Wilbur

Diana proved to be more of a city girl than I expected. Observing from where I stood, I saw her showing Tory the carrot she pulled from my parents' garden. Tory gave her a thumbs up. She smiled, satisfied with herself. I would have loved to join them except I didn't really want to. It was two in the afternoon. Diana and Tory didn't seem to mind the heat. Instead, I went inside the kitchen and got them something to drink. I just hurt my head, I wasn't taking any chances.

"You having fun?" I shouted from the porch. Diana tipped her hat up and waved, another carrot in hand. I'm hoping my mom knows a lot of carrot recipes to last us until tomorrow. She knew about a lot of things, but she also didn't know which vegetable was which. I wouldn't blame her. She did grow up in the big city. It took me a couple of months to adjust to my neighbourhood when I moved out myself.

"Well if it isn't Wilbur Gibson, bad boy extraordinaire!"

I turned around to see a couple of familiar faces.

"Loudmouth Larry!" I opened my arms and engulfed the burly in a bear hug. He grunted as he hugged me back. Letting go, I faced the other men who unceremoniously interrupted my quiet afternoon.

"Sara told us you were in town. 'Thought we'd drop by to say hi... to you, too." Larry stepped forward and offered his hand to the woman walking towards us."

She gave him a smile. "Diana."

I turned to look at the other guys. It wouldn't take a genius to figure that they wanted to know who she was. The last time they saw me with a girl was the night before I left town. Cassie Adams was the mayor's daughter and she was so sad to see me leave she vowed to never sleep with another guy after me. A few months later, I heard that she got married to one of my friends. He was a good guy, but we never really talked ever since.

"She's my friend," came a small voice. Tory was holding a basket full of the carrots they harvested. Diana took it from her and excused herself to go to the kitchen.

The moment she and Tory left, my friends turned to me.

"I would like to be her friend too if she'd let me." Larry stated.

The guys collectively groaned in disgust. "If she'd let me." He defended.

"She won't," I said with confidence.

Mark, a portly guy with the one of the kindest voices I have ever heard, chuckled. "What's her story?"

I shrugged. "She needed some time to breathe so we brought her here."

'She can brea-" Larry was cut off by another round of protest.

"Be nice." I warned him before Diana appeared to join us.

"Why don't you and Diana here drop by tonight's get-together? Get a couple drinks, catch up with the others, have a little fun."

I scowled, making the guys laugh. I lived in a small town where everybody knows what everybody does. I didn't really give a good impression when I was growing up. The guys left after pestering me about a round of drinks the next time we meet.

"Don't you want to go?" a few strands of her hair on her neck as she tried to tie her hair up. I could tell she was holding back from asking questions.

"Alright, what is it? Spit it out." I raised an eyebrow.

She chuckled. "I mean it's a get-together. I think it won't kill you to say hello to some friends."

"You want to go, don't you?" I asked matter-of-factly.

"What? No, I mean – " She moved her hands as if that could help her pull out the words she wanted to say. Admitting defeat, she looked behind us before whispering.

"I really like it here, don't get me wrong."

I nodded, encouraging her to speak more.

"But it's so...quiet. I'm used to hearing cars and people and just – noise." She let out a sigh. "I work until it's late. When I'm working I feel like I don't rest enough and when I'm resting, I feel like I'm not working enough." She sounded frustrated.

"Man, you're a workaholic." I said, whistling.

She looked relieved, smiling that I didn't take offense to her liking but not liking the place.

"I needed a drink, anyway. Want to go to town with me?" I bowed and she played along, taking my hand as we sneaked out to my car.

When we got to town, it was lit with different colors and music was playing as people walked the streets. We saw Mark with his wife and kids. They were the ones who told us that the mayor decided to throw a little celebration for the year being good to our town in terms of tourism. I guess they finally realized that young people didn't really go to big cities during vacations these days. Something about being adventurous and checking out a bucket list.

Diana seemed comfortable, talking to Mark's wife as I tried to figure out where we should get a drink. There were more business establishments compared to when I was younger. I diverted my gaze away from the familiar faces I saw on the street.

