Ooo

     The sound of her camera capturing the swaying trees in the park soothed Roddrick. Bringing her hands to her lap, she let out a staggered sigh as she watched life go on around her. There were children running amuck, joggers pounding their feet against the pavement as they weaved in and out of those out for afternoon strolls.  She had yet to rid her mind of the confrontation between her and Rockelle. Couldn't think of anything other than how foolish and brainwashed her mother had to have been to be so willingly accepting of their former abuser.

   Shit, there were some days when Roddrick would flinch if she heard a voice that sounded like his. She guessed that no matter how many times she said he no longer played a part in her life, she was wrong.

   "Roddrick!" Looking around the park, Roddrick searched the faces that passed her by, trying to find the one who had called her. When she was met with nothing but the chatter of others she shook her head wondering if she had imagined it.

    "I knew that was you..." Roddrick fumbled with her camera as someone rushed up from behind her, wrapping their arms around her midsection as she teetered atop the back of the bench she was perched on. Thankfully they had a tight grip on her; otherwise she would have gone flying to the ground.

    Glancing at the reddened hands before her, Roddrick saw a nice sized diamond ring on the left hand.

    "Lauren? What are you doing here?" Surprise laced her voice as the other woman circled around, grabbing Roddrick's hands in hers as she delivered a swift kiss to her cheek.

    "I had to come and work off all of the food I've been eating. Talton doesn't seem to understand what, no thanks I'm full, means." Lauren patted her flat stomach as she grinned up at the other woman. Coming down from the bench, they both took a seat beside each other.

  " I'm guessing that's all a part of the honeymoon." She joked, patting her knee." I never got the chance to talk to you after the wedding. To see how everything was going, but I know for sure you would have been too busy anyway."

   "Oh, God yes! I knew that tying yourself to one person takes a lot of give and take...but it's just so much work. Not good for my skin some days." Dramatically crossing her legs, Lauren rolled her eyes before smirking." I love every minute of it."

    "I know I've said this a thousand times, but I'm so happy for you." Roddrick smiled softly as the other woman nodded in appreciation.

   "Now, enough about me. Let's get to you and my baby brother. What the hell is going on between you two?" Turning in her place, Lauren pointed a still finger in Roddrick's direction as she stared back in confusion from her words.

    "What brother?"

     "Don't play dumb with me." Lauren narrowed her eyes." Nearly every word that comes out of his mouth has to do with you."

    Laughing out of jest, Roddrick shook her head." I have absolutely no idea what you're even talking about. I didn't even know you had a brother...how did that fail to come up in conversation?" She shot back another accusatory question.

    Lauren shifted with a look of consternation, trying to figure out why herself. When she and Roddrick had become friends, Milo had basically fallen off the face of the earth, only showing up when he needed help. It hit her that she had been too embarrassed of her brother's downfall to ever mention him to those closest to her.

   "That's beside the point. I'm telling you now at least." She mumbled

    "Uh, yeah. After the fact."

   "I must have been busy..." A punch in her arm drew a yelp from Lauren as Roddrick's face sneered up.

   "Milo must have a great imagination then. He talks about you like he knows you when obviously you have no clue he exists. Man, should I be concerned? He might kidnap you and put you in the basement one day.."

   "What's your brother's name?" Roddrick tuned out to Lauren's rambling after hearing the name she spoke.

    "Milo. I swear . I can't believe he's still a creep. He was even asking about you after the wedding." Lauren nonchalantly spoke as Roddrick's mind flung itself around in a meltdown.

   "What did he say about me?" She stiffly turned, face pale as she waited for the worst.

   "Just asking about you all of the time. Asking if I've talked to you, have your number-just weird things." Lauren looked back at Roddrick now, still not sure why her brother seemed so obsessed with her. " And you're certain that you don't know him? At all?"

    Roddrick swallowed the lump in her throat as she noticed the alert look on Lauren's face. Her body language became much tenser as she sat straight. "No, I don't. Why are you looking like that?"

