Whispering Wishes (11 page)

It all sounds really reasonable, and it would allow me to take my time and find something really great.
“How much would you need me to pay you in rent?” When he tells me the amount - well that pretty much seals the deal. It’s less than I was paying for my house, so I can even continue to save money and get a great down payment ready for a place of my own.

“So what do you say?
I mean, you said yourself… you have nowhere else to go.”

I look at his face.
His smile is big and he’s watching me in anticipation. “How soon could I move in?”

“Well you have to be out in two weeks you said, right?”

“Right.”

“Well, then, I will help you move stuff into my house in a couple weeks.
I have some buddies with a truck we can use. Do you need some help packing too?”

“No, I’m sure my girlfriends can help with that.”

“Wow, that means you have some great girlfriends. Usually people tend to be ‘busy’ when it comes to helping someone pack and move.”

“Oh
, don’t be fooled. I’ll likely have to bribe them with chocolate and wine.”

“Ah, well I like chocolate and wine
, too, you know. So if you can use some extra hands, let me know and I’d be happy to help.” A mischievous look crosses his face and he runs his hand over his head. “Besides, I bet I would get to know you even better by seeing all of your stuff. I volunteer to pack up your panty drawer.”

“Did you just say panties?”

He grins and my eyes are drawn to his lips and I wonder for just a moment what it would be like to kiss them. “Yes, yes I did. I’m not ashamed. I’m a man’s man. I can even rock the color pink.”

This really isn’t a good idea.
Not a good idea at all. “Okay. Yes.” Oh shit. The devil on my shoulder made me do it.

“Yeah?
You’ll move in?” His face is lit up in his excitement and he claps his hands and rubs them together. Damn, he’s hot. This isn’t good at all.

“Yes,” I say again
. “Let’s do this.”

Obviously, I am thinking with my vagina.

After Wes and
I make arrangements, we exchange phones and program in each other’s numbers. Then I head out. I elect to head over to Mischa’s shop. I need to run this decision by her and get her opinion. I wonder if she will think I've made a stupid decision and try to talk me out of it. I don't know if I want her to or not.

The string of bells hanging from the doorknob creates the jingles I've become accustomed to announcing my entrance
. Mischa looks over at me immediately and smiles. I wave upon seeing that she’s on the phone. “I know. Yes, I got those in too, aren’t they great? Are they selling for you really well, because I can’t keep them in stock.” She must be talking to her Aunt Marianna, who has a metaphysical store in Portland. Mischa used to visit it a lot with her mom when she was younger. She fell in love with it and credits her aunt for the lifestyle she quickly adopted and for her love of all things New Age. I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting her aunt, but I would really like to since Mischa adores her. I bet it would be fun to see the two of them together.
Or a little scary
, I think as I giggle to myself.

Watching Mischa pace while she talks, I can't help but check out her attire.
She’s wearing a head to toe tie-dye dress today that while not overtly large or shapeless, hides her lovely shape. Her feet are bare, which is not atypical; a soft, melodious jingle resonates with every movement, conveying that she's wearing lots of anklets and bracelets. Her hair is braided on the sides and wrapped around the back of her head, a lovely glittery scarf adorns her and when her steps are more quick, the light, wispy material trails out behind her. She walks by me on one of her passes and I catch her scent. She’s wearing a wonderful mix of oils today. I catch notes of jasmine, maybe, with hints of freesia and vanilla, I think.

“Really?
Is she a big help? I would like to hire someone, too,” Mischa says while peeking over at me. “Was it easy to train her? That’s good. How does she get along with the customers? Wow, she sounds great, I’m happy you found someone. Well I’m going to let you go, Aspen just walked in. Okay… I’ll tell her. Love you too. Bye.” She turns to hang up the phone. “Aunt Marianna says hi.”

“I figured that’s who you were talking to.
She’s doing well?”

