G/T: Everybody Loves Me: Chapter 2
***Five years laterâŚ***
âNice to meet yaâ!â
I look up at the beautiful girlâs face, taking a minute to scan from her feet on the ground up to her peppy, warm countenance. She swiftly props herself down close to the floor and scoops me up in her hand, taking me into a warm embraceâyouâd think weâve known each other forever, the way sheâs adoring me.
I pat her collarbone a few times, kinda like a âbro hugâ, and in that vein, I can tell this is going to be a real ladybromanceâI donât even think I could avoid that outcome if I wanted to with this chick. This close-up, Iâm realizing that Iâm experiencing some abstract form of deja-vuâI must have seen her before? Thatâs awful strange, though, that Iâd recognize herâIâm sorrowful to admit to you that I donât generally remember faces very well; itâs not that I donât care about people. I just meet so many!
âHaha, arenât you the social butterfly! Iâm Diamond. Youâre welcome to call me âDiâ. Thatâs what my best friend always called me-â
âAre you kidding, DiamondâDiâI know who you are!â She grins.
Oh boy, here we go. I try to fight my disappointed reflex and maintain a cheery attitude to match hers. I donât want to fake it âtill I make it, either. I want to be in the moment with her; actually embrace her upbeat energy, as Iâm getting the vibe that itâs a sincere one. One that would still be here for anyone, despite that Iâve got this unshakable notoriety.
âSay, Tiffany, you look just a bit familiar. Have you everâum, not to make this beautiful moment awkward at allâbut have you ever, I dunâno, asked me to sign something? Maybe took a selfie with me?â I shrug.
âO-oh, no, Iâm certain Iâd remember that!â She giggles. âIâm kind of obsessed with your show. But if you want to take a selfie for my Insta-!â I smile and find her honestly endearingâoh, thereâs that pang of familiarity againâŚ?âand gesture for her to take out her phone, as you would gesture for the driver across the way to go ahead of you. Exuberant, she whips out her iPhone and follows through, and I smile wide. She shows me the picture and I notice that, finally, my eyes are matching my curled-up mouth, and I seem to be convincinglyâno, sincerelyâhappy to be there.
âHave yâever cohabitated with a Bel before?â She asks me casually, tucking her phone into her back pocket. Iâm not used to thisâI wouldâve bet good money that sheâd get distracted, investing a few minutes immediately posting the shot and getting her lucky fix of instant gratification by tagging me and watching the likes pour inâŚ
And I just canât shake, that that really reminds me of somebody. Who?! I believe her that she and I havenât met before, but if thatâs the case, whoâs the girl she is reminding me of? I havenât had a whole big social circle, contrary to popular belief. Iâve pretty much had two, maybe three, buddies come-and-go over the years, one of such friends closely dear to me. I choke back a tidal wave of emotion thinking about her, wondering where the time went, and compartmentalize it back to the recesses of my brain so I donât screw up this moment, of which I promised Iâm trying to be present.
No, my best girl isnât like this, admittedly very charming, young lady at all.
âIâm sorry if Iâm a little bit starstruck⌠Di!â She canât seem to camouflage a little smile. She rubs the back of her neck timidly. âThis reminds me of the time my brother had a run-in with a celeb at the mall. Guess what!â
I tilt my head slightly at my new roommate, wondering if I know this other star. âWhatâs that, Tiff?â
âHe acted all aloof when he told me at dinner, like he wasnât even fazed! Haha, well, I guess youâre the wrong person to tell, having lived in LA and probably partied at lotsaâ star-studded afterparties, huh?â She smirked in good-humor.
I feel my eyes crease into endearment again, too amused to point out that I havenât actually lived in LA, nor have I attended any of those afterparties Iâve been invited to in years, figuring also that itâd be obnoxious to bring up sed invitations. âYeah?â I chirp, trying to saturate my tone with as much suspense as I can muster. I see that innocent look in her brown eyes and feel this indescribable pull to make her happy. âWho was this superstar! Donât leave me hanginâ!â
âOh my GOSH, Di, donât even remind meâhe literally refused to tell me! âSaid Iâd freak out, which honestly just got me more curious!â
I raise my hand up to my chin like The Thinker, and it crosses my mind that it might be me.
