Classifieds

My life reads like the classifieds.
Pages of what's for sale, what’s on the auction block?
Attention bidders, its Lot 45,
He's got a decent voice; he's got that crooked smile.
Hold on, you haven't heard the best yet...
He writes good storylines, he's got those honest eyes.
So, take him home for just $9.95, he'll sing the songs you like
He'll keep you warm at night

Angela sighed as she sat down at her lonely kitchen table. Her day off would soon be filled with browsing the want ads looking for a second job. If there was any chance of having a good Christmas this year, she would need the extra money. Not only did she live alone, but she was alone. She recalled back two years, on her twenty first birthday, when her world was turned upside down. Her mother had insisted that it was just the flu, however when she went to the doctor, the familiar blood tests came back. As they ate dinner that fateful night, they got the call. Her mother’s retrograde leukemia had returned after it had seemed to disappear with all of the chemotherapy treatments. Less than a year later, after more treatments, she lost her mom and her best friend. Her father had only been in the picture once or twice and that was only when her parents had finally divorced, Angela was only three, and she saw her father again when her mother died. As the court ruled, her father, who had been abusive, did not have custody or even visiting rights after the divorce. The entire situation left Angela’s mother to raise her on her own without any help. Even though they had always had hard times, they were still extremely close, closer than many moms and daughters were. Thus, the impact of her mother’s death ages ago, made a big impact on Angela. But, that didn’t stop her from being the sweetest girl in town.

As she entered the bookstore where she worked, Angela sensed something different in the air. She couldn’t tell if it was the new coffee shop next door or the little Italian restaurant across the street. She could sense something big was about to happen, and boy it was. Today there were new customers in the bookstore. Angela hurriedly walked to the back of the store, dropped off her bag and waited by the most popular section. As she scanned the store, she noticed most people were by the new editions section which included Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. She groaned as she sullenly took her place next to the cashier which was being run by her close friend Nathan.

Now, she and Nathan were just friends even though he always attempted to ask her to dinner and as always, Angela politely said refused. Knowing that Nathan was taking care of the register for another half hour, she took a newspaper from the stack on the counter and began to browse the classifieds. She was hoping to get her cousin a puppy for Christmas, which would be quite expensive. When no such luck came to her in finding a dog, she threw the paper on the counter and leaned back in her chair. As she was about to close her eyes and relax, something caught her eye. Quickly, she pulled open the print again and looked closer.

“Need a guy? We’ve got one right here for you! He’s a good singer and has a great smile, although it might be a little crooked. He’s a great writer and he is the sweetest! Never fear, just pay $9.95 for him, plus shipping and handling.” Angela read aloud.

Nathan looked up from the latest book he was reading, to try to make sense of what Angela had just said.

“You’re not actually thinking about buying the poor guy are you?” he raised an eyebrow.

“And what if I am? My cousin, come to think of it, needs a guy in her life and she would just adore having this one around. He matches her perfectly, it’s not even funny.” Angela replied.

“Well, if you insist. Just don’t go falling for some guy you found in the want ads okay? Besides, you still owe me that date” Nathan grinned.

“The possibility of you getting me to go on a date is the same as the chance of you being able to boil water without burning it. Sorry, you know I don’t date” she smiled at him

“Well, yes I know that, but you’ve never exactly told me why you don’t date” he reasoned

“It’s never interested me, the whole falling in love thing. I mean, of course I want to get married someday but I’m scared that the same thing will happen to the marriage as what happened to when my parents were married. I’m afraid to give my heart to someone and then have it ripped out. I don’t see the point in something like that” she sighed.

“But there could be someone who won’t hurt you” Nathan suggested.

“That’s what my mom thought about my dad at first and look how that turned out” she exhaled then continued, “Listen, I really think you’re a nice guy, a great friend, but there’s just too much going on right now and I don’t know if I can cope with my fears.”

“You’ll try bungee jumping but you won’t try relationships, go figure.” Nathan sighed in defeat.

“Jumping off a plane at two thousand feet isn’t that scary once you’re up in the air and they push you off the plane.” she giggled as she started towards a customer who walked in.

As Angela walked away, she couldn’t stray from thinking about the boy in the ad. While Nathan watched her help the customer, he thought about how perfect she was.