the wall. I began feeling it, hoping that some clue would come about.
    "Look for a crevice near the bottom between two stones."
    "Odd..." I mumbled under my breath, as I leaned down looking for a crevice. Was my little lady crush a completely eccentric gal?
    "Don't worry... I'm not crazy."
    "I'm molesting a wall at your instruction. Now what exactly is your definition of crazy?" I stood up and leaned against the wall. Suddenly, I heard a creaking noise. "Rosie, did you hear that?"
    "You mean the noise of a hidden door opening as I prove my sanity? Maybe a little." I spun around to see a hidden passage way revealed.
     "Was this the rumor?"
     "That there was a passage way under the winery? Defiantly. Want to do a little exploring?"
     "Do I want to do something reckless that would endanger my safety with someone I've only known for six months? Of course!"
      "Seems like your morals are a bit questionable, but I'll roll with it."
      "What can I say, people with questionable morals have more fun."
      "Isn't that the truth." She muttered as we began walking through the passageway.

    The passage was dark and damp; it was exactly like a secret room that had been locked up for no one knew how long should be. Rosie, being resourceful, had remembered to bring a matchbook along so we could light the torches that lined the walls. The halls were long and winding, with pieces of broken pottery and worn artifacts that had left time get to them scattered about. Nothing special or interesting appeared, though. We kept walking through the rooms, hoping to stumble upon a chest or treasure of some kind, but didn't.
  "Rosie, we've been walking for a while, are you sure something's here?"
  "I wasn't sure if the passage was here, much less if there's something in them. We'll have to keep walking, unless you want to go back. We can if you want."
  "Nah, when else will I ever be in a damp, dirty, dark French corridor?" And so we kept prancing through the rooms, until finally we reached a rather lavish one that was lined with gold and silver chests. "Wow!" I gasped, shocked that we found something. I bent down, seeing if he chest closest to me was locked. It was not, so I pried it open to see rare seeds galore. "Look, these are probably unheard and ancient! I imaginable how wonderful my garden will be now..."

   "That's great." She smiled, helping me open the next chest to find a few scrolls that had a language, defiantly not the French I barely knew, on them.
    "Can you read them?"
    "No." She sighed as she unrolled and rerolled them all. "It looks like we'll need a keystone to continue, but I can't read the clues."
     "What now?"
     "You got your seeds and it is," She glanced at her cell phone, "Getting late. I'd say head back upstairs."
     "I do need to harvest some grapes..." Through the winding hallways we went once more, only this time to the basement. I climbed up the stairs and arrived at the front desk. "Hello, oui, may I harvest some fruits?"
     "Mademoiselle, nous sont fermées."
     "Miss... Parlez-vous anglais?"
     "Anglais? Oui. We are closed. Please come back tomorrow."
     "It'll mess up my schedule."
     "Stupide américain."
     "I don't speak a lot of French, but I understood that. Was that even French or just pretentious English with a few extra vowels? How about I not come back and not give your winery and vineyard money, oui?"  
     "Désolé, s'il vous plaît aller."
     "I did not understand that, but, um, I'm gonna go now."  I began blushing as I walked away from the front desk, my dignity a little torn. The cashier probably had some.
     "Adieu!" The lady called, as I pushed open the front door, stepping into the fresh night air.
     "Rosie?" I exclaimed. She was sitting on the steps of the winery in tears. Just moments ago she was happily leading me around underground. "What happened?"
     "W-w-well, I saw a cou-uple. They-ey were getting engaged!" She blubbered, a tear trickling down her smooth cheek. "I thought, hey it's like five pm her-re. Th-uh-at means it's morn-ning in Washington. I called..."
     "Oh, no. Rosie I thought you were better."  I sat down next to her. We went to France because she said she was alright. Said she could use the time to heal. I hadn't convinced her to do something when she was emotionally unstable, had I?
     "They're so happy... I wanna be hap-ppy. Hazy... I wanna be happy." 
     "Did you have anything to drink?" I asked. 
     "May-hic-be." She hiccuped  in the middle of her sentence. I could that she had had a glass or too of wine, not enough to make her totally incapable, but enough to make her call her girlfriend when she saw how happy other couples were. "Three tiny glasses from the tasting room. Three. I'm okay-kuh-ay Hazel." 
    "Are you sure? Look, I still think we should call it a night and get you back to the inn." 
    "Alright." She sighed. I stood up, giving her my hand so could as well. I quickly hailed a cab and, with the help of  Rosie as our translator, we ended up back at the bed and breakfast in no time at all.

   "Knock, knock." I said, gently tapping on Rosie's door. We had been back for a few hours, ate dinner, and decided to relax in our separate rooms for the remainder of the evening. I was just going to check on her before deciding to call it a night and venture into the world of slumber. "May I come in?" I asked. I heard a mumbled that I thought was a yes and pulled the door open.
   "Hey, Hazel." She greeted me, not hiccuping or crying or slurring her speech. "Sorry about earlier."
   "It's fine. You're okay, right?" I glanced past the wine she was pouring to the balcony doors. We were only on the second floor, but alcohol and heights were still general a bad thing.
    "I'm good. Hey, look I won't do anything I regret in the morning. Want a drink?"
    "I suppose... I mean, it's been a long day and couldn't hurt."
    "Vintage wine. Very delicate."

    "Knowing nothing about wine, I'll take your word for it." I took a glass and slowly sipped. The liquid slowly slipped down my throat, smooth. The rich flavor of grapes, blended with something else, a taste just out of reach, invaded my tongue and taste buds. "This is good...really."
   "I'm glad." She smiled, sitting the most full bottle on her dresser, as she herself took a sip from a glass. "There's notes of a variety of types of grapes used.. it wasn't the best growing season, not horrid..." She rambled on about the wine, the flavors and aromas and words that I didn't understand. "It's subtle, yet provides a complexity that provides the delicate tastes. Oh forget it, it's good wine. I'm tired of doing wine snob crap for today, I just want to enjoy my drink." 
    "Do you need anything?"
    "I don't know. I'm thirteen hours and who knows how many miles from Gwen in the city of romance. I though I'd be fine, but all I am is lonely. I feel like our relationship... it's tough, with all these couples and French. I think of these wine trips I took with her. Everything reminds me of her... except you. You're here for me. She isn't."
    "Look, I'm sure she's thinking about you, too." I said, wishing that I could act upon my feelings; I liked Rosie, I wished she was single so I could tell her.
    "Hazel, you're here for me."

