Hating 22

Staring out at the frozen pond remembering what day it was in the forefront of my mind.

“Guess what day it is, Nana!" I shouted plopping down in her lap. "The day my granddaughter stops scaring the shit out of her old nana," she chuckled. "Are you kidding? I'm your little princess," I giggled. "Get off my lap your highness," my nana said knocking me to the ground. "Hey!" I called out. "You do realize that you're turning 22 tomorrow on March 22, 2022. I think it's a good omen!" she replied winking at me.

Three hours later at the library...

"Happy Birthday, Sariah Jordan!" my best friend, Camille shouted disturbing my studies. "Shhh," I replied giggling. "You study too much!" she scoffed. "First off, we are in a library. Second, my birthday is tomorrow and it hurts that you forgot. Last, my finals are in two weeks," I reminded her. "I would never forget my best friend's birthday! Be at the pool hall at 11 p.m. sharp, "Camille retorted. "Does Carter know?" I asked. "For the record, I don't like your boyfriend. But if you must know he was all too thrilled with letting me handle your birthday," she replied rolling her eyes. "Okay! Wait, is Brittany coming?" I asked. "She invited herself or Brent did. He said she saw the invite text so he told her she could ride with him," Camille replied rolling her eyes again. "Why would she want to come to my birthday gathering? It's not like we are friends," I pointed out. "She's super jealous of you," she chuckled. "For what?," I laughed. "People like her are toxic," Camille shrugged. "More like poisonous," I agreed.

We parted ways halfway to our cars. Camille lived in the dorms while I lived with my nana. My nana raised me from the age of 2 when my parents died in a car accident.

2 hours later...

I made it to our usual hangout spot; the pool hall that was surrounded my gorgeous pear trees where I would stand on summer days. I was bombarded by my friends the moment I entered the hall.

"Give her some space AFTER you pin the money on her!" Camille demanded. "This place looks great! You guys did all this for me?" I asked. "Correction, I did ALL of this for you," Camille pointed out making me laugh. "Well, it's wonderful," I cooed. "Your boyfriend has been drunk off his ass and flirting with anything that walks," she said rolling her eyes. "Huh?" I asked ordering my first round of drinks. "He's over there with the guys. You are turning 22 in less than an hour!" she excitedly said. "Sure," I dryly said staring at Carter.

Camille had a permanent scowl on her face when she realized where my eyes drifted to.

"What? It's like telling somebody not to look down!" I whined. "I know," she laughed. "I'm glad you get it," I replied playfully nudging her shoulder. "Go be with your man," she replied embracing me.

If I'm being honest, it felt good getting all the attention from other guys for once.

"What are you wearing?" Carter slurred. "A gift. You like?" I asked giddily twirling. "NO! Why are you wearing that?" he asked. "I thought you would like it. Easy access and all," I teased trying to lighten the mood. "You're embarrassing me," Carter replied inconspicuously dismissing me.

Shortly after I spotted Carter groping my nemesis, Brittany.

"What the hell is going on here?" I scrambled over and asked. "Ask him," Brittany grinned before walking away. "We were just having some fun," Carter replied slurring. "Come back here!" I demanded. "You're so fucking needy!" Carter snapped. "Carter, what is this about?" I calmly asked hoping he would match my tone. "It's about him not wanting to really be here," Camille interjected. "Stay out of our business, bitch," Carter slurred. "Don't call her a bitch when you're the one acting like a dog right now," I said folding my arms. "You have no idea how much of a dog I am, sweetheart," he slurred. "Sariah, let's just go grab some more cake. He's worthless," Camille said pulling me away. "Why don't you tell her how worthless I am? Oh, right...you begged me at least 22 times not to tell her that you're in love with her. You even let me have a taste in the back of Seth's SUV to keep your secret," he laughed. "WHAT?" I snapped.

I grabbed a nearby beer bottle and broke it against the table.

"SARIAH! Don't hit him. He's not worth it!" Camille called out. "Tell me, is he lying about you two in Seth's SUV?" I asked but I was met with silence. "I-I'm not lying," Camille replied with tears threatening to spew. "And all this time I thought I needed to watch that slut!" I said pointing at Brittany who seemed offended. "I didn't even know you two were together. Carter was at apartment 2022 damn near every day but it's just sex," Brittany scoffed.

I stormed out of the pool hall and right into the pouring rain. Tears were falling freely from my eyes causing my phone to repeatedly buzzing only pissed me off more.

"WHAT?" I shouted thinking it was one of my friends from the pool hall. "Is this Miss Sariah Jordan?" the voice asked. "Who's this?" I asked deflecting. "It's Doctor Langford calling from Providence Hospital on behalf of your grandmother," he replied. "Is everything okay?" I asked. "No, I'm afraid it's not. Your grandmother has suffered a stroke. It's a good thing the neighbor found her. She was seizing for at least 2 minutes before she was found. We won't know if she's suffered any major injuries until her scans are back," Doctor Langford sighed. "What room is she in?" I asked. "She's been moved to the second floor in room 22," he replied.

