things left unsaid || 01
thompsonxxander:
Xander’s smile grew along with the shine in his eyes as the young woman’s hand motioned for the seat opposite from her, inviting him to sit with her. After all that time, the whole situation was like a dream to the american boy, the most unbelievable kind of dream. So he sat next to her, grinning all the while, his eyes never leaving hers, almost as if she was going to vanish if he lifted his glance from her. Noticing the tense atmosphere, he tried to loosen up a bit, making himself as comfortable and familiar to her as possible, thinking to himself that he would speak a little less seriously — and stare at her a little less.
“Vegan!,” he answered, sounding quite proud of his own job. “It’s a great, great job,” he spoke, a bitter spark in his smile for a second before erasing the army thoughts off of his head. “And you? How’s your job? I worked at an animal shelter before I was at the restaurant, I kind of miss if sometimes. Always being surrounded by animals was… magical.”
The way he was looking at her made her curse the universe. There he was, sitting there and looking like the young boy she fell in love with. And yet, he wasn’t. He was older and more refined, and she was sure that he had changed in some ways. She had as well. After all, it came with time and experiences. Jacqueline liked to believe that the time in which she pursued her studies changed her and made her more independent, but had that came with a price? She had been loveless, so focused on her work and her family that nothing else had ever came into the picture. Quietly, and selfishly, she wondered if Xander had done the same. But who was she to have a say? She was the one who made that choice.
Hearing that he was a vegan chef, her eyebrows raised. Being so involved in the environment and working with animals, it made her really happy that he was on board. “That’s amazing,” she responded. Whether or not he was vegan himself, knowing that he was taking some part in the cause made her happy. Her smile brightened, and she had to catch herself to not seem too enthuasiastic. After all, she was still unsure about all of this. But still, she didn’t want to be rude. She was happy to see him. Thinking about her job, she looked down at her cup before gazing out to the water out the window. “It’s everything I dreamed it to be,” she told him. Turning her head to him, she continued. “I’m not quite on the level of status that I’d like, but I’m getting there,” she noted. “I’m working with the animals in any way I can, whether it be training, or feeding, or assisting in medical.” Her eyes fell down to her cup again, her fingers fidgeting with the handle. “It makes me really happy, being there,” she said, almost to herself but also in assurance to him that she was happy with her decision that she had made when they were young. But the way she bit her lip afterwards made her remember that it had come with a big sacrifice. “I suggest visiting before you head off,” she said softly, looking at him again. “They made the sanctuary quite beautiful. It almost feels like you’re really there in their natural habitats.”