    "Always." I whispered. "It's what friends do."
    "Friends..."
    "Rosie, you're amazing. Who wouldn't want to be friends with you?"
    "People. They don't matter, though. Nothing else..." She looked at me and I looked at her. You always wish things were different sometimes it's because you don't like what is currently happening, sometimes you wish you could let whatever happen happen without dealing with the consequences. Sometimes you let common sense and logic and every single thought fly away with the tumble of sheets and ripped tank tops and kisses and the body you thought you'd never get to love, but always wanted to. Because it's what both of you want for that moment. And moments don't have regrets, the people who string the moments together so that they form a life do.

7.3: The Artsy Museum

 NOTE: Once again, there's a little bit of bad language (no f- or sh- bombs) and mildly offensive stuff.

  There was something about the art museum that I connected with. There was a history here; not just an artistic one, but a personal one. I knew very little about my mother who passed such a long time ago and Booker... I couldn't call him dad anymore. I had made peace with myself, but the relationship was wrecked. I read somewhere that "Infamous Politician Dies: Still Not the Mayor" I skimmed the article and sure enough, it was Booker Singleton. Never mayor, never a husband, never a decent father. What's there to say?
  "Glad you could take a few minutes out of your day and come." Gwen snipped at me. "Even if you are a bit, shall we say, not on time." She was sitting on the left edge of a bench in the middle of the Fairy Folk & Towns exhibit, with Rosie to her right, in the middle.
   "We carpooled here together. Rosie drive, I sat shotgun and you sat behind me." I stated, confused. "I literally walked in here two seconds after you. How am I late?"
   "Excuses, excuses." She rolled her eyes as if everything I said was a lie. "Lets get down to business."

   "Hazel, being so amazing, already booked our rooms at this cute little bed and breakfast. It seems so homey, like a French country side inn. It's actually in the suburbs of Paris." Rosie beamed as she talked. With her radiant smile, grateful attitude, and freckled cheeks, she was like a sun outshining the gray thunderclouds that was Gwen.
   "I'm glad you like the bookings. We have to cancel withing a five day period in order to get a refund and since I booked them yesterday I figured there wouldn't be a problem if something were to come up. I've got two side-by-side rooms with a connecting bathroom, so we will have to share, but it won't be horrid."
   "We have to share a bathroom!" Gwen exclaimed, as if this was going to completely ruin her seven days six nights trip to a foreign country known for its arts, cuisine, and romance.
    "It was the best I could do, last minute. I did book the larger room under the name Kinnely instead of Janes, too, so you get a slightly nicer room."
    "That's so sweet of you, thanks." Rosie gushed. "Of course, I booked us plane tickets. We leave tomorrow at one pm and should check in and everything an hour or so prior to that time."
     "I've got my bags packed and figure we could swing by Gwen's around ten."
     "Sounds good." Gwen nodded, not bashing my idea.
     "I have to use the ladies, do you know where it is?" Rosie's cheeks turned a shade of red to match her pixie cut, as she asked.
     "Through the Family Life & Child Toys exhibit, to the right, down the stairs, and you'll see it." Gwen pointed through an arch to an exhibit that had vintage doll houses, a satin and lace baby's night gown, and even a miniature replica of a tractor. As soon as Rosie was out of sight, she turned towards me. "Now Hazel," She slyly said, scooting closer to me. "You know this trip is really romantic, right?"

  "I assumed it was for you two, considering the location."
  "You assumed right. Maybe we could find you a little boyfriend. I know that you're single and looking to play matchmaker with Rosie and I, so I figured maybe we should get you a French one nightstand or even a long term BF."
   "I did hear a rumor that the French make high quality furniture... of course, not as good as the Swedes. I really should go to IKEA sometime and buy more bedroom furniture. Thanks for reminding me."
    "Haha, you're hilarious. You know what I mean. A BF." She began talking slowly, like you would to a toddler who's just learning English. "Boooyyyffrriieeennnd. Bbbbooooyfffrrriennd. Beeeee-efffff."
    "Actually, I'd prefer you find me a petite amie, but beggars can't be choosers, I suppose."
    "A what?"
    "Petite amie. You know, girlfriend. Did you not take French in high school?"
    "Ghlac mé an Ghaeilge, is ní Frainc."
    "What language is that?"
    "Irish. I took that instead of French."
    "They offered that language? That sounds really neat... I thought it was just German, Spanish, and French."
    "If you- never mind. My schooling isn't the point. You're into girls?!"
    "Actually, I'm into ladies who are of legal age, not children, but I have a feeling that that isn't your point."
    "Stop being so damn witty!" She shouted, jumping up from the bench.
    "Sorry, gee, calm down." I stood up, trying to calm her down. "You know, Rosie may be the redhead, but you've got the fiery temper."

   "You've into Rosie. I can't believe she didn't tell me that she was rooming with a lesbian. I'm against moving in together before marriage and what does she do? Move in with someone who she could cheat on me with!"
    "I assure you, even if I was into Rosie, I wouldn't mess with you and her. Besides, you should trust her more. We've lived together for six months and neither of us has hit on one another."  That was a teeny white lie. Technically I had hit on her by giving her flowers the day I toured her, but we weren't living together yet, so it didn't count. It was also true that I had a crush on the redhead Rosie, but she didn't need to know that. I wasn't lying when I said I wouldn't dare mess with their relationship; as long as Rosie was happy with Gwen and wanted to continue dating her, I wouldn't suggest that her and I do anything vaguely romantic together.
   "I trust Rosie, but I sure as hell don't trust you! I read in the paper that you're the daughter of that wanna be mayor and his barely legal slutty girlfriend."
   "Do NOT insult my mother. Look, go ahead and bash Booker, he's a giant d-bag, but my mother? Off limits. Too far."
    "Hey, hey, what's going on?" I heard Rosie saying, as she walked up to our little girl fight.

