3Unwelcome Conversations

“Excuse me!? Who is this?” Sarah asked, shocked and confused. She racked her brain trying to figure out who it could be on the other end. The voice was deep and grave but had a mischievous quality to it. “This is Zane Wilkins.” He replied. She could hear his smile and it infuriated her. “And how did you get my number Mr. Wilkins?” she replied in the coldest tone she could manage. Sarah was used to creeps calling her, thinking they would be able to play out some sick fantasy. “My sister, Everly? You are handling an event for her.” He replied, it seemed that he noticed her stern tone because his voice sobered up. “Yes, we are handling her engagement party. How can I help you?” she replied in her signature professional tone. As much as she wanted to go off on this man for the condescending way he had started the conversation, he was a client at the end of the day, technically. She had to control herself for now. “Well, I went over the plans for the event just now and I want to make some changes.” Sarah’s anxiety shot up at that. With a deep breath, she replied. “But the event is the day after tomorrow Sir, all the vendors are paid for, and everything has been finalized. We need a 4-day notice at least to make any changes, this is listed clearly in the contract. Not to mention that changing plans right now could ruin the entire event and cost us both monetary damage.” She tried to maintain a calm and compelling demeanor. She knew very well what it felt like to be bullied into agreeing to things one couldn't afford. She had to deal with some difficult situations building this from the ground and was toughened up but everytime something like this happened it still irritated her. Zane let out a laugh. “Ms. Stone, please, I am sure you are aware that money is of no consequence, the amount we've already paid you can compensate for a few minor changes, can it not? I thought your company slogan was something along the lines of ‘A vision visualized’ Please don't worry, they're not earth shattering, these changes. ” he chuckled and Sarah could feel heat prick behind her neck. A flush crept from her neck towards her face. Hannah had finally managed to hail a cab and as she hurriedly followed Hannah into the car, she replied to the infuriating man through gritted teeth. “You are right Mr. Wilkins, please send me an email with the changes you require, and I will get them done. Thank you.” “Very well. Thank you, Ms. Stone. Have a nice evening.” came his amused reply and the line went dead. Sarah almost screamed in frustration. “Who was it?” Hannah asked. Sarah let out a deep breath and smoothed down her hair before replying. “No one. I don’t want to talk about it, let’s just have a nice dinner and forget about all the people we have to tolerate in this world.” Sarah responded, powering her phone off. The girls proceeded to splurge and get everything they wanted at the restaurant, from the most expensive wine on the menu caviar and truffles. They spent the night laughing, forgetting the world and the shitty day they had each been dealt with. As they settled into their cab after a few hours and turned on their phones, Sarah’s phone started beeping with notifications. Besides one email notification from Mr. Wilkins, the rest were all from Eric. Eric! Shit! I forgot about him. Sarah felt guilt like a punch in the gut. There were 4 missed calls and 5 texts to be exact. Sarah could already feel a headache starting and her annoyance bubbling up. She was offline for 3 hours at most. She felt like she was being suffocated. They were the slightest things that were happening that made her frustration build against Eric. She was still trying to figure out how to react when her phone started ringing with the 5th call. She took a moment to take a few breaths and calm herself down before she picked up the call. Before she could get a word in, Eric went off. “Sarah?!? Where have you been? I was worried sick, I called Hannah but she was answering her call too. You were supposed to give me a call baby. Is everything alright?” “Eric, can you please calm down? I was having dinner with Hannah and we switched off our cells to just relax. I was offline for only 3 hours which is not that big of a deal really.” She tried to keep the irritation out of her voice. The key word being tried. He seemed to be taken aback by her reply, it took a minute before he said something. “I am sorry, it’s just not like you to switch off your phone with work and everything. I was just worried. I am sorry if you're mad.” She hated this. She hated how easily she got irritated with him even though he did nothing. It’s always the same, he would try to engage her and get involved in her routine and she would feel like he was putting her in a cage, she would get vexed and then start feeling guilty for it. “Eric, it's 1 am. I am sorry I forgot to call you. But I really don’t have the energy for this right now, I have had a long day. I will see you tomorrow and together we will go to Mom’s for Michael’s birthday party okay? ” Sarah spoke gently and was about to cut the call when Eric’s voice came through the phone. “I don't understand Sarah, energy for what? For us? I am coming over tomorrow during lunch. It’s been so long since we spent time together. I will come over to your office, okay? I don’t want to keep brushing things off, putting us off. Goodnight. Please don’t forget to take your medicine, I love you, Sarah.” he whispered softly and each word was like a stab to her gut. “Love you, too.” she whispered back before ending the call. Sarah resisted the urge to burst into tears. Why did he have to be so confrontational? Why did she have to be so clueless about her own feelings? What was wrong with her? After a couple of minutes, Hannah spoke up “Soooo…I am guessing things are not going well with Eric?” That was enough to set her off. The rest of the car ride to Sarah’s place was spent with her just unloading all her thoughts and feelings, how Sarah felt that she was overwhelmed by her relationship with him. How it sometimes felt like he was everywhere. How everything he did was starting to irritate her and she didn’t know why. Her feelings had become too confusing, they didn’t feel like her own. She felt like she was always playing a guessing game, trying to figure out what she wanted. Specifically when it came to Eric. She knew she loved him and she wanted his comfort and familiarity but she wanted her independence more. She also felt like he was too familiar, too much of a comfort zone. And then it clicked, I want him, all of what he is, a feeling of home but I want something more. Too ashamed to voice her thought she looks away from Hannah. As the car stopped in front of her building they both hugged each other. “What are you going to do tomorrow when he comes over?” Hannah murmured into her shoulder. Sarah let out a big tired sigh. “I don't know Hannah. I need to be honest with him about what I feel but I also hate the thought of hurting him. We have had some wonderful times together and I don't want things to sour up between us. I will have to handle the situation tactfully. All I know is, it's me, not him, that is the problem here. ” With that, Sarah made her way to her apartment. She shut her brain off, thinking about any part of her day would only flare her anxiety even more. She will deal with Zane Wilkins and Eric Klein tomorrow. For tonight all she wanted was to slip into unconsciousness till her alarm demands for her to wake up, and that is what she did.