âWhat mall was he atâdo you know?â
âWell, my brotherâs not one to give many details, but Iâm betting it was the Belshore Passage Mall.â Ah, thatâs the mall right next to the Bel Parine-North America tunnel. It leads right to Tampa, where Iâve lived for the past seven years. Now, Iâm almost sure itâs me, since hardly any actors I know live thereâI stay there for my privacy. If itâs not apparent, I do like to keep my shenanigans low-key, guys.
I squint in recollection, secretly excited to see her cute reaction. âI live right next to Tampa, yaâ know. Iâve actually lived there since 2011,â I nod. âBellshore Passage Mall was one of my favorite places to chill,ââwhen I wasnât dodging the general publicâI decide to finish off in my own head, not wanting to traumatize the younger gal like a child who sees Trashy Mall-Santa⢠go out for a smoke.
Her draw drops like an agape manhole, âWHAT!â She exclaims, promptly mumbling âohmygoshIâmsorryâ, realizing her tone. She quickly tightens her lips; I figure sheâs trying to watch her manners, maybe because sheâs trying to make an extra-specially-good impression, since itâs considered impolite for a Bel to open their mouth too-wide for too-long in front of a human (put two-and-two together! I donât want to get into that awkward conversation, you sick, sick people!) âIt was YOU?!â She whisper-shouts, tilting her head like a puppy trying to understand.
âI mean, can we know for sure? No, but-
Oh-Oh my goSH!â My face lights up, in actual epiphany this time.
She looks startled, âWhat?! What?!â Letâs face it, at this point, weâre freaking out as loudly as two middle schoolers saying âWhatâs up, guuuuuurl!â to each other in the hallway.
âYes, yes, Iâm sure it was me! Well, Iâm pretty sure! You remind me so much of someoneâof course, my mind went to girl first, but it must be your brother!â I put a hand on my hip in triumph. âWhat does he look like, Tiff?â
âOoo, ooo! Heâs got brown hair, usually messy, kindaâ spiky. A little bit â2008-hotââ, she grins, looking like sheâs trying to keep-it-together. (I raise my eyebrows, mouthing, âJenna Marbles?â, and she mouths back, âYou know it!â) âHeâs got a little stud under the corner of his lip. Some stud earrings that go with it. Oh! And a big tattoo of a tidal wave on his right arm. Canât miss it, itâs so big,â she hypes, âespecially for yo-oh gosh, I shouldnât have said that, that was rude of me, I didnât mea-â
âNononono Tiffany, none of that apology sh*t, Iâm not one of those humans,â I wave dismissively. I canât shake the crystal-clear memory of both the tide-tat and the butterflies in my tummy from that day at the mall; I hadnât mused on it for a while, actually. I went a whole month since thinking about it! Usually, I think about it every two weeks. Iâm behind on schedule! I frown at the disappointing truth that it didnât go anywhere, and I was tooâwhatâs the word, intimidated?âtoo call the boy back. Heck, I didnât even know his name. He probably is thinking to this day that I could care less about him, if he even remembers meeting me⌠Itâs an incredibly rare event for me, to be intimidated; Iâve had the mantra in my mind, âI love it when people treat me like my inner ordinary girl,â but Iâm going to be real with you, here. Something about it made me shy. Iâd felt a little âexposedâ, not like a stupid beauty guru, but a hermit crab without its shell.
I glance at my ring-finger where my grandpaâs tourmaline ring used to be and sigh, earning a concerned look from Tiffany. Yes, I lost it again. I donât go anywhereâwell, everâbut when when I actually do, itâs the Bellshore mall. Itâs kind of humiliating, but Iâm glad that wherever it went, I escaped the public ridicule of having lost it. Right after the sick moment I first noticed it was gone, Grandpa reassured me that he wasnât upset with me; âitâs just a ring, an object, is all,â he said. But that doesnât stop my hands from feeling naked. Now, not only is it attached to my grandpaâs happiest days, but the one happiest day of my life, too. I swear, for the whole year after that fateful day with Tiffanyâs brother and the pink, glossy jewel, still adorning my hand, I could see his reflection in it⌠to be so consumed with a man you just met⌠and a Bel, at that! Itâs like I need something; I need to get that ring back if Iâm ever going to get my mind at ease.
âWhy the long face?â Tiff coos, her hand stroking my back protectively.
âTiffany, wait! This is my chance!â It dons on me, and suddenly, I feel ready to move into a bigger shell.
