SO EAGER?

Steve woke up bright and early, excited about the day, he went to the kitchen of his small bungalow house and got busy making various dishes for the picnic ‘date’, he planned to take Carla on. He had an apron tied around his waist with the sleeve of his white shirt pulled up to his elbow and yes, he was in a corporate outfit today, a white shirt on gray suit pants. 

 He knew Carla liked ambitious and official-looking men, so he was opting for that look today, hopefully, she would be impressed with him enough to consider dating him. He prepared the various dishes diligently according to Carla’s taste, a taste he had quietly gotten accustomed to in the past seven years of befriending her grandma and practicing under her guidance.

During those seven years, what they majorly talked about most was Carla, her likes, her dislikes, and even her favorite foods. He took time learning how to make her favorite dishes and now when he makes them, they are almost similar to the one made by her grandma.

 The scene of him cooking diligently was what Jude saw when he came into the living room. “You seem so busy.” He said as he walked into the kitchen, Steve gave him a quick glance before ignoring him but Jude didn’t seem to mind.

 He walked into the kitchen domineeringly and took his time looking at all the dishes Steve had been busy making, “Do you think making all these would impress her. If she didn’t care about a man who could cook seven years ago, what makes you think she would like you now?” Jude asked as he stretched out his hand to pick up a boiled shrimp from one of the lunch boxes.

Steve raised his hand to smack Jude’s hand but missed, Jude smiled triumphantly, ignoring Steve’s glare as he put the shrimp in his mouth. He and Steve basically grew up together and have known each other since they were young. His parents were not as wealthy as Steve’s, they were just an average family until they became neighbors with Steve’s parents, when Steve’s family moved into this town and have been best friends since then. 

His mother and his father were also good friends of Steve’s parents and shortly after meeting their family, Steve’s parents helped them change their status by investing in their business and they built a mini company of their own. He, like Steve, has been into cars since he was young and thus came back here with him, as his business partner after college to build the ‘small’ car shed which now creates one of the best cars in the country but only a few people knew that their small car shed was worth that much.

He never liked Carla, simply because she rejected Steve seven years ago. In his eyes,  she was a woman who couldn’t recognize a diamond even though it was in front of her, and had tried all he could to make Steve give up, except he never went too far about it.  The victorious smile on his face didn’t last long as he soon spat out the shrimp, coughing continuously.

 He rushed to the fridge, threw it open, and grabbed a jug of cold milk which he downed quickly, when he calmed down and was finally able to speak, he turned to Steve who didn’t pay him any attention, looking at him in disbelief.

“What the hell is this? Is this food? Are you planning on finally exacting your revenge on her by killing her with such spicy food?”

“Carla loves heavy-tasting dishes and spicy shrimp are her favorite,” Steve replied without turning around as he neatly placed another prepared dish into another lunchbox.

“What the hell, is someone like her even human? People who like heavy-tasting food are heartless, so you should stay away from them.” Jude said as he drank more of the cold milk out of the jug.

Steve turned and glared at him, making a little startled. “I mean, they are really nice people.” He smiled changing his words awkwardly, only then did Steve turn back to the dishes.

Tsk, Jude clicked his tongue in his heart.  He won’t even let him talk bad about a heartless woman who looked down on him. Love was such a scary thing.

“Make sure to buy back my milk when you’re done drinking it,” Steve told him.

“You’re so stingy, I’m sure if it were Carla, you’d ask her to take back all the milk and everything in your house if she wanted but you treat your most loyal friend like this, it isn’t fair,” Jude complain as he paraded around the kitchen looking for which of the hot dishes he could steal. But from the look of things, there wasn’t a single one he could still taste from that is, if he didn’t want to be driven crazy by the spice in them.

“But honestly speaking, how are you supposed to eat this food when it tastes so bad? You don’t like spicy food either, yet you cook them so judiciously?” Jude asked as he came close to the island and stared greedily at the food he liked but couldn’t touch.

“I learned to eat it. I can manage.”

“You’ve been learning to eat such spicy food? Does she even know that you’re doing all this for her? Steve, I don’t know why you are so obsessed with this girl, there are so many pretty ladies in town and even in the city, better than her, who are willing to follow you back to this small town and settle down with you the moment you say a word.  Yet you choose to chase the one woman who doesn’t even see you? I just don’t understand.” Jude complained, Steve’s working hands paused but then he continued.

“If those women didn’t know my true identity, you think they would agree to come with me?”

“So what? Are you planning on telling her who you really are?” Jude asked. 

Of course, he knew the women he mentioned had to know of Steve’s true identity, especially now that the town had developed with Steve’s help. After all, was there any city girl who was willing to leave the city and follow a poor man back to the village? He just couldn’t swallow his breath seeing his friend suffer so much for a girl who doesn’t even see him.

“She wouldn’t accept me even if she knew who I really was,” Steve said casually and Jude raised a brow. “She always wanted to leave this small town and go to the big city, she wants to make a name for herself and wants a man with the same ambition.” 

“Isn’t that why you have been working so hard transforming Everheights in the past seven years? Do you think she would still be willing to stay here now that the town has transformed? I don’t think so.” Jude commented.

“It doesn’t matter, I would make her fall in love with me as I am. All I have, who I am, and what I have done here are just a bonus. I don’t plan to keep her here forever if that is not what she wants.” Steve replied and Jude sighed. 

If only his friend opened up about his identity to Carla, he was sure an ambitious woman like her would fall on her knees and lick his feet just like all the other women. All this talk about her wanting to leave here and not her being a gold digger was shit to him. Why his friend was reluctant to give it a try, he didn’t understand. Maybe this was his last struggle to ensure he doesn’t get disgusted by the woman he likes? He just didn’t understand, but he didn’t like Carla either. She was so pretentious.

“Stop scolding her in your head. She’s nothing like you think she is.” Steve said as he began to neatly arrange the lunch boxes into the picnic basket, he took off the apron and gave Jude a warning look before taking the basket.

“Lock my door when you leave.” He said as he left home, got into his Porsche, which he noticed Carla admired yesterday, and drove towards Carla’s home. He got there within five minutes, got out of the car, and knocked on the door. 

After a couple of successive knocks, the door opened and Grandma Joan looked at him in surprise, “Why are you here so early?”

“Early?” Steve was surprised, he looked at his wristwatch, it was only seven in the morning. He smiled awkwardly, “Well...” He trailed off.

 He couldn’t sleep all night out of excitement and when it was 5am he rose and began to prepare the dishes for the picnic. Who would have thought that by the time he got ready and arrived it was just seven.

“Tsk. Tsk. Tsk.” Grandma Joan clicked her tongue at him both gloating and pleased at Steve’s behavior. “Who amongst those who saw how patient you are with Carla, would know that you were so eager. Since you are so eager to pursue her, what were you doing waiting for so long?” 

Steve bowed his head but said nothing more, “Anyway, come in.” Grandma Joan sighed and offered him, in her opinion, he was such a pitiful man. 

Ha, her stupid granddaughter who couldn’t recognize a gem when she saw one. 

Grandma Joan suddenly got irritated with Carla and wanted to wake her up. “I’d go check if she’s awake yet.” She said as she made a move to go upstairs.

“No grandma, let her sleep, I can wait for her.”

“What nonsense you can wait. With your eagerness, are you sure you won’t wilt if you don’t see her in the next three hours?” Grandma scolded again before she began to climb the stairs to Carla’s room.