    "Hazel's a lesbian."
    "Yep, known that for awhile. I'd also like to point out that so are you and me. Just calm down and don't be an intolerant bastard who is anti-LGBT. We don't need any verbal hate crimes."
     "I'm not! I'm just saying that if you wanted to, you could cheat on me with your roommate."
     "If I wanted to cheat on you, I wouldn't need Hazel to do so. Just putting that out there."
     "Can we calm down?" I said. "We're all going to France tomorrow and I promise that if we all apologize and say that we didn't mean any of it, just this once, we'll all forget it and have a great time."
     "No, Hazel, I won't forget it. I can't believe someone I think I love would talk like that to my friend who I happen to be living with. I won't stand for rudeness."
     "Rudeness?! Hate to break it to you, hon, but calling me a bastard wasn't cotton candy and rainbows." 
     "Don't be one and I won't call you one!"
     "That's the worst logic. I'm not going  to France with you if Hazel comes."
     "Fine, this isn't Hazel's fight. It's mine and yours. I'm going and so is she."
     "Please, relax. Don't break up because of this silly like this, just take a deep breath, count to ten, then talk." I quickly said, hoping it would help.
     "It won't work." Gwen said, but she still took a deep gasp of air. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Yeah, I was right. I'm still pissed and not going to France."
      "We aren't breaking up... are we?"
      "No. I won't let this bitch break us up, like she wants."
      "Stop it, stop it! I said no calling Hazel bad stuff."
      "Live with it, because I will! Look, maybe we need to spend a week apart. We'll talk afterwards, see where this goes."
       "Apologize to her, first."
       "Never." Rosie, tears in her eyes, turned and began running to the stairs. I followed her; she was my ride after all. We rode in silence to home, Rosie sniffling the whole way. When we arrived, she ran up the stairs, to her room. Why oh why did I have to mess things up for her? Why?
      

Rosie Kinnely's POV...

   I lay on my bed bawling, a book in my hands. I was reading some crime novel that belonged to Gwen. It was  about a computer technician who was hired by the local police force to reconstruct a computer and get data off of it. The computer had been thrown into the pier, with the body of the murdered person. They weren't sure if it belonged to the prime suspect or the tragically deceased. I was half way through and very intrigued about how it was going to end. I needed something to keep my mind off of the events that had happened a few hours ago.
  "Rosie?" I heard Hazel knocking at the door; it was the third time she had attempted checking on me. Each time I asked her to please let me by myself. My relationship wasn't over, but I still felt like I needed a mourning period to process what had happened. Right now I wasn't processing as much as I was ignoring.
  "Hazel, please, I need time alone."
  "It's ten pm and you haven't ate dinner yet. You need food, so I brought you some vegetable stew made with a celery broth. Everything's from my garden..."
  "I'm not hungry."
  "You love soup."
  "I know... please, can I finish reading my chapter?"
  "Sure, but I'm coming in anyway. I'm going to make sure you eat. You need to be healthy."
  "Fine..." I sighed, secretly happy that she cared about my health. Gwen sure didn't. She gently opened the door, quietly slipping inside my room. She sat the mouth watering soup on my desk, pulling the chair out so she could sit.

   "How's your book?" She asked, her eyes wide.
   "Gwen's. Not mine."
   "Oh... I'm sorry about tonight. It's my fault."
   "No it isn't." I sat the book on my dresser, adjusting the pillows. "Hazel, Gwen's a very jealous person. She's vain and expects be to only be focused on her. She can be really sweet at times, so I usually am lenient when she has a tantrum. Tonight, though she wasn't yelling at me, she was yelling at my friend. I won't stand for that."
   "Thank you , then for standing up to her. I still feel responsible, though... I guess the only one to blame is Gwen."
    "It's hard for me to place blame. She did give my one hundred dollars out of her nose job fund so I could fly to France."
    "She has a nose job fund?"
    "She always hated her nose, said it was too small or something. I thought it was cute. Still think it is." Her nose job fund was an example of vanity, but her taking money out of it was an example of her caring for me.
     "Are you still going there? Paris, France?"
     "I don't know... I mean, the plane tickets are nonrefundable. What do you think?"
     "Go, if you're emotionally stable enough to. It took you months took save up for the tickets and if you don't go, then you'll be set back by even more time."

     "True... should I call her and invite her to fly with us?" My mind was divided. I could call her and we might be able to make up and fly together or we could wait a week.
     "Wait to call. If you guys have a fight here, it's easier to get away then if you were to have a fight in France. I mean you could call, but I'd wait a little and let her cool off. You know her best, what would she do?" I knew exactly what Gwen would do. Wait a week to call me, then suggest we have a night of insane, lustful sex.
     "I should wait. If I call and she ends up yelling, it'll ruin France even more."
     "Don't think of France as ruined, think of it as a fun trip to get away from the tortures of Washington."
     "Appaloosa Plains, Washington... a whole bunch of insane fora state that doesn't have anything."
     "Hey, that should be their new slogan." She laughed. "I mean, Seattle and national parks and all aren't nothing, but they're close enough."
     "Thanks, Hazel." I smiled. I finally felt a little better.
     "For what, Rosie?"
     "Being like this. Caring and ignoring what I said when I wanted to be alone."
     "Very few people actually want to be alone, they want someone, they just don't know who's the right someone."