   Lauren's mind began to race. She started to recount all of the things Milo had said and done. The things she had dismissed and ignored.  Tightening her fist, she worried that she would have to say something to their mother.

   His infatuation with Roddrick began to seem all too similar to the way he was lost within the last woman who had torn him apart. Before they all knew it, he'd be strung out again roaming the city.

    Lauren berated herself for jumping to conclusions. For trying to think of ways to control Milo again as if he hadn't dealt enough with meddling on his family's behalf. Albeit, some of it necessary.

 "I think I better finish this jog before my husband sends out an amber alert for me." Quickly standing, Lauren brought Roddrick to her feet as well.

   "Be around where I can get in contact with you. I get lonely some days, you know?" Before Roddrick could get out a proper goodbye, Lauren was already gone, her back moving further away the longer she stood there staring after her.

    Roughly packing her things, Roddrick began to roll her bike down the path, the park losing its appeal all of a sudden. She would travel the rest of the day looking for someplace where issues that came to interrupt her life faded away if she had to.

   But instead she found herself trudging back home, holing up in Roderica's room with Tupperware of leftovers by her side, falling asleep only to be awoken by her alarm for work hours later.

   Standing now, awaiting the elderly couple to decide on which dish wouldn't upset the husband's acid reflux, Roddrick held in her unusual agitation as she gripped her writing pad close to her body.

   "Would you like some more time to decide, ma'am?" She finally interrupted their heated debate.

    "I want the sirloin, Bridget."

    "Howard, you know how you get when you eat red meat! I am not staying up all night with you again."

    "I refuse to eat fish. I came out to have a steak and damn it that's what I'll have."

     "Well then you can go to someone else who can be your nurse when you get sick."

     Holding back a sigh, Roddrick turned around, feeling a prickly sensation rise on the back of her neck.

    Half of her hoped that she would see the dimpled face of Milo staring from across the room, waiting for her to notice him. When Roddrick caught sight of a familiar older woman, her heart came to a standstill. She watched as she was ushered along by a younger man towards a table, even pulling out a seat for her.

   Holding her breath, Roddrick watched with trepidation as the man finally took his own seat across from the woman. When his face lifted with a brilliant smile, Roddrick felt as if she would drop to her knees right there and crawl out of the restaurant.

    Of all of the places and times to be in the same vicinity as the man who had broken her heart, it had to be now.

   "Excuse me, were you not listening?" Looking back to her table with the dreadful feeling of panic, Roddrick nodded to the woman with glasses on the bridge of her nose. She sloppily jotted down the few words she heard, checking over her shoulder every few seconds to see if she had been spotted by Brian. She caught him in mid laugh, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he was in her place of work.

   Realizing that he and his mother were seated in her section, Roddrick cursed under her breath.

    " And make sure to specify that I do not want any salt on that, it does awful things to me, and I just couldn't imagine eating it..."

    "I'll be back with your order." Fumbling with the menus on the table, Roddrick sped towards another server, asking a question that she already knew the answer to.

    "Hey." She whispered, catching the other waiter before he disappeared." That's me over there?"

    Looking between her and the table she indicated with a jerk of the neck, he scoffed.

    "Well who else's would it be?" Pushing past the swinging doors into the kitchen, he left her ready to melt into a puddle of nothing.

    Dropping off her ticket, Roddrick began to count backwards from ten as she slowly began to approach Brian's table.

  9

   What the fuck.

8

    How in the fuck.

Her heart began to beat faster as the numbers dwindled down.

   3

   Roddrick found herself staring right into Brian's deep brown eyes. His nearly a mirror of what shock she had in her own.

   His mouth opened agape. Eyes bulged out of their sockets as he watched her come to a stop just inches away from their table. He leaned back into his seat, eyes darting everywhere but Roddrick's face. If she stared hard enough, she could see his pores opening and the barrage of sweat on its way.