“Yes, it sounds like it.
She just hired someone at the store and it sounds like it has been a huge help for her. Gives her more time to attend to the details and keep better balance”

“That’s great.”

“Yeah, it is. So what’s up? To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?”

“Is that sarcasm?
Aren’t you glad to see me?”

“Always, you know that.
I’m just teasing you.”

“Well
, even though I should be here to yell at you for that stupid list you had me make and all the havoc that telling the universe what I wanted has brought me, I’m actually here for other reasons.”

She sighs loudly
. “Here we again with the list.”

“Well
, not right now, but we will definitely have to talk about that later.”

“Good, because when we do, I have a few things to say to you about that.”

“Alright, fair enough. So, you will never believe what happened now.”

“More?
What have I missed since I saw you last? I
just
saw you for goodness sakes.”

I proceed to tell Mischa about the strange interview I had, the chicken suit, dancing on the corner
, and Wes seeing me. By the time I’ve finished, Mischa is laughing so hard, her body is shaking and she’s bent over at the waist with her hands grabbing her side. Tears are moving down her cheeks, which she tries to wipe away without me seeing, but I do.

“Stop laughing,” but a giggle escapes me as well when I try to scold her because it really is freaking unbelievable.

“So, is that what happened to your face?” And her inquiry sounds more like teasing than concern.

“Aw, you noticed that did you?”

“Of course. I figured you would bring it up eventually...it's not like I wouldn't notice.” And she laughs yet again.

“Yes, well apparently the beak of my mask didn’t help cover the rest of my face very well because as you can see, I have a raging sunburn outlining where the mask was.”

“That clucks – I mean sucks, but we can cover it up with a little bit of bronzer.” I don’t know if I've heard her this ornery before.

“Really?
I don’t know why I didn’t think of that,” I say, trying to ignore her jokes.

She walks over and takes some bronzer from the organic line she sells in the store.
“Sorry, I don’t have anything with more of a yellow undertone.” Then she tries to be more serious. “So, are you going to give them back your chicken suit and finally come work with me?”

“No… I have another job lined up already….”

“You do? Do tell!”

I reply, but am wondering if that was sarcasm again in her voice, but her face does not reveal it exactly.
“Well, Wes talked to his boss and they decided to hire another hostess at D’Vine, so I’m going to work there until I find something else.”

“Okay, are you sure?
I mean that sounds great and everything, but are you sure you don’t want to work here?”

“Yes, I’m sure Mischa.
I just can’t work here.”

Is that a moment of hurt or disappointment that crosses her face? Perhaps not as her expression assumes its normal appearance before the thought can get through my brain.

“Okay, but will you please finally tell me why?
I mean do you find all this,” she gestures to the store around her, “so awful? And if it isn’t that, then why are so determined not to? What are you are so worried about?”

She knows me way too well
; I guess that’s why she’s my best friend. “I’m a little scared. What if I do something wrong? What if I make a mistake? Or what if I just don't work out and you have to fire me? Nothing is worth losing my friendship with you.”

“Aspen, come on!
You know me way better than that. I would never get mad at you for a stupid mistake, nor am I expecting you to come and work here for the rest of your life. I know this isn’t your lifelong dream, okay? I also know this would be temporary and I’m fine with that.”

“You are?”

“Absolutely.
The thing is, believe it or not, my shop does pretty damn well. I generate a strong bottom line – more than enough revenue to pay you a reasonable salary. What I really need is someone to help me be able to have a semblance of a life outside of the store. I mean, it’s mine and I can close it whenever I want, but what I mean is there are times when I would like to go to the doctor in the morning or run an errand or spend some time doing something outside of the store and I can’t leave or have to be here to open up and manage it. To have someone else that I trust here would be invaluable to me for a little while.”

“Well when you put it like that, I don’t feel like I can say
 no, but I already told Wes I would be interested in the job at the bar.”

“How would you feel about working here just a few hours a week around your schedule there?

“I’d be happy to do that.
Especially since I know it would help you out.”

