Round N Around We Go (Has Cupid Gone Mad?) (7 page)

Across the street and adjacent
in the background, Neyo sits
irately in a black sedan and
watches her every move. He is
award of the audition and knows
instinctively that Sylvester is
his replacement. Angrily
and
restlessly, he reaches into his
pocket and brings out the very
same
brown
bottle
of
prescription, dishes out two
small tablets and swallows it.
He watches her silky locks flow
with the wind and tosses the
bottle onto the passenger seat.

The
label
reads
LATUDA,
prescribed to treat his severe
bipolar symptoms. Attempting to
control the boiling rage and the
jealousy lurking within him, he
narrows his eyes and murmurs
spitefully as if speaking to
her. “I’m not done with you yet
Amber. We’re not done, do you
understand?”

Hungrily devouring her favorite
flat noodles from a take out box
from Gigi’s in midtown, Karina
finds an unexpected guest at her
door.

Karina has never seen Taylor
looking wary and confidence
depleted. She sees Taylor’s
shattered spirit lugging on to a
burgundy
colored
carry
on
suitcase and quickly welcomes
her in with open arms.

Energy deprived, Taylor remains
extremely quiet and
refrains
from conversation. Karina has
been in the same disheartening
situation before and understands
Taylor’s pain without the need
for explanations.
Taylor has taken care of Karina
during her darkest moments and
has unconditionally nurtured her
back to life upon Alex’s death.

Karina understands that now is
the moment when she will shower
her support and reciprocate the
love and generosity that Taylor
has given her in the past.

Karina makes two cups of tea and
turns on the TV for distraction.
From her bed, she watches Taylor
curl up on the sofa and drifts
off silently. Tipping toes and
quietly moving around her loft,
her thought drifts back to the
days of her own dismay, and
remembers how painful it feels
to be brokenhearted.
She
sympathizes on Taylor’s agony,
turns off everything and climbs
into bed.

Twisting and turning throughout
the night and unable to soothe
her insomnia, Karina has much on
her mind and lays wide awake
gazing into nothingness. She
slips out of bed by the crack of
dawn with an emerging headache
and prances silently into the
kitchen to find Taylor already
awake.

She whips up a fresh brew of
espresso and brings it over to
Taylor. Giving her best friend
the warmest hug, she smiles
empathically and assures that
everything will be alright.

Taylor is still silent and
refuses
to
admit
defeat.
Stubbornly she puts on a strong
front and hides from her true
emotions. She is embarrassed to
tell Karina of the ninety days
bench time that Ivan has given
her and disguises her ego by
pretending not to care.

“It’s alright Karina, Ivan and I
just need a few weeks of
separation. It’s good for both
of us.” Taylor assures Karina
that she is fine and urges her
to tend to her affairs. “I’ll be
fine.”

Reluctantly, Karina heads out to
pick up Theodore’s canvas from
the art framer. While driving,
she calls Amber and shares the
news of Taylor’s ordeal.
Both know that Taylor may appear
strong
and
confident,
but
beneath the iron cast armor she
is simply as vulnerable as
either of them.

Feeling more at ease that Amber
volunteers to spend the day with
Taylor, Karina stresses her
concern before she exits onto
highway I95, “Please keep an eye
on her; I have been there so I
know how it feels. Please don’t
let her do anything stupid like
I did.”

Maneuvering the gallery’s SUV
through downtown traffic, Karina
pulls up at the parking lot
behind
the
art
framer’s
warehouse and knocks on the back
door.

Pedro the art framer shows her
in and leads her to the blank
canvas spread across the wooden
table in the middle of his
workshop.

Karina looks at the canvas for a
few seconds, tilts her head and
questions Pedro, “Is there
anything wrong with the canvas
that you can’t stretch or mount
it?”

He studies her expressions and
asks, “Miss Sebastian, does this
canvas belong to you?”

