Smirt

When I woke up that morning at ten AM, Christofer was gone. After I noticed this, I groaned and realized that I had overslept and missed my shift at work. I contemplated calling the diner and rolled onto my side to grab my phone. I reached under the covers as I heard the sound of paper rustling. It was a folded sheet of paper with my name on it in familiar handwriting. Chris wrote me a note. I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, and there was only one way to find out. I unfolded the paper carefully, holding it at arms length.

Doll,

Sorry I had to leave so soon but I had to go to the airport.
My friend is in town, if you’re curious. She’d love to meet you too.
Anyway, you seemed really tired and I called the diner about your shift.
I know you wouldn’t call in sick, so, I did it for you.

-Chris.

P.S. Gavin said he’ll meet you for lunch at Little Italy.
P.P.S. Check your stereo before you go out to eat.

That was sweet of him to do. I ignored the jealous feeling that surfaced as I read the first few lines of the note. I showered, dressed myself, and re-read the note for clarification. ‘She’d love to meet you too.’ She. She. Who is ‘she’? The girl, Ellie, who called Chris last night? I was so engrossed in figuring out who Christofer’s friend was that I almost forgot about the stereo. My finger hovered over the ‘play’ button, and then pressed down on it.

There was the faint sound of static before someone cleared their throat. “Hellooo? Is this piece of shit workin---oh. It’s on.” Chris laughed. “Hey, Doll. Glad you got my message. I bet you’re wondering what this is. Well, let me explain.”

I sat down with my back pressed against the wall, biting my lip. What was this mixed tape about? I was a little concerned about its content.

“You didn’t know this about me, but I’m actually a musician. I’m not that famous yet. . . Hopefully when I do reach that point in my career though, I won’t turn into a total asshole. I like to think of myself as a humble kid.” He paused for a minute. “I had the inspiration for this song for a while actually, and whenever I make a record, this will be on it. It’s called She’s Got Style.”

I didn’t even realize the song was over until my phone vibrated. It was a good song, I had to admit that, and Chris wasn’t an awful singer. I wasn’t a huge fan of acoustic but he was the exception. “’Ello?” I was in a daze, and it was all because of a boy. It felt like high school all over again, even though I’d graduated a year ago.

“Where are you? I’ve been sitting here for twenty minutes!” Gavin whined, sighing dramatically. I imagined him with a frown on his face and a cute waiter three feet away at another table.

“I’m sorry, Gav,” I said apologetically, “I took longer than I thought in the shower.” It was a tiny white lie, nothing too bad. “I’ll be there soon, hon.”

“Damn right you will. Oh, and there’s no point in lying.” I could sense that Gavin was smirking. “I know why you’re still at home. You were listening to the tape he made for you.”

“How do you know about it?” My jaw dropped. “Did you listen to it? Oh my—”

“No, I didn’t listen to it. I’m not that dumb.”

“Thank god.”

“Yeah, I know, I’m a saint. Blah blah blah. Get your ass over here!”

As soon as he hung up on me, I was on my way to Little Italy. During the drive there, I also sent Chris a text message.