I hadn't heard from Nicole for a number of years. We dated over twenty years ago, and had kind of kept in touch over the years, but not properly. Our lives had gone in separate directions, I'd gotten married, she'd been in long term relationships. We had families. We'd grown up.
Recently out of the blue she got in touch with me. Nothing much, just a "Hey" on Facebook. We talked a bit, innocuous conversation, a bit of catching up, filling in some of the blanks of the past two decades.
Turned out we lived about two hours apart, closer than we had at some point, but not that close. We weren't going to run into each other at the shops.
It was good to catch up, reminisce online. We even suggested an actual catch up some time, but that probably wasn't going to happen. Two hours is a long way for a catch up.
But as it happened, I was away for a few days, in her neighbourhood. We'd been chatting and she'd been going through some shit. To top things off, she'd had a minor car accident. Nothing much, no injuries, just a shitty thing to happen on a shitty day at the end of a shitty week.
I decided fuck it, it's a good excuse for that catch up. I gave her a call to see if she wanted company.
She didn't.
I pressed, I'm doing nothing, you're having a shit time, why don't I come on over and we can catch up, have a laugh and that'll be that. She came around.
Nicole had had a break up that left her struggling financially. Her ex was a complete dick, the kind who couldn't just move on, instead had to ruin everyone in his path. The type you'd want to meet in a dark alley with an iron bar.
To make ends meet she did house sitting for some wealthy clients. She was sitting that night. Part of the reason she didn't want to catch up, it wouldn't be right to have a guest over at a client's house. But, it was a rare opportunity to catch up with an old friend, so it was okay to break the rules this one time.
I pulled up outside the house. I say house, it wasn't a house. It was as big as a hotel. Marble-like pillars out the front, all white build, nice grounds. The place was palatial compared to what I was used to. I went to the gate, I couldn't get to the door, and pushed the button. The intercom lit up, "Hello," it was Nicole's voice.
"Hey, it's me."
The gate buzzed open. I pushed the lock button on the key fob of my car and watched the indicator lights blink then went inside.
As I ventured through the gates I was overwhelmed by the sheer size of the place. It grew as I got closer, it was an awesome building, wildly over the top, opulence that nobody actually needed.
I walked up three marble steps to the door. I was about to knock when it opened. There was Nicole in the doorway to greet me.
"Hey, long time," she welcomed me.
"Yes indeed, a very long time," I replied, "I brought this." handing her a bottle of cheap wine I bought on the way.
We gave each other a quick, awkward hug.
"Wow, look at this place. It's ridiculous."
"I know right, these people I house sit for have way too much money!"
"Can I have a tour?"
"Sure." With that Nicole showed me around the house, all seven rooms, three living areas, four bathrooms,both kitchens and the pool. The place truly was ridiculous.
"Who lives here?" I asked.
"I can't tell you. It's like a confidentiality thing."
"They've obviously got a few dollars in the bank!"
"You think? Duh"
Sarcasm, I'd forgotten about that. Nicole had a strong sarcastic streak. It wasn't the most endearing quality, but it was ok.
We ended up in one of the living areas on a leather couch that you just sunk into. We chatted for a while until I had to mention, "Is it just me, or is it bloody hot?"
"Yeah, it's hot. It's summer time," was the sarcastic reply.
"Can we have air con in this place?" I asked.
"I don't like air con."
Hmmm, I wasn't feeling comfortable. Despite being in this opulent mansion, on this sumptious couch, I was feeling hot and sweaty, and a little irritable. I don't cope well with discomfort.
I stood up. "I'm hot. Is there a breeze outside?"
I went to the back door and opened it. I was met with a wall of heat and humidity, nothing pleasant about it. But, I could see the pool glistening in the soft light of the moon.
"Hey Nic, feel like a swim?"
"What? No, we can't!"
"Why not?"
"It's not my place, we can't just use everything."
"What's going to happen? We'll just sit in and relax. It won't ruin the pool if we get in it."
"Will you stop whinging about the heat if we do?" She asked.
"Well duh." She's not the only one who speaks sarcasm.
"Fine, just keep the noise down."
I ventured outside into the steamy evening air. As I did Nicole flicked on the lights, the pool lit up from within. Soft greens, blues and purples shimmered in the water. It looked so inviting. I stripped down to my underwear and waded in at the step. The water was warm, but cool enough to be refreshing. Just what I needed to feel some comfort on this oppressive night.
"Hey? Are you coming or what?" I called out.
"Give me a few minutes," was the reply from within the house.
I passed the time doing slow laps of the pool, enjoying the water as I floated weightless in it.
After a few minutes and a couple of laps Nicole appeared beside the pool. She had the bottle of wine I brought and two glasses in her hands. She'd gotten changed into a green one piece swim suit.
I hadn't seen her in twenty years. Back then she was slim and toned. Now, she'd filled out, had curves in all the right places. I was a little surprised. I don't know what I was expecting. I was just here for a catch up, to have a chat and maybe help out, but I felt a little something seeing her in her swimsuit.
"Come on in, the water's great," I called.
Nicole stepped into the pool, still carrying the wine.
"Feel like a drink?"
"Sure," I replied.
She poured herself and me a glass.
We sat on the step across from each other and talked and sipped. I wasn't a lover of wine, but a couple of glasses later it eased the night and the conversation flowed.
We must have talked for about an hour when the conversation turned more serious. Nicole told me about her ex, the shit he'd been putting her through. I listened as she unloaded some of the trauma he'd given her. It made me angry to hear what he'd done, just one of those people who need a high five, to the face, with a brick.
We'd had a good, light conversation, but now, about him, I could see her face drop, the tears start to well in her eyes. I moved across the step to her side and put an arm around her. As I did, she started to properly cry.
I didn't know what to do. This woman was almost a stranger, albeit one I'd known for twenty years, crying in my arms. I just sat there and rubbed her shoulder as she let it out, doing my best to console her.
After a minute or two she stopped. It was sudden, almost like a switch had been flicked.
"Sorry, you weren't meant to see that," she told me.
"You obviously have a lot going on, are you okay?"
"I'm fine," was her dismissive reply.
Now I'm usually not the type to pry too much, or even get involved in other people's shit, but here I was, about to get involved. I slid off the step from beside her and stood directly in front of her and looked her in the eyes.
"You've just unloaded about your asshole ex and burst into tears when I gave you a small hug. I know you're not fine."
I wasn't expecting what came next.
She slid across the step toward me and positioned herself so that each of her knees was on either side of me. She looked me in the eye, "I'm fine."