     "That's the truth." I stood up and reached over to hug her. we were flying to France together. A good friend and a recently romantically confused girl. The optimist in me was thinking: 'How could this possibly not end wonderfully?' Because if you took France and friends and wine, what did you get?  Perfection, if you asked me    

7.2: Sneaking Over

 NOTE: There's some clothing-less Sims (of course everything's blurred out) and a few things that could offend certain people. Nothing graphic, but a few descriptive things.

   She stood by the mailbox, whispering. The midnight moon shone down bright upon them, showing the life of the night, yet the world couldn't be quieter.
   "Shh!" She whispered. "We have to be careful. I don't want to wake her." Her was her roommate, of course. Rosie Kinnely had been living with Hazel Janes for a remarkable six months, yet had managed to keep her relationship hidden.
   "It's alright!" The girl in the boots and jean mini skirt laughed. "We're just going swimming..." She leaned in and plant a kiss of Rosie's lips. "Honey, you know, she isn't your mother, right? You're an adult there's no reason to try and hide us."
    "I know, I know." She laughed, trying to sound lighthearted. There is. She thought. She just doesn't know it yet. 
    "Show me the pool."
    "It's around the back." She pointed as her girlfriend scampered off, with Rosie a few feet behind. Rosie glanced at the pool, already in her one piece swimsuit. She watched as the girl slid out of her shirt, throwing it onto the ground. A mini skirt, lace vest, and knee high socks all hit the ground, leaving the raven haired beauty standing in her sexy, skimpy bikini.
     "Come on!" She squealed, as she began running, catapulting into the pool. "The water's great."
     Rosie slid delicately into the cool water. For early September, the pool was surprisingly warm. I wonder if it's heated. She thought, as her red hair bobbed up and down. No. Hazel wouldn't waste the electricity. She cares so much about the environment... it's sweet, really. Hazel Janes cared more than anyone else she knew. Maybe it was the days upon months she spent fighting for what she thought was right, maybe it was the loss of her mother as a young child A true tragedy... loss is not something a child should be well acquainted with, but she noticed the small details and tried making you happy.

   "Eek!" Rosie shrieked, breaking her train of thought. "Hey, you splashed me." She laughed, as she pushed water towards her girlfriend.
   "Just don't  get my hair wet! I spent an hour curling it." She turned and swam away, using a hand to block the oncoming wave.
    "Don't curl what you know will be ruined." Rosie giggled, as she caught her hand.
    "Re-freaking-tweet." Instead of agreeing with a 'That's the truth' or some sort of religious phrase like most would, she used retweet. It was something rebellious that showed her social media obsession. She leaned forward and planted a kiss on Rosie's freckled nose.
    "Awww, Gwen!" She cooed.
    "Don't 'Awww, Gwen' me. You're this little adorable thing, you know that. How can I not kiss you?"
    "I don't know." She shrugged, returning a kiss.
    "C'mon." She hopped out of the pool, helping Rosie out as well. "Turn around." She instructed.
    "Why'd we get out?"

    "Because. Here, let me massage your back. You seem... off."
    "I'm a hundred dollars away from being able to fly to France and get my wine making machine!" She exclaimed. "And I was wondering... like, what if I don't make it? I'll be out a couple grand and have no other marketable skills."
    "Honey," Gwen began rubbing Rosie's shoulders, "You're amazing. Just chill, I mean everyone likes chugging wine."
     "I don't make wine to chug. It's an art."
     "I'm sure." Her nimble fingers glided down to the tie of Rosie's one piece. Slowly, she began untying it.
     "What are you doing?!" She spun around to see her girlfriend's bathing suit join the other articles of clothing on the grassy ground. "You're... you're naked!"
     "I know and I'd like to see you dressed the same." She flirtatiously placed her hand on her hip, displaying her toned body.
     "No... no, Hazel could see us." Rosie began retying her suit.
     "Aw..." She began pouting, then took a dive into the water. "You're no fun!"

   "Well, since you said so..." She grabbed the bundle of bikini and mini skirt and took off running. "Come catch me!"
    "What, no! I'm nude!"
     "Your choice. Catch me or swim." Gwen hurriedly hopped out of the pool once more, throwing her hands in the air and running after her girlfriend who was holding all her clothing.

   "Gwen!" She exclaimed, rushing to the back door. She flung it open and scrambled to get up the stairs, a rule breaking, bare girl following her. Rosie dashed into the bathroom that led to her bedroom, to the right of the stairs. "It appears you've caught me." The clothes fell from Rosie's hands, onto the cool tile.Gwen made no effort to lean down and retrieve them. "Aren't you going to get dressed?"
    "I would... it's just, we haven't seen each other for so long."
    "You're funny." Rosie giggled. How she loved laughter... how long it'd been since Gwen made her laugh. "We saw each other two days ago.
     "You know which way." She gestured to her body. "This way."
     "My bed's a twin bed..." Rosie sighed, wishing her room was larger. Large enough for her girlfriend to stay the night. "But that doesn't mean we can't." They were in a sudden embrace, Rosie's hands sliding down to the small of Gwen's back, then further. They locked lips, wrestled tongues. It wasn't love that edged them on, but lust.

   "The shower..." Gwen began tugging at Rosie's suit once more, as they slipped into the shower together. The night was a night of excitement; if it wasn't for the small glimmer of lustful experimentation the embers of the relationship that were slowly dying would have completely burned out. It was only time.

Hazel's Point of View...

   I took a gulp of green tea, sitting my hand painted mug on the counter. There was nothing better then waking up in the morning, steeping tea, and whipping up a batch of low calorie, yet delicious, organic waffles. The Friday sun was shining through my windows, the birds were cooing a song of delight, and my shift, since it was the end of the work week, started at eleven instead of an hour or two or three earlier.
  I heard Rosie coming down my gorgeously wooden, antique spiral staircase just as I pulled the waffle pan from my oven. I quickly adjusted my bangs so they were clipped back and checked to make sure my cruelty-free, animal-free lip balm hadn't smudged. I was perfectly aware that no one looked great in an old thrift shop robe at seven am, but that didn't stop me from trying my hardest.

