The next three days were pure hell for Andrea. She just wanted to reach out and hug Stix but Stix avoided her at every turn. They did a corporate meeting Friday night, two weddings Saturday and a third Sunday afternoon. She looked for opportunities to tell Stix she was sorry but never had the chance. Stix was on the floor early and left without going to the locker room.
Andrea was desperate now. Her plan was to corner Stix in the locker room and ask/beg for a minute to explain herself. It was Sunday and she wouldn't see Stix for a few days and she wanted to try to clear the air with her. She noticed Stix held back from going to the locker room with everyone else so she took her time getting changed. Maria and Janet had already left and Gloria was just taking her time. Andrea really didn't want to get into a discussion with Stix in front of Gloria but she had to take the opportunity.
A few minutes later Stix walked into the locker room, turned the corner and saw Andrea standing by her locker. It looked for a minute as if Stix had decided to turn and walk away but, instead, she walked over to her locker and grabber her belongings. Andrea knew she had to act. She gently put her hand on Stix's shoulder.
"Stix?"
Stix swung around and shrugged Andrea's hand off her shoulder.
"No. Andrea... no," was all she said and quickly left.
Andrea sunk to the bench and tears formed in her eyes. It was as if a final decision had been rendered, swiftly and without question. Andrea had lost her friend. A few seconds later she felt Gloria sit down next to her.
"You know," she said softly, "people react differently to things around them."
"I hurt Stix," Andrea responded. "I didn't mean to. I just want to be her friend. I thought I WAS her friend."
Gloria shook her head in disagreement.
"Child, people view things differently and I think that's the problem here. Yes, you treated her like a friend. That's nice. But Stix was treating you like a lover. She saw the relationship as two people who were in love. You saw it as two friends."
Gloria paused to let that sink in and then continued.