THE GIRL [EP8]

“There are no rules
when it comes to love. I
just try to let love
surprise me because
you never know who
you’re going to fall in
love with. You never
know who’s going to
come into your life –
and for me, when I
picture the person I
want to end up with, I
don’t think about what
their career is, or what
they look like. I picture
the feeling I get when
I’m with them.” ―
Taylor Swift
Jade’s POV
“Wait! Please wait!” I
shouted at the top of
my lungs and ran
towards the bus stop.
But the bus driver didn’t
hear me, and closed the
door.
“No!” Panting,
trembling, breathless, I
groaned with
disappointment. The
bus left, when I was
just a few steps away
from the bus stop.
Now, I had to wait for
another ten to fifteen
minutes for the next
bus. I would be late for
work, which never ever
happened before. I felt
so tired last night that I
overslept. I was so
stupid, I forgot to set
the alarm clock.
I dug out my phone in
my bag to text Mrs.
Chang that I would be
late. I was scrolling my
phone’s contacts when
I came across Joseph’s
number. I stored his
number last night,
despite having no
intention of calling him.
Joseph Nevin was our
neighbor in New Jersey.
Blond, cute with
dimples, tall and lean. He
looked like the young
Brad Pitt. Aside from his
good looks, he was also
smart, very humble,
God-fearing and very
compassionate.
For me, he was the
kindest man I’d ever
met. All the qualities
that I wanted in a guy,
he had it all. He was
Perfect. My Prince
Charming, Knight in
Shining Armor, Dream
Boy and my Mr. Right.
I grew up having him as
my best friend, my
adviser, my protector
and…. My boyfriend,
well, he didn’t know
that, but in my mind, he
was. We even got
married in my dreams
and lived happily ever-
after, in a castle,
surrounded with infinite
love, peace and
happiness.
Yeah, I was crazy, so
crazy in love. I loved him
for years and I was
determined to have him
as my boyfriend, and
eventually, my future
husband. I wanted him
to be my first in
everything: first kiss,
first love, first
boyfriend and my first
sexual encounter.
But Joseph thought of
me as his little sister,
who used to tag along
behind him, wherever
he went. He was an
only child, and having
me with him always,
made him feel like an
older brother. That’s
what he said all the
time, maybe because of
our five year age gap.
But I wished we
wouldn’t remain in
sibling zone, forever.
The last time we saw
each other, was not
worth reminiscing. It
was very humiliating, on
my part. It happened
two years ago, I was
eighteen and just
graduated high school.
Dad’s health condition
was getting worse at
that time and his body
didn’t respond to the
medical treatment
anymore. We lost
everything, our car,
savings, including our
house. We were just
fortunate that the new
house owner allowed us
to stay for two weeks
to find a new place to
settle down. I was so
miserable, but I was
trying to be strong, for
my family, especially for
Dad. I wanted him to
fight for his life and not
to lose hope.
Joseph was there to
comfort me. He taught
me how to be strong,
to be brave and trust
everything to God. Since
he was, a nurse, he
explained to me the
nature of dad’s disease,
the symptoms, the
disease process,
medical procedure
performed, the
medications, and
everything that I didn’t
understand.
We were sitting on the
couch, talking, mostly
about dad. His arms
were around me and his
fingers ran through the
silkiness of my ginger
hair. He loved my hair
and never failed to
touch it every time we
were together. That’s
why, ‘Ginger’ had
always been his pet
name for me.