The sky had turned dark and the sun had set. All day, my mother and I had been talking and catching up. We went shopping after lunch and eventually went to go see a movie playing at the theater nearby. By the time we had said goodbye to one another, it was already 10:15 p.m. I had work a morning shift tomorrow and I was pretty tired. When I arrived at the house, Paige was sitting on the couch watching tv. There was no sign of Jack and it was a perfect time to tell Paige about the house our parents bought for us in Chicago.
"Where's Jack?" I ask her.
"He went home already." She sighs.
Paige sounds a bit different. "Hey?" She doesn't look at me. "Are you okay Paige?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." She nods, without looking at me again. I sit down next to her on the couch.
"Paige, what's wrong?" I ask more sternly.
"I asked Jack about the Universities he got accepted to." Paige brings her attention to me as the show goes to a commercial. "And he told me he hadn't bothered to tell what school he was going to attend. And I mentioned the apartment for us both and he said I was selfish for having not told him. So one thing led to another and he stormed off."
"Wait so, now what?" I ask.
"Jack and I are done." Paige shrugs.
"Paige, I'm so sorry for you. How are you?" I hug her. She sniffles and I feel her tear drops fall into my shoulder. "No, don't cry."
"I feel so stupid." She sobs. "He's right. I was selfish!"
"No, you weren't selfish. If anything, he is. He's selfish because he can't accept the fact that you want a career. You want something different from him in life and he can't accept that." I rub her back as she continues to sob. Okay, I have to tell her about the house now. "Paige? I have something that will cheer you up."
She pulls apart from the hug and wipes away her tears. "Is it ice cream?"
"Better." I dig into my front pocket and pull out the key.
"It's a key."
"Do you know what it's to?"
"No."
"Our parents bought the house already. We have our place in Chicago already!" I exclaim.
"Oh my god!" Paige screams and jumps off the couch. I jump off with her and we grab each other's hands and jump around, being all giddy with each other. "We have our place!!"
"Are you excited?!" I ask her as we cool down.
"Fuck yeah! Where's the house located?" She asks. I pull out my phone and type in the address of the house.
"It's that one with the brown door and the big window. It's on Cedar and State, downtown." I show her the picture of our new house-like-apartment.
Paige's face lights up. "Jasmine, this is totally gorgeous!"
"The best part? It's close to both universities. And there's a Chipotle - your favorite- and a Yogurt Land - our favorite - and a Barnes and Noble - my favorite - all right around the corner."
"This is wonderful! We have to tell the girls!" Paige says.
"How bout we have a sleepover and we bring ice cream and booze for you?"
"Deal!" Paige smiles.
***
"Excuse me?" I glance up and see a young blonde woman in front of me.
"Hi, looking for help?" I respond.
"Yes, please. It's my boyfriend and I's one year anniversary." She smiles.
"Awe, congrats. What's his name?"
"David, and I'm Britt."
"Hello, Britt. I'm Jasmine. What can I help you with?"
"Well, we wanna celebrate but I also want to make it special for us tonight, do you know what I mean?" She's talking about sex obviously.
"I do. Follow me and I'll show you some of our sensual items in stock." I tell her as I grab a basket. We walk to the front of the store where we have our Bath Bombs. I pick up Sex Bomb and show it to her. "Do you want to smell it?"
Britt brings her nose to the Bath Bomb in my hand and pulls back with a smile on her face. "That smells wonderful."
"It's called Sex Bomb and it's got scents of jasmine and rose and it's fabulous for the bath. Even if there's no sexy time involved, it helps your skin." I toss it into the basket after her approval and head onto out Shower Scrubs.
"This blue baby - smell that - is called Rub, Rub, Rub, and like Sex Bomb, it's got jasmine in it along with that crisp sea smell. Test it out." I take her to the sink and apply it onto her hands. "Now rub it, exfoliate your skin really good and then rinse." I wait for her reaction and then dry her hands. "Now smell your hands. Smells good, right? The best part of this is it leaves your skin feeling tingly and it's absolutely wonderful."
"I'll take that, too." She smiles. I place it in the cart and head onto the last stop.
"Now our massage bars. These babies really out people in the mood. Especially this one," I pick up the pink heart shaped bar, "it's called Strawberry Feel Forever. And it's got crushed strawberries and it really puts our customers in the mood."
"I'll take that. And I think I'm all set." Britt smiles. "Thank you so much for helping me."
"No problem. Enjoy your night. Just go and have Paige ring you up at the front." I tell her. After stocking up on Facial Scrubs, Christopher, my boss, calls me to the back room.
"You need something?" I ask him.
"I saw you pick out some stuff for a customer," he begins, "and I need you to make me one. A different type, not the same."
"Okay, sure. What's the occasion?" I ask.
"It's my boyfriends birthday tomorrow and I need something that's like him." He explains.
"What's his name?"
"James. And he really like fresh, citrusy scent and color."
"Got it. Say no more. I'm on it." I smile.
"Thank you!" Christopher hugs me and I go back to work.
I locked up the shop and to my surprise, Shawn was waiting for me in his car. I got into the passenger seat and placed my bag by my feet.
"How was work?" Shawn asks me as he leans over to kiss me.
"Fine. I made a special gift set for this one couples anniversary." I tell him as he drives off.
"What kind of special?" He smirks at me.
"The one you're thinking about. Now, where are we going?"
"My place. You should spend the night."
"I have work tomorrow."
"I'll drop you off at work in the morning."
"Fine, but stop at my place first. I'll have to get my things."