He points at the edges of the
canvas and brushes his fingers
lightly on top of it. “See how
it’s fraying?” He continues, “I
should have known by the way it
smells. This canvas is hand
loomed in a technique that is
obsolete today. Frankly so, I
have never seen any canvases
like this before and can’t tell
you much, except for a fact that
I know it’s old, and I’m talking
about anciently old. It is way
too fragile to be stretched, it
will tear. Whoever gifted this
to you must have found it in
granny’s attic.” He rolls up the
canvas and inserts it back into
the tube. “It’s better off
unframed.” He hands the tube to
her and adds, “My apologies that
I can’t be of assistance.”
As if a revelation reveals
itself, part of the mystery is
nearly solved. Karina is now
aware of the unapprised value of
the canvas and what Theodore
meant by ‘the canvas has a
history.’ Still baffled, Karina
wonders why Theodore has given
it to her in such a bizarre
manner.

Perhaps it is an heirloom? She
still can’t figure out the total
picture. Curiosity driven, she
plans to do exactly what is
asked of her and intends to
paint on it when inspiration
presents itself.

‘When time comes,’ as he says,
she will know exactly what to do
as she is meant to.

Feeling worried about Theodore
again, she attempts to contact
him once more over the phone. To
no avail she reaches his
voicemail and leaves yet another
message.

“Theodore,” Karina mumbles into
the phone inside her car, “Where
on earth are you?”

Seated across the votives lit
table, he reaches for her hand
and
holds
them
gently.
Flickering flames from the wicks
of the scented
oils dance
magnificently
and lure
them
closer to each other. Amber is
tired of being alone and is
touched by Conrad’s relentless
pursuit.
Surrendering to his
perseverance and no longer able
to defy his unfaltering love,
she is keen to put their love to
test and is eager to give him a
chance.

After
fourteen
years
of
separated paths and each their
own set of failed marriage, he
is not shy to admit that he has
loved her since the first time
they met and has never loved any
one the same way as he has
always loved her.

The triumphant day calls for a
dual celebration as they toast
to an anticipated
successful
season.

Neyo has been replaced and Amber
has finally accepted the idea of
attempting
a
long
term
relationship together. There is
nothing more that Conrad could
possibly wish for.

As if teenagers in love, they
hold hands through the drive to
her home and entangle in the
most delectable kisses on the
circular
driveway
of
her
building.

Utterly disregarding the onlooking valet attendants and
paying no attention to car
honking from behind them at the
valet line, he continues kissing
her until the attendant taps on
his window.

Amber smiles and pulls away.
Girlishly she bids him goodnight
and waves as he drives away in
contentment. Watching his car
turn into the side street, she
fails to notice that Neyo is
still following her and is
stationed across the street in
his black sedan.

From across the street, Neyo
watches Amber walk inside the
building and hurries over. He
waits until she has entered the
elevator then steps into the
lobby as he usually does. Waving
hello to the security guard whom
he has befriended over the past
year, he walks in casually as if
nothing has ever happened.

Unsuspecting
misdemeanor
and
fowl play at hand, the security
guard returns his greeting with
a nod and lets him in.

Amber is just about to step out
of her clothes and is ready to
head
towards
the
shower.
Thinking that it’s a neighbor
knocking on her door, carelessly
she opens to find Neyo standing
there
with
the
queerest
expression on his face.

Shocked speechless, she reacts
spontaneously and gasps loudly.
Hurriedly she tries to close the
door quickly but he forces his
way in.
There is virtually no way that
she could fight against his
roughness. Panic stricken, Amber
screams stridently and backs
away from him. Swiftly he closes
the door behind him and walks
slowly towards her.
“Please
relax Amber, I only want to talk
to you, please stop screaming!”
He
attempts
to
calm
her
hysteria.

“How did you get in here? I left
a note at the office to remove
your name from the permanent
list.” Amber continues backing
away from him. “Stop right
there. You’re out of control!”
She demands loudly, “Stop right
there or I’ll call the police.”
She continues demanding, “I want
you to leave now. I mean it
Neyo, you need to leave now!”

