Page 4 of Sugarplum

They both fell silent for a while until the car came to a complete standstill. Melissa rolled the window down, and stuck her head out to see how far the jam was. She sighed as she pulled her head back in. “I think we’re going to be here a while. Not too long though.”

She leaned back in her seat and titled her neck to the left then to the right till it cracked.

Julie cringed and made a face. “Do you have to do that? That noise is so annoying. Plus, it just makes me feel like your head is breaking or something.”

“It’s important to crack your muscles, Jules.” She stretched her hands out in front of her, and began popping her elbows. When she was done with that, she began massaging her legs and cracking her knuckles.

“Yeah, whatever. Anyways, how is it going with Ned? I haven’t seen him in a while.”

“He’s been really busy with work.”

“I’ve noticed he doesn’t come around as much. Are you guys doing okay?”

“Yeah yeah,” Melissa mumbled distractedly as she took out her phone and checked it. “He’s just really worried about the merger, so we spend a lot of time at his house. I usually go over projects for the clients, you know how picky clients can be, and he sits there typing furiously away at his laptop.”

“Don’t I know it,” Julie commented. “But other than that, you’re fine?”

“Peachy Dorey.” Melissa turned around to face her. “What about you? How did it go with that guy?”

“Oh, Bob? Yeah, it was okay, I guess. I don’t know Mel. I think I should just give up dating.”

Melissa raised an eyebrow. “You’re not going to turn into a spinster with 50 cats, are you?”

“No, of course not. I’m going to be a spinster with 50 dogs.”

Melissa chocked back a laugh. “While I do love dogs, and find this scenario highly amusing, there’s certain things a dog can’t do. Aren’t you lonely? It’s been a while since Chace.”

Julie visibly winced at the mention of his name. “I know.”

Melissa laid her hand on top of Julie’s. “Jules, I know it hurts. I haven’t pushed you to move on even though it’s time to try doing that because I know you need time, and only you can decide when you’re ready, but getting comfortable in your little bubble of protection isn’t going to help you in the long term. It’s just going to let your fear fester.”

Julie stared at Melissa’s hand. “I know, but I’m just afraid. I really screwed up Mel. You know that.”

“I know that hon, but we’re humans. We all make mistakes. You have to forgive yourself eventually for what happened. You had a moment of weakness, you made a huge mistake, and it cost you, but I’m sure that looking back at it now, in retrospect, you know now why it happened, and you know what you were supposed to learn from it.”

“I think that I kept too many things bottled. I should’ve learned to speak out more, but I know that I only have myself to blame for that,” Julie said after careful consideration.

The cars in front of them began moving, so Melissa removed her hand, and put the car back in drive. She stayed silent for a bit, but Julie knew her well enough to know that the gears in her head were spinning at a million miles a minute. “It’s good you’ve learned that at least. There’s always the good things, and the bad things to learn from any kind of experience Jules. I told you before that you needed to learn to speak up when things were upset, so I’m glad you learned how to do that. I’m sorry it had to cost you so much though.”

Julie shrugged and gave her a small smile. “It’s okay. I’m the one who made a mistake, but still….”

Melissa reached out and squeezed her shoulder. “It’s okay, Jules. You never know what’s going to happen.”

They pulled up into their parking lot a while later, and chatted amicably about nothing in particular as they walked up the sidewalk and into the house.

Chapter Two

“What do you think, Jules?”

Melissa twirled in her figure hugging blue dress that had a slit right down the side, and a daring v-cut. She looked absolutely stunning, and Julie grinned broadly at her. “You look fantastic Mel. Ned isn’t going to be able to take his eyes off you, and he’s definitely not going to be able to wait till he gets home and gets that dress off you.”

“That is the point.” Melissa winked at her through the mirror. She turned around to face Julie. “However, I’m shocked that you even suggested such a scandalous thing. Could it be? Am I finally teaching you to be a little bit naughty? I’m so proud! They grow up so fast.” Melissa pretended to wipe away a tear.

Julie rolled her eyes. “I learned from the master, Mel. You’ve created a monster, so don’t be upset when you don’t like the end result.”

Melissa rubbed her hands together mischievously. “Why would I be upset? You’re my greatest creation yet. I feel so evil.”

Ned, Melissa’s boyfriend walked in a while later, looking dapper in a classic black tux with a white shirt, and plain black shoes. He froze in his tracks, and his eyes practically lit up as he took in the sight of Melissa who gazed at him seductively through lowered lashes.

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