It was the summer before my freshman year of college, and I was totally over the whole "Adult" thing. I was all but ready to run back to the sanctuary of my grandmother's house where it was OK for me to free of an excess of responsibility. I need to forget all the fuckery I had been experiencing for the last few months. I packed my bags and headed out. Upon arrival, as usual, I called my favorite friend in Jackson; the infamous Ms. Tailor...
The link up was quick, and were already chatting away like no time had passed at all. I caught her up on the last .5 months of foolishness I had experienced since we last parted. As we talked, there were footsteps coming down the basement stairs, and an all too familiar voice filled the air. It was Parker, Tailor's how should we say, "love interest" for the past several years. It was not quite a relationship with traditional labels and boundaries, but soooo much more than a friendship; to know them is to know what it is. Not that the conversations the two of them typically had in front of me are particularly cryptic, but this one DID seem strange, and I had no idea what they were talking about. I chalked it up to him trying to convince her to buy the latest object of his retail obsession, and pleading his case for how much he needed it. Just as quickly as he breezed in, he was gone. He threw up a hand upon departure, and briefly mentioned something about heading back to Richmond to kick it with Landon. Just happy he was gone so our conversation could continue, I quickly dismissed the whole visit. Once he was gone, I turned my attention back to Tailor. I opened my mouth to continue where I left off, but the look on her face immediately shut it...
"What?! What is it?!" I pressed, "WTF is wrong with you?!" She took a deep breath and proceeded to say, "I want to TELL you something!" I abruptly stopped her, because whenever her statements began with those words, they usually ended with, "a friend of mine was asking about you." After the past absolutely hellacious six months I had experienced dating not one, but two of her friends; one of which was still currently stalking me, there was NO way I was doing it a third time. "Nope, stop right there; you have gone far enough.." I said. "Oh but I PROMISED I would tell you; let me just say it, then we can forget about it." I don't think I've ever rolled my eyes so hard. "Fine." I replied, "but just know the answer is NO!" She reluctantly agreed, and I sat there tense, waiting for her to reveal which one of her weirdo friends had discovered some new infatuation with me. Tailor began, "OK, so Parker said Landon was talking about you.." Instead of disgust, full on confusion set in. I was genuinely bewildered. There was no way this person was asking about me; this had to be some ParkTai collaboration in which neither party know what's going on. This HAD to be for their benefit. My mind began to work, and I rewound the scene to about 15 minutes prior, and that perplexing conversation that took place in such hushed tones between she and Parker; then the seemingly random mention of Landon as he was leaving. It made perfect sense. "So that's what the two of you were doing, PLOTTIN!" I sat back, taking a few minutes to let it sink in. Tailor continued to prattle on; talking double dates, late nights on Richmond, and anything else she could think of to try and convince me...
We continued to talk, about any and everything; all the while I was some place else; thinking about it...My mind had taken me to a place in time where I had actually SAW him once, and entertained the idea...Landon had been a Richmond staple for as long as I could remember, and was kinda always around. I really didn't pay much attention one way or the other until he and Parker became close. On that particular day, he momentarily stepped out of the Richmond scenery, and I noticed him standing across the street. For no reason at all, I thought, "huh, Landon is cute, who would have thought!" Just as quickly as the thought formed, it dissolved in a cloud of hood Coach staples, a leather skirt, and lip gloss...that of which I had been seeing ALL summer. Any thoughts I may have had as far as Landon were concerned were left on my grandmother's porch that day. Our interaction with one another had always been brief and uneventful. I responded to Tailor with indifference, even though I had a million questions. My curiosity was officially peaked, and I was interested. I agreed to entertain a conversation. Being on Richmond St would never be the same...
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