She turns around
and runs
towards the phone but is grabbed
at the waist and lifted off her
feet. He silences her and covers
her mouth with one hand.

“Shhhh.” He whispers into her
ear slowly and pithily. “Calm
down, I don’t want to hurt you,
I only want to speak with you.”

He tries to hold her still but
she continues to struggle and
tries to free herself from his
grip. Kicking his shin with her
sharp stiletto heels, he yells
in pain and looses his grip. She
frees herself and pushes him as
hard as she could then runs
towards her bedroom.

Tripping
backwards, he falls
onto the coffee table and knocks
down the perfectly lined frames
of assorted sizes.

Tumbling onto the floor, he
doesn’t
realize
that
his
prescription bottle of Latuda
has fallen out from the back
pocket of his jeans. He dashes
after her and stops her from
locking the bedroom door.

He shoves the door wide open
with such force that pushes her
backwards and she falls onto the
floor. He grabs her by the
ankles and while struggling to
free from his grip, she screams
as loudly as she could, “Help!”
He pulls her up, tosses her onto
the bed and silences her scream
by choking her.

Sitting on top of her, he slaps
her across the face and holds
her down by pulling onto her
hair.

Tearing in pain and sobbing in
fright, she watches him pull out
an army type pocket knife from
his pocket. She stops crying and
becomes silent as she watches
him flip open the knife.

“Amber I seriously came to talk
to you.” Neyo stutters in a
psychotic
manner and appears
exceedingly restless. “I didn’t
come to hurt you but I will if I
have to.” Just to scare her
enough so she will cooperate
obediently, he points the tip of
the sharp knife on her neck and
presses lightly and carefully
into her delicate skin without
piercing through.

“I need you to be a good girl
and to obey me. Is that
understood?”
Amber shuts her eyes tightly and
trembles without
muttering
a
sound.

“Open your eyes, look at me and
answer.” He commands in total
domination, “Do you understand?”

Amber sobs fearfully and replies
timorously. “Yes I understand.
Please don’t hurt me.”

His eyes gleam in contentment
for her submissiveness. “Baby
girl, I’m crazy about you. I
promise I won’t hurt you if you
obey. I promise.”

Amber continues to sob in
terror.
Terrified
by
his
sadistic laugh, she begins to
quiver fearfully. Unsure of what
has triggered this drastic
change in his personality, she
understands that the least she
speaks, the safer she will be.
Sitting on top of her, is not
the Neyo that she knows. The
only thing that she is certain
of
is
that
this
vicious
incidence will not play out
well.
************

“Knock, knock” Samantha Ruben
announces her presence playfully
while
peeping
through
the
slightly opened glass door of
his office.

Ivan stops typing on the
keyboard and looks at Samantha.
“Yes?” He does not welcome the
interruption.

“Oh I haven’t seen Taylor at her
office for a few weeks, is she
alright?” Samantha pretends to
be concerned.

Ivan does not see the need to
justify and his private life
should remain private. Politely
he covers up the truth, “Taylor
is taking a short vacation to
visit family up north. She’ll be
back in a few weeks. Do you need
her help with anything in
particular?”

“Yes.” She replies as a matter
of fact. “I’m a little stuck
with the formatting and was
hoping that she’d help me with
it.”
“Check
with
Cindy,
she’s
covering for Taylor during her
absence.” He tries to disengage
from further conversation to
focus on his task.

Cunningly, Samantha pushes. “I
am hoping that perhaps you could
help me instead.”

Impatiently, Ivan instructs her
to wait until he becomes
available. More content with
this option, Samantha closes the
door and plans to return at the
end of the day to discuss this
over dinner.

With Taylor on vacation and Ivan
left alone, Samantha sees the
perfect opportunity to get
closer to him. She nearly had
him once and if Taylor hasn’t
barged into the picture a year
ago to steal him away from her,
she is convinced that she would
be the one that he loves and not
Taylor.

