Emilio wanted to ignore the knock on his front door. Considering how it took him all day to try and forget the rejection, he just wanted to be alone for the rest of the evening.
Three more knocks on the door and a voice from the other side murmured, "Emilio? It's me, Leslie. I want to talk."
Emilio, a nineteen-year-old Argentinian man, stayed seated on his recliner. The last person he wanted to talk to was Leslie. Even if he shared the same origin of their desolation, Emilio still didn't want to deal with the one person who used to be his adversary.
Leslie knocked again. "Come on, I know you're in there!"
Frustrated, Emilio got up from his recliner and opened the front door. Leslie stood a few feet in front of him. The slim nineteen-year-old man had short blond hair, and at this moment, he wore a dark green t-shirt and brown pants. The two of them just stared at each other. Emilio tried to express his resentment, but he just couldn't. He felt too heartbroken to even say a few choice words.
Leslie seemed to have understood his silence. "I know how you feel. She did the same thing to me."
"Yeah, I've noticed."
Even if Leslie held a blank expression on his face, Emilio could still sense a wholesome anguish that clutched his heart and broke his spirit.
"Would you like to come in?"
Leslie nodded. "Sure, why not?"
Emilio let him inside his apartment. Leslie began to examine the small but comfortable surroundings. As he shot brief glimpses at the furniture in the living room, Emilio asked, "So how did Vivian break the news to you?"
"She didn't. I saw her with her new boyfriend this afternoon. Why she didn't even tell me about him, I'll never know."
"I guess she didn't think we were that important anymore."
Leslie sighed. "How long has it been?"
"Three weeks."
Even if they never met until then, Emilio and Leslie had already acknowledged their newly formed rivalry exactly three weeks ago. For the past twenty days, they tried to win the heart of the same young woman they fell head over heels for. At different times, they took her to the movies and took her out to dinner. Emilio took it further by taking her to see her favorite pop artist live in concert. The music didn't exactly please him, but it did make her feel content. At one point, both Emilio and Leslie shared a few angry words right in front of Vivian. She left right before things went a little sour. The competition seemed fierce, but now that Vivian had found herself an actual boyfriend, the entire situation appeared absurd.
Emilio added, "Did you see how rich the guy is?"
"Yeah, I saw his Lamborghini. Do you know anyone who owns one here in San Diego?"
"I don't, and I don't think I ever will. We're both peasants when compared to that guy."
Leslie had his eyes on the sofa and recliner. "I know. It stinks. At least we still have our looks."
Emilio agreed. With his shaggy shoulder-length hair, a complete lack of facial hair, and an overall thin physique, he liked to believe that women of all kinds would be swooning at the sight of him in an instant.
Leslie slowly slid his fingers across the black leather recliner. "You know, you have a really nice place here."
"Thanks."
Leslie's little smile seemed to have an effect on Emilio, who kept his gaze on the dazzling gold hue of the hair above his forehead. It kept his thoughts of Vivian's long black hair under functional neglect. Leslie took a few slow steps toward the bookshelves in the corner. Emilio couldn't help but acquire his self-awareness as his adversary gave off a debonair manner with his careful stride. Leslie seemed like a gentleman while perusing the titles of contemporary novels arranged on the shelves.
"I see you're a fan of detective novels. I am, too."
"It's good to know that we at least share a common interest. Vivian never liked these types of stories."
"She told me that, too. I once saw her own collection, and it was nothing but romance and some of that vampire crap."
"I would never get into that sort of stuff."
"Me, neither."
An abrupt moment of silence took place when Emilio and Leslie stared at each other. For some odd reason, Emilio underwent a trance-like state, standing absolutely still when gazing into the pair of blue eyes. He couldn't understand this certain feeling. Perhaps their connection only had something to do with the rejection of the same young woman. Sharing the same despair would be reasonable, but there was something else that Emilio couldn't fathom. It was as if he saw something in Leslie that made him feel more aroused.
Leslie quickly looked away. "I bet she didn't like the movies we saw when visiting the theater together."
"Let me guess. She wanted to see the chick flicks."
Leslie nodded. "I wish I brought my earphones."