  "Rosie, hey I made waffles. They're still a little-" I turned to face a raven haired girl who had arranged her hair into a top knot. She was also wearing an expensive looking black lace bra and half of what I assumed was probably a PJ set, though I hardly noticed the exposed flesh. My eyes were for Rosie and only her. "Who are you?" I asked, not making the connection. "What are you doing in my house half dressed?"

    "Gwen." She flashed me a gleaming white smile and stuck out a hand that I promptly shook.
    "Nice to meet you, I'm-"
    "Hazel. I know, Rosie told me." Rosie. Of course this was Rosie's girlfriend... that's why she panicked when I gave her flowers. She thought I was hitting on her, as she kindly explained after the fact. "Hey, can I have some waffles?"
    "Um, they should sit for a bit; they're incredibly hot."
    "Just like the night Rosie and I had." She giggled.
    "I wouldn't know..." I mumbled, turning away. The situation couldn't get more awkward if someone paid me to make it.
     "Oh, did you not hear? Ugh, Rosie, so uptight lately, I couldn't tell you  how long since our last hookup, thought you would."
     "Trouble in paradise?" I asked, trying to not sound too eager. Rosie was a sweet, caring, bubbly woman and if Gwen couldn't see that, she didn't deserve to date my roommate.
     "Look, this isn't your paradise. Rosie and I've a different type of relationship. Just don't mess with it, 'kay?"
     "Wouldn't dream of it. I'm sorry."
     "No problem!" She flashed me a big smile, just as I heard a second person coming down the stairs. This time it was actually Rosie.
      "Good morning. Hazel, I see you've met Gwen."
      "We've become acquainted a little..." Rosie was wearing the top half of the PJ set and looked effortlessly gorgeous.
      "That's great. You don't mind early morning company, do you?"
      "Of course not. We do share the house after all."
      "Wonderful. I smell waffles, oh Gwen you have to try them. They're like heaven in you mouth. She grows all the ingredients in her own garden, I could rave on and on about them."
      "Nice, honey." Gwen smiled, sticking an arm around Rosie.
      "Want to move this to living room?" I suggested. "We can sit and chat a bit."
      "Great idea." Rosie walked holding hands with Gwen, as I slowly trailed behind.

   "Hazel," Gwen addressed me, "Did Rosie tell you?"
   "Tell me what?"
   "I saved enough to go to France! I was a hundred away from being able to go and Gwen gave it to me."
    "That's great." I forced a smile. "You can always ask me for money, if you ever need it."
    "I figured you would be a little strapped for cash, I mean you do need a roommate and all, but thanks."
     "No problem."
     "Do you want to come along? I know you were talking about buying exotic seeds..."
     "Sure,that would be great."
     "Hey, can I come along, Rosie? Maybe have a romantic trip."  Gwen flashed me a cunning smile, as if to say 'Don't mess with Rosie'.
      "France is the country of love... Oo! We could also have a girl's night out."
      "Fun, fun." I glanced at my watch. "Hey, I have to go get ready for work, maybe we could meet again to discuss the details?"
      "This Saturday at the arty museum, perhaps?" Gwen suggested.
      "We could fly out on Sunday! The sooner the better, since once I get my wine equipment I can start making money."
      "Sure, I'll book us rooms. Two or three? I know this great little bed and breakfast."
      "Umm... two?" Rosie glanced at Gwen, who nodded in confirmation.
      "Alright... nice to meet you, Gwen." I hurriedly rushed away from the living room, to my bedroom. I was taking a romantic vacation with my roommate and her bitchy girlfriend. Lovely.

7.1 Part Two: The House Tour

  "Rosie, hey. Hello."
  "Hazel." She replied, greeting me. It was Friday afternoon and, after a short phone call with my lovely potentially, but probably, roommate Rosie Kinnely was standing on my front walkway. "Is this your house? You have a pond with a bridge?! And everything, I mean why do you need a roommate?"
   "Because I bought an amazing, large home and didn't save enough money for bills."
   "Oh." She started turning an adorable crimson.
   "Don't worry. I mean, no need to be embarrassed."  No need? Did that sound odd? Did anyone even speak that way anymore? I wasn't sure, but I could tell if Rosie gave me a strange look, I'd be the one blushing the color of her hair... only more red and less cute orange.
  "I'm not. Wait, how could you tell? I totally was. I wasn't lying just- hey, do you... I mean, I talk lots. Maybe too much, so it's kinda awkward"
   "Oh, I do too!" I exclaimed, wondering if my exclamation just demonstrated the truth in her statement. "And you turn an adorabbbbb- red color when you seem embarrassed."
    "You noticed? Cause I've been dating someone and they... well, they're unobservant and haven't."She glanced down at her feet, clearly wishing she hadn't just given me that piece of information.
    "So, are they going to help you move in?"
    "Huh?"
    "I jumped the gun... I mean, like if you move in. Will they help? The guy you're dating?" I was trying to find out a very valuable fact that would decide if I had a chance or not with her.
    "Um... I, well... we're just in a rocky point. Every couple has them."
    "They do." I agreed. "I just broke up with my girlfriend."
    "Wait you're-?"
    "Is that a problem?" I jeered, a little too rudely.
    "No! Sorry, I just. Me- let's begin the tour? Okay? Sorry."
    "No problem. It's fine, Rosie." I smiled at her, hoping she understood. "So this is the front. The pool and my garden are towards the back of my property." I lead her towards the inside, wiping my feet off on the doormat. "Here's the foyer living rooms pace. I gestured around to the TV, CD rack, plants, and couches. "Of course, the couch is faux. I'm vegetarian."
    "That's cool. I tried once when I was like twelve. Totally failed; I really love tuna salad sandwiches. You won't care if I eat meat in front of you, will you?"
    "Of course not! I understand. I don't want to convert everyone to vegetarianism, I just don't meat meant because of the unethical treatment of animals. There is always pescatarian, though. fish and sea food, but no other meat."
    "Nah. Speaking of food, is that the kitchen?"
    "Yes." I nodded. I gave her a basic tour, showing her the dining room, kitchen with stairs to the basement that I'd convert to a wine room, and the small bedroom upstairs that was furnished in pink and gold.

