Chapter 15
Glancing at the bracelet, I smile thinking about Lina whom I have met just a few days back. She is like the fresh air which my life needed.
She challenges me, however, at the same time she helps me to overcomes those challenges. She doesn't know much about me, but it feels like she understands me better than others.
I realize I feel more like myself when I am with her. I just feel so normal... the silence feels normal like we do not need words to express ourselves. The more I spend time with her, the more I feel drawn to her, sometimes it seems like she is the bridge that will decrease the distance between old Jason and me.
Raking my hand through my hair, I shake my head and match the price tags of the items with the list in my hand. Today, I have told Lina that I will give her a tour of this town, for some reason I am more excited than her.
I am just trying to finish my work so that I can close my shop early when I inhale the salty air as somebody has opened the shop's door. Smiling, I walk from behind the aisle to the front door thinking it is Lina. However, my smile loses its brightness a little when I find Jessica standing there.
Jessica smiles at me, but I can see her apprehension behind her eyes. I have known her all my life, that I don't even remember when we had actually decided to spend our lives together. First asking her out, then finally proposing her for marriage, everything seems like something from the past.
The one you love is the one who hurts you the most.
But I felt more betrayed than hurt, which is something that is, even more, worse than feeling hurt. But now, watching her here, I do not feel anything at all.
Snapping out my thoughts, I focus on the girl standing in front of me, who was once my everything but now she nothing but a stranger.
"Hi," she says looking slightly nervous, her eyes move around the shop as if she looking for something, then returns to me.
Whereas in my mind, I can hear her voice remembering her soft tone which she used when she was nervous or scared.
"Hey."I smile back, trying to ease her nervousness which helped as her smile widens a bit.
"How are you?" She tries to sign and I can't help but laugh.
"You are still bad at it." I chuckle, remembering after my accident she tried to learn sign language but became frustrated when she could not, saying it makes her look crazy when she makes weird signs with her fingers.
Not even thinking that these weird signs are now my reality.
Now, when I think it seems nothing but funny because she was the same girl who used to flaunt our relationship in front of everyone, saying we were a perfect couple who understands each other silent thoughts.
She laughs looking embarrassed, while I ponder why is she here after all these months... after she had thrown everything which we had on my face.
She opens her mouth then closes as if she herself does not know why she is here.
"You can talk, I may not hear you, but still, I can understand you." I shrug nonchalantly.
"I saw you last night at the party and I was really happy to see you there," she speaks, and I glance at my bracelet to read what she is saying, "You were looking happy."
I was looking happy because I was.
When I look up there is an uneasy smile on her face.
"Yeah, I enjoyed last night. I thought about how long I can stop myself from living my life. I have to move on, just like others have moved on." I can't hide the bitterness in my voice, remembering how she returned my ring and saying she can't be with me, as every day with me is becoming difficult. She said she always wished for a normal life and she can't see that life with me.
"Jason, I am sorry I never meant to end things. You know, how much I loved, and honestly, I still do." Tears gather in her eyes while I keep my eyes at the bracelet, "It was so painful to see you every day struggling and even you have pushed everyone away. I tried my best to help you, but you were just..." She trails off wiping a tear from her eye.
If always rubbing off my disability in my face means helping then, yes, you have tried to help me a lot.
"It's okay." I nod and swallow, "It is all in the past now."
It is true, there were many days when I just used to sit and think why she has left me, or if our love was not as strong as we claimed it to be. But slowly I stopped thinking about these things altogether.
She looks at me with wide eyes, utterly surprised. Her expression mixture of shock and disbelief as she grins looking at me.
"Oh, my God! You can hear now." She laughs, then covers her mouth as she still can't believe it, "That's why everyone was surprised to see you dancing because you can hear now."
"You do not have any idea how happy I am." She throws her arms around me and hugs me, completely taking me by surprise.
"I can't hear, Jessica." I pull away from her and shake my head, as she frowns looking confused.
"Somebody just taught me sometimes we have to listen to our hearts." I smile thinking about Lina.
"Oh..." She steps back and nods again the uneasy expression settles on her face.
"I saw that girl with you." She smiles which looks a bit forced, "Who is she?"
I can only understand the words who and is, so I figured she is talking about Lina.
"Lina," I reply, "She is a friend," I answer although, she is not just a friend... she is an angel.
She looks at me like she wants to say something more, but she just smiles.
"Can we hang out sometime?" She poorly signs, smiling at me, "I miss you, Jason, I miss spending time with you."
She holds my hand hopefully, waiting for me to reply.
The feeling of ache and betrayal is no longer present in my heart which I used to have earlier when I thought about her. She is standing in front of me and there is no crushing feeling in my heart. Maybe this means I have actually moved on from her.
"Yes, we can." I smile feeling proud of myself as a few months back even her name brought so much pain but now I am standing here, talking to her as if nothing has happened.
I am much stronger and somewhere it is because of Lina, my angel.
We talk a bit then she left, while on the other hand all this while my mind was on Lina. She promised that she will meet me here and it is almost evening but she has not arrived yet.
Checking my watch my eyes drifts to the door for the thousandth time, as I wait for her. I have finished all my work and now it is almost time for closing the shop, as I have decided to close it earlier than usual.
But still, there is no sign of her.
Slowly, as an uneasy feeling settles in my stomach, I even start to feel angry. Not because she has not come, but at least she should have informed me about canceling our plan so that I was not sitting here like an idiot and waiting for her.
Picking up my phone I dial her number and wait for her to answer the video call. As my numerous messages have been unanswered. The phone keeps on ringing and after several times it gets disconnected.
I dial her number again, and again I wait for her to answer. When I am about to disconnect the call, thinking she will even not answer my call this time, she picks up the phone.
"Where the hell are you? Do I look like an idiot to finish my work early for you and wait for you for hours?" I nearly shout at her in anger, even though I am feeling relieved to see her fine.
I watch her expression change as she clenches her jaws and not saying anything she signs.
Weird, because she always speaks to me, even with signing she talks.
There is something different about her demeanor and I can't exactly understand what it is.
Gently, I ask her what happened, but she does not meet my eyes as she keeps on staring at down.
I can see she is lying when she signs she is fine and she is busy. Because she does not look fine, it feels like something is bothering her.
However, before I can ask her anything she disconnects the call.
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Thank you for reading.
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