    Roddrick's mind was blank as her lips struggled to form words.

    "Well, what a pleasant surprise." Blinking rapidly, Roddrick's eyes followed the sound of Carol Ross's voice to the pettily round face staring up at her in astonishment.

   "Good evening, Mrs. Ross. Can I get you a drink to start you off?" Roddrick felt her hand tremble as she tried her damndest to not acknowledge the elephant in the room.

   "My, do you not recognize me? It's been so long since I've seen you. You're still so beautiful."

    Before she knew it, Roddrick was captured between Carol's strong bubble like arms before she could protest. She jumped at the contact, knowing that she surprised them both as Carol pulled away, straightening her blouse as she smiled despite the awkward meeting.

   "Mom..." Brian's voice was soft and broken as he called to his mother.

    "Oh, I'm sorry."Taking her seat, Carol folded her hands on the table." It's just that...I am happy to see you. This is just such a wonderful surprise."

   "Likewise." Roddrick nodded curtly. Taking a chance, she cut her eyes at Brian watching his profile as his chin fell towards his chest. His index finger and thumb rubbed at the bridge of his nose as he took a deep breath that rattled his chest.

    Carol watched as the two squirmed in the tension filled moment. "Brian?" She called his name low enough to where Roddrick had to strain to hear it. When her son finally looked back up, a grimace could be seen hiding within his features as his eyes bypassed his mother's and went straight to Roddrick's.

   "Hey, Rodd. I-I didn't know you still worked here." His voice was raspy as he attempted to strike up friendly conversation. As if the last time they had spoken Roddrick hadn't been threatening to cut off his dick whilst dragging one of the many women he had slept with down the front steps of their apartment naked.

   "What would you like to drink?" Each word came out sharp, the inside of her cheek caught in between her teeth as she resisted the temptation of anger. In her head, she began counting down again. The look of shame in Brian's eyes made it difficult to justify shoving her pen in his face. After all of this time, she had imagined that her first encounter with Brian post-breakup would involve his cocky grin and presumptuous thinking that he could somehow charm her right back to where they had started.

    Now, she could see that she had been way off the mark. He looked at her with guilt, and even a silent plead. Before, that same look was able to coerce Roddrick into believing none of the rumors that had always floated around their relationship. That same look had left her a gullible fool before, and she refused to let it wreak the same havoc now.

    Hardening her stance, Roddrick drained any emotion from her face, not wanting him to know that he was knocking at the barriers she had built to keep any part of him out.

   "Should I leave you to decide then?"

     Carol had been fidgeting in her seat as if she were going to explode if she didn't speak. Nearly bursting at the seams, she grabbed for Roddrick's elbow.

   "I know this isn't the time or place, but Roddrick...sweetie...."

   "Water. For both of us, please." Brian's voice rose as he cut off his mother from spilling whatever nonsense she had in mind. Both women turned to him, his face caved in with a stern stare as his eyes remained on Carol.

    It was as if the roles had been reversed; Carol seemed like the child who had spoken out of turn as she shrank away from the table as if she was receiving a scolding. Roddrick's natural curiosity behind their actions had to be slapped back down before she got too invested in whatever drama they had brought with them.

       Without a word, Roddrick nodded as she backed away from the table. Once she was a good distance away, she was able to finally let out the breath she had been holding; dizziness hitting her as oxygen flowed throughout her head once again.

oOo

     She had done her best to avoid them all night.

     Purposely coming back as few times as possible, not even mindful of the horrible service she was giving them. At that point, she could care less about a tip if it meant getting them out of the restaurant faster.

    Looking at her watch, Roddrick figured she should go in for one last time before they left. Throughout her shift, she had tried avoiding eye contact with the table to avail as it seemed wherever she look, her gaze always met Brian or Carol's. She had watched Carol speak in hushed and hurried tones to an uptight Brian.