“This is perfect!” She mumbles
blissfully and heads back to her
cubicle.
Focus distracted by Samantha’s
interruption, Ivan sinks into
his
chair and involuntarily
thinks of Taylor
again. He
regrets his actions and is
remorseful for his nastiness. He
does not mean to break up with
her over nonsense, but at the
spur of a heated argument, angry
words were exchanged and he made
a mistake. Ego struck and too
proud to admit his fault, he
desperately awaits for the end
of ‘ninety days break.’

He isn’t always right and
infrequently depends on her to
set him straight. Waking up in
the mornings without her by his
side, he feels empty and
realizes that she has become an
integral part of his existence
that he is not willing to live
without.

Too pompous
to cave in, he
chooses to wait for her return
while missing her tremendously,
rather than calling her to beg
for forgiveness.

He will reach out to her in a
few weeks to check on how she is
doing. After all, her belongings
are home and couldn’t have gone
too far. He figures that she is
either staying with Amber or
Karina and will be under the
care of her best friends.

Samantha stops at his office
again at four thirty p.m and
tempts him with happy hour over
his help with formatting.

He looks at her Barbie doll
face, watches her twirl a lock
of golden curly hair around her
index
finger
and
smiles,
“Samantha.” he pauses briefly to
select the right words. “Just
because Taylor isn’t home does
not mean I would go out with
you. That is not going to happen
again. If it is work that you’d
like to discuss, check with
Cindy in the morning.” He smiles
again and gestures her to close
his
door.
“Have
a
great
evening.”

She appears to be honestly
surprised. “How insensitive!”
She jokes to conceal
the
embarrassment. “I am just trying
to be friendly.”
“Samantha, you don’t have to try
to be friendly, please remember
you work for me. That’s all.” He
resumes typing on the keyboard
and
disengages
from
the
conversation.

Politely, Samantha closes the
door and leaves him alone. “That
is quite alright,” she assures
herself, “there’s time. I will
get him.”

Mulling over the idea of seeking
another publisher to start her
own novel series, Taylor tries
to distract herself from the
broken heart and focuses on her
career. Carefully evaluating all
the pros and cons, she looks for
the number of a publisher whom
she has met in one of the trade
fairs that she has attended in
the past.

She finds his business card in
her agenda then dials his office
number and asks the reception to
connect her with Rafael Levine.

After a brief moment of clicking
sounds over the phone, he
answers her call and remembers
her instantaneously. He has
always been fond of her work and
finds
her
exceedingly
attractive. Pleasantly surprised
by her call, they exchanged a
few ideas and he asks for a
digital copy of her manuscript.
He promises to review it over
the weekend and before they meet
personally on Monday to discuss
possibilities.

Content with the outcome of the
conversation,
Amber
eagerly
complies and emails a copy of
the
digital
manuscript
to
Rafael. Carefully arranging the
transition, Taylor is determined
to make it to the best seller’s
list with or without Ivan by her
side. Regardless of how she
truly feels, she realizes that
her career has to be incontinent
upon their relationship. After
all, she is unsure of whether
their relationship still exists.
Regaining autonomy seems
the
most appropriate thing to do and
should be set as a priority.
Amber is right, she should never
lose herself or forget who she
truly is.

At the moment she cannot foresee
what will become by the end of
the ninety days. The only thing
she is ascertain, is that she
must take care of her career
first and the rest can wait.

She clicks on the photo album of
her phone and taps on a photo of
her and Ivan, taking together at
their last vacation in Belize.
She touches his face with her
fingertips and sighs.

She loves him dearly but is not
willing to become his belonging
subordinate. She has tried her
best to make him understand, but
being equally if not more
stubborn than him, she finds it
difficult to communicate.

Heartfelt conversations always
seem to turn into meaningless
and childish confrontations. No
longer desiring to fight with
him, she decides to write him a
letter instead. Perhaps it will
be easier to get her feelings
conveyed adequately through a
letter.

She looks for pen and paper in
Karina’s desk and begins to
compose the first love letter
she has ever written. Pouring
her heart and soul into words
meticulously chosen, she intends
to seek his understanding and to
assure him of her love and
loyalty.