Libby & John: First Time Ch. 03
Keywords: Ch., Time, John:, Libby, 03, First, &,
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No one knows about us except Wendy and now you," said Greg giving Aida a tight smile. Then Greg changed the subject seeing Aida does looked terrible.
"Beside looking terrible, you looked troubled too, want to tell me about it?" asked Greg genuinely feeling concern for Aida. "Was it because of the waters?" added Greg.
Aida shook her head.
Have they caught any suspect yet?" said Greg sounding a tinge more anxious.
Aida shook her head taking another sip of the hot coffee.
"Didn't Alex tell you anything?" Greg pressed on.
"He...don't discuss his business with me," said Aida looking at the coffee.
Greg weighed the situation before he asked Aida. "I need your help Aida," said Greg in all seriousness.
Aida looked up at him.
"I need to borrow some money from you...cash. But I am not sure when I can pay you back," said Greg.
Aida looked surprise now. She stared at Greg as though seeing him for the first time. He looked different. He looked much older and a little haggard.
"How much? Are you in some kind of a trouble yourself?" asked Aida.
"Half a million," said Greg looking at Aida with a kind of lost look.
"What?! Half a million and in cash? Why do you need so much money? You ARE in trouble, aren't you?" asked Aida rapidly looking worried now.
"Please Aida, I need the money urgently, just...I'll tell you another time," said Greg desperately.
"I don't have that kind of money...I could borrow from Alex though..." said Aida slowly.
"No, no, don't tell Alex or...or anyone for that matter. Is there any way you can raised that sum for me?" asked Greg more persistently.
"I suppose so, when do you need it?" said Aida uncertainly.
"ASAP, the sooner the better," said Greg.
"I'll see what I can do, would next week Friday be fine? No promises though. Whether I get it or not...I will still let you know," said Aida earnestly.
Greg put his right hand on Aida's as a gesture of thanks and found her hands were cold as ice.
"Your hands are cold, you ARE not feeling well," said Greg looking worried.
"I am fine Greg, just must be something I ate at the fund-raising event earlier," said Aida reassuringly but actually she really don't feel that well. Recently she had been feeling queasy and vomiting a lot.
"Here, let me warm you up, the coffee is getting cold," said Greg. He covered both her hands in his sharing his warmth with her. "Feel better?"
"Much better," said Aida honestly. This was the first time Greg had held both her hands together in his. His hands felt warm nothing sexual about it though. Just a warm friendly gesture. Then she noticed discoloration like a bruise on his left hand.
"Did you sleep with Alex yet?" Greg suddenly asked.
Aida was startled with Greg's unorthodox question. Usually it would be Wendy who would be asking her this sort of questions. She never expected Greg to ask her such an intimate question, well apart from the one he asked her about two and a three quarter months ago and that wasn't even an outright question. She played the question over her mind and decided to come clean with Greg. She nodded her head.
"When did it started?" Greg asked, his voice tight.
"When the last time I saw you...it was his birthday," said Aida.
"So you made yourself a birthday present for him?" asked Greg sounding bitter.
Aida looked at him. Did she detect a hint of jealousy in his voice? Greg refused to look at her. He looked at their cupped hands then looked away.
"Greg, it's not like what you think..." Aida tried to explain.
"So I suppose the whispers were true?" asked Greg.
"What whispers?" asked Aida curiously.
"That he was good in bed," said Greg, matter-of-factly
"Greg!" said Aida, shocked at Greg's words.
"I guess you can't wait to have a taste of his sexual prowess or did you fall in love with him then?" Greg asked persistently.
Suddenly Aida was furious with Greg. Why was he trying to interrogate her? Yeah he was a good friend but he has no right to question her like as though she was a criminal!
"What is it with you?! It...it just happen ok?" replied Aida angrily.
"So it was purely sex?" Greg asked of her refuse to give way.
"Greg, if you are going to make me feel bad because I went to bed with him, then I don't want to talk about it. I may be young but I am still an adult and at legal age. And I am made of flesh and blood! Sometimes...sometimes I do crave for physical touch too!" said Aida hotly. Angrily she pulled her hands off his refusing to look at him.
Greg realized he was overboard and immediately apologized. "I'm sorry Aida...I don't know what's gotten into me.
Aida did not reply to him immediately still feeling upset with his accusations. Instead what Greg said next startled her even further.
"I guess...I guess I fell in love with you myself..." said Greg looking at Aida smiling sheepishly with a tinge of sadness.
Aida could only stare at him, her eyes wide with surprise at his revelation.
"But I thought you said...you were a full..." replied Aida haltingly.
"I don't know, I thought I was too until I met you. Sometimes I was so confused. To tell you the truth I felt jealous when you said you were marrying Jefferson. That was why I was rather opposed to your marriage," said Greg resignedly.
"But that night when I went up to your place and ask if you have like me more than just a friend and you said..." said Aida, her sentence trailing off.
"I was confused. Also I have nothing to offer you. I can't help you with your problem and would you accept me for who I am if you have known then that I was gay? I have never had a sexual relationship or even kissed a woman before! I would not know how to treat you! But I do know I like you a lot so much so I think it's love which I still think it was and is," said Greg feeling extremely relief to be able to talk to her about his feeling yet frustrated at the same time. Frustrated because he had betrayed her trust in him. If only she had known what he had done to her, he doubt she will even accept him as a friend let alone his strange love.
Aida thought to herself, maybe if she had not met Alex? Maybe if she had not had gone to bed with Alex? She might have then accepted Greg as who he was? Would they be able share a pure love without having sex? And then knowing your 'lover' would be sharing his body with another man instead with you? And you can't confuse the two subjects. Love is love and sex is sex right? Can one have great sex but without love and vice versa? Now she begins to question herself. Does she love Alex because for the past two and a half months he could bring her to the highest passion or because she really love him as a man not the wealthy Alexander William Jefferson. Could she subsist without love?
"What are you thinking?" asked Greg.
"I don't know what to think Greg but I want to thank you for your honesty," said Aida sincerely.
The sun has set on them and the park was slowly getting empty of joggers and visitors. The air was getting colder. You could distinctly see the first evening star up in the sky. Greg reached out to touch her cheek, then tenderly held her hand in his. Aida does not feel anything like what she had felt for Alex. She only felt friendliness in Greg's touch but she would tremble in anticipation with Alex's touches. She was really in love with Alex. No doubt about it. But she knew it would be only a one-way street with Alex. Her one-way. Alex would not love her and now she was even more determined not to let herself to continue to fall in love with Alex and she had to get out of her feeling fast.
"Care to join me for dinner? Let's pretend it's a date, that I am not gay and you are not married," said Greg with a little humour in his sad voice.
"Sure why not, let's pretend. After all we are both actors and that was what we are good at. To be great pretenders," said Aida smilingly.
She linked her arm to Greg's as they got up and slowly walked across the park back onto the street. From a distance someone was snapping their pictures with a zoom lens. He would then pass along the pictures to Alex. He was paid to do his job so he must do a good job by reporting back to Alex about Mrs. Jefferson's daily activities. He then followed them on foot where they have gone into a cozy restaurant. From the outside window he could see them sitting there having their dinner and he took more shots. Satisfied he had more than enough shots he left the scene and drove back to Jefferson's Plaza to hand over his homework.
"To be continued..."
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Keywords: Ch., Time, John:, Libby, 03, First, &,