Waking from hibernation

驚蟄 [9] / [20]

They were both silent for awhile, and Alexander sat down on the topmost step leading down to the back patio behind the house.

"So, how long has this been going on?"

Ed asked.

"How long has what been going on?”

Alexander asked Ed in return, and he responded.

"You and Cynthia. How long?"

"Well,"

Alexander paused, thinking.

"It really is a long story. It goes back a lot of years, along many winding roads. But suffice it to say that the past came back to grace us both. Or haunt us,"

he added with a laugh.

"You mind if I bum one of those cigarettes?"

Ed laughed, and tossed him the pack, along with a lighter. Alexander pulled a cigarette from the pack―Camel, no filter―put it in his mouth, lit up, inhaled, then, after a long drag, exhaled.

"You know," said Ed, jokingly,

"smoking can kill you."

Alexander smirked,

"Oh yeah. Look who's talking. Besides, so can the wrong woman."

They both chuckled. They drank a pretty good bit. Ed inhaled his cigarette deeply again.

“I told Anna several times about how I felt about her, but she never accepts me. Let me be honest, Alex. She is the first woman who ever refused me. You know what I mean.”

“Yeah, it’s understandable, dude,”

Alexander nodded acceptingly.

There are a few people who are so handsome that they're admired by many women in the office. Actually, Ed was still very noticeable outside of the office as well. Ed knew it well enough, so he couldn't help being flirtatious towards any woman. Ed wanted to be paid attention to and enjoyed that very much. But Anna was different.

She treated Ed as just a coworker, no more than that. And Alexander thought the way she treated Ed was not that different from the way she treated him. That’s why he was quite startled when Ed said this sort of thing. Maybe Ed was wrong, he was just too drunk. Alexander made this conclusion to himself.

“I don’t agree with your assumption, Ed. I think you're barking up the wrong tree.”

“Hopefully, man. Because I really want to make her like me, even desire me.”

Alexander frowned. That didn’t sound good, even though Ed was drunk.

“Why do you hope for that?”

“My purpose is the same as any man’s,”

Ed sniggered. All of a sudden, he looked very coarse.

“I am tired of searching for a woman who is willing to sleep with me. I’m done with that, Alex. I’m 33 now. I just need to settle somewhere safe. Unfortunately, most women I’ve met are not a very nice ‘place’ to get into, you know what I mean?”