"No. really. I don't know how to hold a ba- okay." She laughed nervously, holding Mark's youngest in her arms. It didn't even last a ten second before she gave the baby back. Sensing her discomfort, I made up an excuse about seeing some old friends at one of the bars.

"How can you just give your baby to a stranger just like that?"

I snickered. "You're not a stranger. You just met Mark a while ago, didn't you?"

"That's the point. They just met me."

"Why is it so difficult to process that people actually trust you?"

That made her pause before looking at me. From the look on her face, I'm guessing even she wasn't sure why.

"You think too much. Loosen up a little." I did a little dance, smiling when she laughed. "Not too much or we'll be in trouble." I cautioned.

We ended up going to one of the bars I used to go to. It was relatively quiet. Diana seemed to enjoy her beer, looking at the old posters, with me supplying stories I remembered about the people inside. We found out that Sara worked part-time, waiting tables and happily chatting with the regulars. When Diana stood up to go to the bathroom, Sara started walking towards our table. I gave her a smile, thanking her for giving us table napkins.

"She's very pretty." She started. I nodded as a reply. "You should be careful when it comes to girls like her."

My eyebrows furrowed after hearing her remark. "Why?"

"She looks like the kind of person who can break your heart."

"Wh – " I paused, thinking of the right question to ask her. "What made you think that?" I looked at her, curious. The gesture seemed to encourage her.

"Well she's very pretty and she looks like the kind of city girl who would leave you for some businessman or something like that. I mean, look at her."

"Are you saying she's too good for me?" I acted confused. She looked like she regretted even starting the conversation. I saw her expression change from being shy to being panicked.

"What I'm saying is she doesn't suit you. I feel like you're too good for her." She blurted out. Even she was caught off-guard. I looked at my beer glass, watching droplets of water fall slowly to the table.

"Wilbur..." she whispered. "Are you mad at me?"

I lifted my head to look at her. "Sara, I appreciate the concern. Really, I do." She looked relieved.

"But she's a grown woman. You're a grown woman." I pointed out, noticing how her cheeks turned pink. "What she does with her time and who she spends it is all up to her." I smiled.

"Haven't you heard about stories like this?" she continued, determined.

"About what now?"

"You know, about women who work in the city, all tired with life" she stated. I agree on that part. "then they meet some cold-hearted businessman who secretly has a soft spot for them. Those kinds of stories." I kept on nodding, interested.

"You're not cold-hearted, Wilbur. You're like a piece of sunshine to everyone who knows you. You were so kind to me, even asking about the books that I read when everyone thought it was pathetic. You even borrowed some. Do you remember?" Her eyes widened. It was a good thing a group of people came in and she had the perfect excuse to end the conversation.

I knew Sara liked reading but not to the point that she'll compare the situation to the plots she reads. She was looking at Diana closely when she visited. It all makes sense now. I was still in a daze when Diana returned to our table.

She scooted close to me. "You wouldn't believe what I just overheard inside the restroom." She took a swig of her beer, wiping away the foam on her lips. When I didn't answer, she pouted.

"Earth to Wilbur. Did you drink another pint while I was gone?" She waved a hand in front of my face. I looked at her face. "Are you drunk already?" she asked. We haven't drank much since we got here so it wasn't the alcohol. I wasn't thinking much about the situation until now.

I invited a woman to my hometown and expected people to not think too much of it either. It wasn't even a big deal. It's just that people tend to ask – and answering with "She's Tory's friend." Isn't all that convincing.

"Who cares, right?" I asked her. She looked perplexed but she did the same when I raised my glass. We had a couple more drinks and were laughing about how her ex-boyfriend gave her a list of things he spent on her and expected her to pay him back. We talked about investing young, about how there's just too much unexplored parts of the ocean. The people inside the bar minded their own business.

Before we left, I looked back to see Sara talking with the other server. She was patting Sara's back. I saw her eyes move from Sara, to the woman smiling at me, her cheeks and ears red. Sara looked at Diana, her friend frowning.

Diana was oblivious. She held onto my arm as another server passed us, her eyes giving Diana a once-over. The moment we stepped out, I just had to say what was on my mind.

"What is it with you and waitresses?"