   Finally, we ended up in my room. The master bedroom. The white wood floors and pale blue walls with my adorable tree statues. "This is my room." I said; I was clearly running for President Obvious. Rosie looked around, as her eyes settled on the plants growing on the ground.
    "You're growing plants in the floor. How?"
    "I have special flooring. I really love gardening." I smiled, wanting to tell her more. I wanted to tell her about my childhood an nature being a friend, about Marco... about me finding a real friend and then him leaving. You don't share things like that with someone you just met, though... you don't over share or you risk scaring them away, otherwise you'll never get a chance to share with them.
  "Would you like to see the balcony?"
  "Sure!" Her voice was bright and peppy, like a beam of sunshine peaking through a cloud.
   "Right this way." I gestured to the door, holding it open for her. She stepped onto the as she stopped in awe.
   "It's beautiful. The sunset. The pink is like a fine bottle of wine. The first glass of wine I ever drank was this incredibly cheap, rose wine. "  She started laughing at the thought of her first alcoholic beverage. "It was at Prom. Prom!"
   "How old are you?" I asked, then, trying to not sound rude, quickly followed the question with a statement. "I'm just trying to figure out if we could have gone to the same school."
    "Twenty-three and I was home schooled. My parents were way overprotective."
    "Oh... at least they cared." I mumbled, then louder I said, "I'm twenty-one."
    "Home life rough?"
    "Not as bad as some, I mean... it was messy." I shrugged, leaning on the balcony. "What do you think of the house?"
    "I'd like to move in, if that's alright."
    "Perfect. I figured that I'd cover five-eights of the expenses and we split the bills evenly."
    "Works for me."
    "Rosie... You're amazing." In one swift movement I turned towards her, holding a bouquet of yellow roses.
   "No... no. Hazel, look, I'll move in, but... I have to go to my house... I'm sorry..." She flung open the door to the inside and ran away. I heard her thundering down the stairs as the front door slammed shut. And so I stood on the balcony, confused as ever, I had given Rosie flowers and somehow scared her off... living with her must be interesting.


NOTE: I know, I know... this chapter isn't not very good and short, but somehow took me like two weeks to write. I'm suffering from the thing called writer's block and stress because life decided to get busy for me... I'm sorry. Lucky for you, I do get a one week holiday starting in one week and a few days, so I'm planning on writing some then and the writing actually be good. (P.S. This blog's one year anniversary was 11 days ago. ☺)

7.1 Part One: Roomies and Monetary Woes

   I stood at my mailbox, checking my mail. I sighed as I picked up bill after bill. Who knew adults had to pay for so much? There was water and electric and trash pickup. If I wanted water, I had to pay a bill. Internet and cable and cell phone. You will not believe how much your grocery bill is when you only purchase things labeled organic. Organic tissues and bread and pumpkin seeds and tofu and dish soap and cheese. All my furniture I purchased wasn't made with any wood that people had to destroy someone's habitat to get, or animals furs and skins. I only purchased clothing that was made in the USA and ensured that only ethical labor was supported. Don't even get my started on the cost of my tea addiction from the coffee shop. Point blank: bills were piling up and frankly, my crummy income I earned from working nine to two at the science center wouldn't be enough to cover my monthly expenses.

   I grew the majority of my produce, but it took awhile for plants to be ready to harvest. I hope one day organic won't be synonymous with expensive. All people need food to survive; it's a basic necessity. We shouldn't be charging extra  if you want the healthiest version. I sighed as I walked to my front door. I shouldn't be surprised that I was running low on funds. My income  wasn't disposable, but when I was buying my  property and furniture I treated it like it was.

   I stepped inside my home, wiping my sandals off on the doormat. I hadn't bought a broom or dustpan or mop yet and I was hoping that if I was careful enough I wouldn't have to. With my luck, I'll end up catching something that's incredibly rare you can only get from spending every minute you're not sleeping or working in your garden and not owning a mop. I'll then have  to splurge on doctor's bills and medication. Maybe I should hire an accountant or someone to deal with my monetary woes. I would, if it wasn't for the fact that accountants cost money and I happen to be living with only little less than a thousand dollars in my bank account.
   I threw the thick stack of mail onto the coffee table. I hadn't had anything other than an apple and a granola bar today and was feeling a tad peckish. Peckish. What a humorous word. I should cook something. Maybe harvest some onion, lettuce, tomato an- I glanced at my herb plant It was wilting! How long had it been since I watered it? Since the poor thing was inside, the sprinklers that I had set to water my outdoorsy plants every morning didn't apply to it. I rushed to the kitchen to grab my watering can that I had left a quarter full on the stove.

  "I'm sorry." I whispered to it, as I water the plant. It wasn't like the thing would reply to me, but I still felt better knowing that if it could hear and did have feelings it would know that I didn't mean to abuse it. 
   The watering can was set on the floor next to the plant, as I turned to face the window. Wildflowers and butterflies, bees and roses. My garden was alive with flora and fauna. I sat down in the armchair, taking a minute to relax. I didn't take a moment to sit and think nearly as often as I should. I wish I could travel to the gardening expo in Maryland. Buy some rare, legal, organic seeds. Too bad I couldn't afford it. My thoughts went from gardening to money to the bills I needed to pay. How was I going to fix this? There was always AJ... but it hadn't been ten years. Only ten months since we broke up. I lived with her for awhile and my finances were fine. I gasped. That's the solution! Not AJ, but a roommate. Someone to split the bills with. Someone who was better at math than me. Some to sleep in the spare bedroom.

