CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The kiss McKenna shared with the man in the club seemed to last for eternity. She clings to him. He wasn't as tall as Jason and so McKenna didn't have to drag him by the collar. She placed all her feelings in the kiss they shared – the disappointment, the love found and lost, the resentment and the overwhelming sense of loneliness. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so lonely and even in the club filled with people she felt lonely.
McKenna pressed closer to the man and he held her even before she asked. When they pulled apart, McKenna expected him to look at her differently but all she could make out from his face in the dim club was a slight smile. He looked at peace for someone that was forcefully kissed by a stranger.
'I'm sorry…I need some air' McKenna said and left him there.
She made her way outside and took deep breathes. McKenna would do anything for a cold glass of water. She sat down on the pavement and crossed her legs. She was exhausted and who knew anger was exhausting.
Someone tapped her shoulder from behind and McKenna turned. He handed a bottle of cold water to McKenna and she took it after muttering a word of gratitude. He sat beside her but in total silence.
'I am sorry I jumped you inside the club. You must think I am a mad person but truly I am not. I don't go about kissing guys I just met few minutes ago in public with people starring'
'I feel so used right now' the man said without displaying any distinct emotion.
'I am really sorry' McKenna apologized again
'Oh don't be. I actually liked being used by a beautiful girl. Being kissed by a stranger happens to me all the time and you will be surprised on how many pretty girls have kissed me in a club'
'Really…' McKenna asked astonished
'Of course not…'
McKenna liked his sense of humor and his easy going personality. She also liked that he was comfortable in his own skin, even felt right at home sitting on a pavement outside a club where there might be scorpion or ants crawling around. It then occurred to McKenna that she didn't even know his name and it felt awkward to ask the man she shared a kiss with his name.
'I'm Jacob' He seemed to have read McKenna's mind.
'Hi, I'm McKenna'
'It is really nice to meet you, McKenna'
Jacob and McKenna sat there for a while, chatting about almost anything – the sky, the crickets and any other mundane thing. Jacob was easygoing and his confidence was soothing.
After talking for thirty minutes and thereabout, McKenna decided to be open with Jacob.
'I'm a mess' McKenna said
'Aren't we all?' Jacob asked as if he knew exactly what McKenna was talking about.
'Then why do we pretend that everything is alright?' McKenna asked
'I think the saying is fake it until you make it but I call it a load of crap' Jacob said softly with a smile and McKenna smiled too.
'Do you want to talk about him?' Jacob asked
'Him… What makes you think there is a 'him'?'
Jacob raised one of his eye brows and narrowed his eyes in a funny way.
'It is a stereotype type of story actually. I mean it's something that happens in movies anyway. I am a secretary and I fell in love with my boss. But maybe not the type that happens in a movie since I told him how I felt about him and he moved to another country' McKenna started laughing. She laughed for a long time, when she saw that Jacob had no desire to laugh at her predicament, she stopped.
'I am sorry' Jacob muttered
'I am not okay' McKenna said and looked at Jacob.
She couldn't understand why she felt like she could talk to a total stranger more than her best friend but whatever the reason was, she was glad she met a stranger named Jacob who listened to her when she needed a listening ear.
'Call me optimistic but I have a feeling you will be just fine' Jacob said and squeezed her hand.
'I think I will be okay too' McKenna felt almost certain
McKenna stood up to leave and so did Jacob.
'Maybe we will run into each other sometime and when we do, I promise not to kiss you' McKenna said amidst a smile.
Jacob came closer to her and kissed her cheek.
'When next we see, I will be the one to jump you. You owe me a kiss McKenna'