“It really would, at least until I can build enough of a cushion or grow the business enough to hire some other employees.
So, what do you say?”

“I say I can’t wait to quit the chicken suit job.
I’m already trying to come up with fun and inventive ways I could quit.”

Mischa laughs
. “That’s my girl. Now, when can you start?”

“Well
, funny you should ask. I got kicked out of my house, so I’m going to need to work my schedule around packing, moving, and of course working at the bar, too.”

“Excuse me, back up.
Kicked out of your house? What happened?”

I tell her about the call from the landlord and the shitty position I’m in.

“What are your plans?
You’re more than welcome to move into my place if you need to. I know it isn’t very big, but we can make it work.”

Not very big is an understatement.
With a cozy two bedroom condo, the place is perfect for her and she loves it, but it would feel very small with me there, too. While she won’t admit it, the last thing she needs is me moving into her space and helping out at the store. Even I would get sick of myself. “Well actually that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I already have another place lined up.”

“Really?
Well don’t keep me in suspense…”

I laugh nervously
. “Okay, but promise you won’t freak out.”

“Freak out?
Why would I freak out? Besides, it really wouldn’t do well for a person trying to sell things that help you be calm and relaxing to freak out over anything.”

“Good point,” I take a deep breath and blurt fast and loud, “Wesaskedmetomoveinwithhim.”

“What was that?” she asks with a giggle.

I say much more slowly this time, “Wes. Asked. Me. To. Move. In. With. Him.”

“Wes? The cute guy that works at D’Vine?”

“That’s the one.”

“I didn’t know you talked to him let alone had a relationship that would support this kind of decision. How do I not know this?”

“Well
, we’ve kind of become friends. No other relationship, by the way. I went there to have a glass of wine and enjoy the uplifting ambience while I was looking at the classifieds for apartments. He saw me and said he had a perfect idea and the next thing I know he was suggesting that I move in with him. He said he has a big house with plenty of space and a large spare bedroom. I guess he was already thinking about renting out a room for some extra money, so the more he talked and I thought about it, it seemed like a possibility. By the time he asked me if I would be interested, I thought I might be.”

“Holy hell.
And you said yes.”

“No,
I
didn’t say yes. My
vagina
said yes.”

Mischa makes a chocking sound at my words
. “Excuse me?”

“I said—”

“I heard what you said! What do you mean by that?”

“It means, I think I like him.”

“You like him?”

“Yes, he’s cute.
Okay, more than cute. His eyes are expressive and the prettiest color of green. When he smiles, I stare at his lips and imagine what it would be like to kiss him and to tell you the truth; I seriously wonder what he looks like underneath that white button down shirt he wears. I’d wager that he’s got a six pack going on.”

“He’s ‘cute’ and you’d place a ‘wager’?”

“Why do you keep repeating everything I say?”

“I’m just extremely surprised.”

“You think I made a mistake don’t you?”

“No. Yes. No. Well, it isn’t that exactly, it’s just that I’m surprised you said yes. It’s extremely unlike you.”

“I know, but then I thought, if I looked for a roommate or a room or something somewhere, I would live with someone I don’t know
, too. At least I know Wes. A little.” I throw up my hands and sigh, “Scratch that. Maybe I need you to talk me out of it.”

Mischa stares at me for a moment like she’s thinking really hard and then out of nowhere a smile starts curling at the corners of her mouth
. “You know what? I think it’s a great idea.”

“What?
That is
not
what I expected you would tell me.”

“Why not?”

“Because
that
is not like
you
.”

She laughs
. “Well fair enough, but you know, why the hell not? What have you got to lose?”

“Well that’s exactly what I was thinking.
Like you, he said that it could just be temporary until I find the house or other living arrangements that suit me better. Plus, it will also give me time to find a place I really want instead of feeling rushed into a decision. The thought of moving twice makes me want to throw up, but I guess that’s okay. Also, the price he gave me for rent is amazing.”