  I pulled out my phone and went to the local newspaper page to create and ad. Something simple. Something eye catching. Something better than this:

 ROOMMATE NEEDED!

Female in her twenties needs someone to split expenses with.

Three bedroom, three bathroom home.

Contact by calling 000-0000 or leaving reply.

  Which was the ad I posted on the site. Instantly, there where a few replies. I scrolled through them. A majority of them were spam or unpleasant descriptions of what I could do with someone's something if they moved in with me. There was one serious reply. Someone who claimed to be in her twenties as well and was also looking for a roommate. She/Weirdo posing as a she and offered to meet me at the coffee house. Safe spot. Lots of people. Why not? I was following all those cyber safety rules they told you in school. I agreed; I needed a roomie and couldn't be picky. 

   I quickly grabbed my pepper spray and began walking to the coffee shop. The bus only stopped by the stop nearest to my home at eight thirty in the morning, noon, and four, so I had to walk the majority of the places I wanted to go. After ten minutes of walking, I reached the coffee shop. I hurried up the stairs to the loft area, which was meant for people who wanted to read or play chess or do plug in their laptops. A rosy cheeked red haired girl was sitting.

   "Hey," She said once she noticed me. "Are you looking for the girl who wants to be your roommate?"
   "Yeah." I smiled, nodding.
   "Cool. I'm Rosie. I left that reply."
   "Great, I'm Hazel Janes." I said, as I took the seat next to her. "I'm going to ask you a few questions." I said, unsure of what formalities I was skipping.
    "Okay." She nodded.

    "Do you have a job or source of income?"
    "No." She blushed. "I'm currently job searching."
    "How are you planning on paying bills?" I liked Rosie. She seemed like a sweet lady who wouldn't murder me in my sleep. Looks can be deceiving, but I was fairly certain she was just a 
    "Well... I make wine. See, I need to live some place with a basement. Right now I'm doing freelance cleaning and small jobs. I have enough to pay bills. I'm saving to go to France. I lived in the crappy part of town and my wine making stuff was damaged. I currently don't have any, but I'll need a couple thousand dollars to jet off to France... I figured that I should move someplace where a two thousand dollar wine maker thingie wouldn't be destroyed by a drunk neighbor with a  BB gun."
   "I have a basement."
   "Is it used to store dead bodies?" She asked, jokingly.
   "No... See, murder is generally frowned upon by society."
   "Yeah, I guess it is." She shrugged. "I figured I might as well check. My mother always told me that when you meet a stranger off the internet  and are planning on moving in with them, always check to make sure they aren't a serial killer."

   "Seriously?" I chuckled. I was loving her sense of humor. It was odd, I'd admit that, but it was still humorous to me.
   "Are you kidding? My mother was uptight and couldn't say sick, dead, abandoned, or failure without bursting into tears. I love her, but she was a tad... off."
   "Nicely put." Off was a good way to phrase something without going into too much detail. You were aware someone was crazy or not right, but you didn't know how. "Next question, are you in a relationship or have any friends that would be frequent visitors?"
    "I am in a relationship," Dammit. I was developing a little crush on my interviewee who happened to be dating someone. I assume that that someone was also probably a guy. "But I doubt that they'll visit often. I tend to go to their house."
    "So, um, next question. If you're in a relationship why are you looking for a roommate?" I was curious. Generally couples let the other one move in if they needed a place to live.
    "Isn't that a tad personal?" I blushed. It was wrong of me to ask the adorably cute and funny chick I just met at the coffee shop why she wasn't moving in with her boyfriend, I just didn't care enough to avoid asking her. "Lucky for you, I'm probably going to end up living with ya for a teeny bit and you'll find out that I'm dating a giant prude. Well, prude sounds bad, plus we kiss and stuff. But moving in before marriage and home runs, if you know what I mean, are off the plate. Hence the moving in with a stranger thing."
   "You seem really confident that you're moving in with me." 
   "Yeah, I've been looking for a roomie for a month and so far everyone online has been a creep. I felt like I should be optimistic about this. I'm not coming off as vain or anything, am I? Sorry... see I-"
   "Trust me, you're fine. In fact how's Friday?"
   "Friday?"
   "To tour my house. If you like, then I figured we become roommates?"
   "Sure, sure. I figured there's be more questions, but sure. Friday. Yay! Roommate."

   "Hopefully."  Rosie Kinnely began clapping her hands as a smile spread from ear to ear. I had found myself a roommate.