    "Is there anything else I can get for you all tonight?" Standing with her hands clasped before her, Roddrick gave her best smile as she waited for a response.

   "I don't suppose you would want any desert?" Carol asked, looking towards her son. With a nod, he declined. "Come on sweetheart, not even on your birthday?" Carol wasn't sly in her attempt to get some kind of remorse from Roddrick as she slipped in the reasoning behind their outing that night.

    Going through her mental calendar, Roddrick raised an eyebrow. It in fact was his birthday. Twenty-seventh to be exact. Shaking her head, Roddrick told herself not to care about what day it was and what it meant for Brian.

    That wasn't of any of her concern any more.

    "We're done here. Could you bring us the check?" Brian's fingers tapped lightly on the table, Roddrick's eyes drifting down to them grunting in agreement as she pursed her lips. Reaching across, she picked up the dishes, clearing the table completely.

   Bringing back the black checkbook, she disappeared around the corner, able to see them just barely as they placed bills inside of the cover. Timing her return, she  quickly moved, giving them their receipt without a word of goodbye as she ignored Carol's goodbye.

   Looking at the clock, she knew it was time for her to go as well.

   She was grateful for her shift being over as she headed into the back, clocking out and grabbing her belongings. Roddrick nearly ran out, barely saying anything to the employees that were left as she headed towards her bike.

   Throwing her leg over the seat, she had barely pushed off from the side of the building before she came to a halt, avoiding a collision with Carol as she stood in front of her.

    "Mrs. Ross ..."

   Roddrick sat wearily as the older woman seemed at a loss for words.

    "Is it okay if I speak to you?" Carol grasped her hands together, giving Roddrick no way to decline as she came closer, already speaking again." Brian, he hasn't always made the best decisions, I know that. He's my son and I've seen the foolish mistakes he has made."

   "I'm sorry, Mrs.Ross, I don't understand what you're trying to say right now." Shaking her head, Roddrick's brows drew together.

     "He's been going through it lately, Roddrick. You two, you were such good friends for so many years. You loved each other-"

   "Mrs. Ross-"

   " I just think it would be a good idea for you to reconnect. Tell me that all of those years aren't lost and forgotten. Roddrick, I think it would do you both some good."

    "Anything that once existed between Brian and I is where we left it. None of that is a part of my life now."

   "You can't just erase things like that." Carol stepped forward, a hand clasped around Roddrick's forearm before she jerked it away.

    "Not to be rude, Mrs. Ross. I respect you, and always have. But I don't appreciate you stirring up the mess your son left behind." Her voice was stern as she stared Carol down, hoping that she got the point.

  " I think it's best that we leave this conversation at that."

  "Roddrick-"

    "Good night and good bye Mrs. Ross." Cutting her off, Roddrick began to ride past her. The sound of her kitten heels following her down the sidewalk drew a sigh of irritation from Roddrick as she came to a stop against her better judgment.

   "Mrs. Ross. Please!"

    "He's been through a lot since you two were together. It's really gotten to him, and I've never seen my boy this way before. You were always the one to get through to him."

   Roddrick's hands gripped her handlebars tight as the sincerity in Carol's voice pulled at her.

   "You were his friend. A true friend." Carol spoke softer," He could really use that right now."

   Sitting in silence for what felt like ages, Roddrick sucked at her teeth. She wondered what that low-life Brian was putting his mother up to by coming to talk to her.

  Be his friend?

   Help him out in a time of need?

  She had to have been out of her mind.

   "That is not of any of my concern." She replied finally as headlights approached from the parking lot towards her.

   "Not my problem. Anymore."

   With a grunt of disbelief, Roddrick rode away, but not before eyeing Brian in the passenger seat as she passed him by.

   New car, clean clothes, nice haircut. It seemed that Brian was doing well, and not one sign of this troubled man his mother was trying to paint him as.

   She didn't have the time or the mental capacity to worry about them right now.

   No time at all to let her past meet her present and affect her future.