7.0: Mutual Breakups

   I was patiently tapping my foot while waiting in line to order my tea. It was an afternoon ritual for me; I would finish work at the science lab then head across town to my favorite organic coffee and tea shop. I had been employed at the science lab for a few months. After he... Booker, I wasn't going to hold onto the negative energy and anger and let it consume me,  kicked me out of the house, I ramped up my protests. I began trying to convert everything in this town to GMO free, animal safe, all natural, organic, and energy efficient. My protest worked... until businesses began boycotting my protests by not allowing me to come inside and buy anything.
   AJ, who I moved in with for a couple weeks until I found my dream home, wasn't happy that her favorite sushi restaurant was no longer serving to our address. I was bored out of my mind and needed a hobby that wasn't offending my girlfriend. When the science lab came knocking and wanted me to be the head of a small budget research project on the benefits of organic food versus all natural food, I naturally accepted the position. Contrary to what many people thought, they weren't the same thing. Foods were allowed to label themselves natural even if they had GMOs, toxic pesticides, antibiotics, and growth hormones. Organic foods didn't include any of those things.
   "Hazel, hey." The barista greeted me. "The usual?"
   "If by usual you mean organic chai oolong, please." I smiled
    "Coming right up."
    "How's business?"  I politely asked. I had mastered the art of small talk while waiting in awkwardly quiet silence for my tea.
    "Pretty good. Thanks to your protests, people have become more aware and business is booming. The boss even upped our salaries two seventy nine."
    "That's great. Glad I could help." even though I was no longer protesting; my last protest was against AJ who said I could no longer protest, it still felt good to know they had made a difference.
    "How's the garden?"
    "Amazing. I bought this home with a huge yard and have been growing all these plants. It feels great to give back to nature, you know?"
    "I do. The wife has been getting me to recycle and compost. She still raves about that veggies you brought us. Say that they made the best salad she ever had."
     "I'm glad she liked them. I can always bring you more."
     "Well thanks, miss. Here's your tea." He handed me my warm cup organic deliciousness. I walked over to the small alcove and sat at a table, sipping my drink. I felt my phone buzzing in my pocket. I picked it up and glanced at the screen. AJ.
     "Hello?" I answered.
     "Hazel. Hey babe, it's AJ."
     "What's going on?"
     "Well," I could tell she was taking a deep breath. She only did that when she was nervous. "How come you haven't invited me over to your house yet?"
      "I've been busy. You know that. With my new job and sorting out my finances..."
      "Where are you?"
      "Oh... you know, around town."
      "Dammit Hazel.  The coffee shop?"
      "What's wrong with the coffee shop?" I asked, trying to sound innocent.
      "You've been too busy to invite me over to your new house, but you have half an hour everyday for coffee?"
      "Tea." I corrected. "I drink tea. You know that, honey."
      "Hazel." She sighed. "Look, I'm coming over tonight."
      "I've got to go. A customer's nagging me."
      "Love ya."
      "Lave ya, too babe. And remember, tonight. I'll be there."
      "I know... I know." She hung up. I took a deep breath and glanced at my home. I knew eventually AJ would want to visit my home; I had lived in her's for months. I suppose tonight would be that night. I finish my drink and tossed it into the recycling bin. I was heading home to face my lovely not so little AJ.

Third Person Point of View/Narration...

   They were in Hazel's home. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, two stories, and a huge yard that included a fish pond and spacious garden area. What more could a girl in her early twenties ask for? The couple was doing something they hadn't in a long time: dance. Hazel's arm was rested on AJ's shoulder, AJ's hand wrapped around her girlfriend's waist. They swayed in time to the gentle jazz music that was creeping through the stereo.
   She glanced off, towards the ceiling. They were both enjoying the moment of silence together. Neither one of their minds was silent, though.  Thoughts kept invading the precious moment.
   "Hazel." The lady with the pigtails whispered. She was quiet; it was as if what was whispered wouldn't ruin the moment.
   "AJ." She gazed into her eyes. She knew what was coming. They both did.
   "We need-"
   "To talk." Hazel interrupted her, finishing the sentence. She had to refrain from chuckling. Even when the couple was on the verge of the conversation they both dreaded, they still finished the others sentence."We should sit." She gestured to the couch. AJ's hand dropped from Hazel's waist, as she slowly moved to the seating.
   They sat down simultaneously, at opposite ends of the couch. They gazed at one another, wishing that they could communicate telepathically. Maybe that would make the moment a little less painful.
  "Talking..." Hazel began.
  "We need to." AJ agreed.
  "I wish we didn't."
  "I do to... it's just we've been drifting apart."
  "The tea." Hazel simply said.
   "The tea?"
   "Remember. You said coffee when we talked on the phone."
   "I didn't." She confessed. The innocent moment, a simple mistake; it slipped her mind. It didn't slip Hazel's, though.
   "See? We're forgetting the minor moments... the minor moments that make you fall in love with someone. The minor moments that matter if we were to spend the rest of our lives with one another." They knew that those minor moments would only take a minute to memorize, but the fact that they hadn't proved something.
   "Hazel, I feel like you blame me for your father disowning you."
   "I don't... honey, I don't." She didn't blame AJ, that was one piece of truth that was left lingering in the air. "But, I feel like ever since I told daddy, that bastard Booker, the mystery is gone. There's nothing left. We're an old married couple and I haven't even turned twenty-five."
    "Mystery? Is that what you want?" It wasn't what the black haired beauty wanted. She just needed a crutch. Something she could say to voice her emotions. The truth was, she didn't know what she was feeling, but she knew that she didn't want to bring AJ along for the ride.
    "We need to be..." She let the sentence drift off. The truth was, they both needed so many, many things that the relationship wouldn't work.
     "To be single." AJ finished. Out of the many, many things, that was probably the truest thing.
     "Maybe... AJ, how do you feel like we should of ended?"
     "Not this soon." She laughed to cover up the tears in her eyes. Both of them needed humor to cover up the sadness that was trying to break their hearts. "We should be an old married couple..."
     "I think maybe, after we each have time to ourselves, we could be friends. Or, you know..." More. You know, more. They needed time alone, but maybe that time would bring them closer. Maybe not. They didn't know what to think, other than that they were both newly single.
     "A decade?" AJ asked.
     "A decade." Hazel agreed. One decade until they met up again. They'd both be healed and in their thirties. More rational, more worldly. If they felt like their lives were still missing something, they'd meet up in a decade.
     AJ stood up, walking towards the door.She knew that they'd both forget each other in a decade. They didn't actually plan on meeting up. They just needed closure. While lies can hurt, sometimes you need them to comfort yourself. That was exactly what Hazel and AJ where going to use that lie for. Comfort. If all their relationships failed, well, there was still that first relationship they could go flying to. That first relationship that was toxic. Luckily, they'd gotten out before either one of them was poisoned.


AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry that this chapter was so long. I didn't feel like that there was a good place to break this up into a part one and two (even though I could have between the coffee shop and home scene). It's okay if you're upset that I got rid of AJ. I hate it when author's introduce a new character and then immediately get rid of them. Don't worry, though AJ isn't completely gone. (Hint, hint, nudge, nudge.)
   Also, Hazel's AWESOME home was not actually created by me I download it from the exchange. It was built by the amazing Allure and you can download it here. It was created with only base game items (so EVERY Simmer can download it. And you totally should.), so I edited it a bit with CC, things from EPs, and store content.