I keyed it into my GPS and I was about 10 minutes out but because there was a traffic jam it would take me 22 DAMNED minutes!

"SERIOUSLY?" I yelled aloud.

Two Years and two months later...

"Have you made any new friends lately?" my nana probed. "I don't need friends, nana. They tend to betray me," I scoffed. "That was 2 years ago," she reminded me. "Actually, it was 2 years and 2 months ago if we are being technical," I teased. "No boy toy prospects either?" she continued poking. "No ma'am and neither will there be any time soon," I smirked. "Don't let your life wither away from up under you. I can take care of myself. Therapy had me on my feet over a year ago. You're only sticking around because you're afraid of getting hurt," nana reminded me. "People only leave me. I'm not going through that again," I said wiping my eyes. "They all tried coming back into your life but you refused if I remember correctly," she replied. "I hate them all!" I harshly confessed. "You don't, dear. You love them which makes the betrayal so prominent. Just promise me that you're going to live from today forward," she said grabbing my shoulders.

Two months later...

"I need you to show this gentleman around," my manager, Dolores said. "I'll do my best," I replied looking toward the gentleman who stepped foot into the kitchen. "This is Grayson. He's going to be the new Executive Chef for our other location downtown," Dolores said before walking away on a call. "Hi, I'm Sariah," I said extending my hand. "Nice to meet you, Sariah. Shall we start the tour of the hotel? I'm already familiar with the setup of all of our restaurants," Grayson said still holding my hand. "Okay, I'll be right out," I replied.

The entire afternoon was spent touring the hotel connected to the restaurant his family-owned.

"Thanks for the tour, Miss Sariah. I've truly enjoyed your company," he said handing me a marigold flower. "It was my pleasure, Mr. Grayson," I replied. "Can I ask you a personal question?" he asked. "Um, sure?" I replied more as a question. "How old are you? Do you have a boyfriend? If not, why?" he rambled on. "You said one question," I deflected. "Yet, you didn't even answer one," he smiled. "I'm 24. I don't have a boyfriend and I don't date," I replied biting my lip. "Go out with me," he bluntly said.

I thought about what I promised my nana. This guy was deliciously savory but he was one of the bosses soon but technically he asked me out, right?

"When?" I chuckled. "Tomorrow at noon. I'll pick you up here. Oh, wear comfortable shoes," he laughed.

Next day...

"You look stunning," Grayson said as he opened the door for me. "Thank you," I blushed. "You're going to love what I have planned," he gushed. "I'll be the judge of that," I giggled.

Grayson and I got to know each other on the ride to our destination.

"Grayson, this is beautiful," I said stepping out to get a better view of the wine vineyard. "I thought you would," he smiled. "I don't know much about wine though," I admitted. "I would recommend the Merlot but I much rather you choose for yourself. It could be soft, fruity, and sweet," he replied.

We went wine tasting and I somehow chose three types of Merlot unbeknownst to me.

"It's my favorite too," Grayson stared. You've never done this before?" he asked in disbelief. "No, but this was really nice," I said ignoring his question. "Wait until you see what's next," he said grabbing my hand. "Where are we going?" I asked trying not to laugh. "Just wait and see!" he called out taking me onto the rooftop.

There was a whole spread of raw foods laid on display.

"Um, don't you cook enough at work?" I pointed out. "We are cooking together," he said placing two wine glasses on the bar. "What's this?" I asked. "It's the three brands of Merlot you chose. While we cook we can listen to my favorite podcast," he said flipping on the audio. "What podcast is this?" I asked. "Echoes on the Bench," he replied. "Oh," I said dumbfounded. "It seems dumb but they discuss hot new trends in food, artsy creations, and genius sociology behind aphrodisiacs," he smirked but didn't meet my eye. "I see," I laughed.

We made Croque Monsieur and Potatoes Dauphinoise. Apparently, they were famous French cuisines.

"I should be heading home soon," I said. "Of course, but there's one more thing," he insisted while lifting our small dining table and carrying it near the edge of the building. "What's this?" I asked. "The jazz band is going on in a few minutes. I thought we could eat, sip Merlot, and listen to soft jazz under the stars," Grayson said with a twinkle in his eyes. "Thank you for this," I said feeling grateful. "It's no problem. What's your story?" He asked. "What do you mean?" I asked. "There's a lot of hurt behind those beautiful brown eyes of yours," he responded.

Grayson was so attentive as I went on about my bad omen; the number 22. I've hated anything correlated with it as it has brought me nothing but pain and sorrow.

"Cheers to a successful first date. I only hope there will be a second and a third," he smiled. "I hope so too," I agreed as he pressed his lips to my own. "You know, not all bad things are associated with the number 22," he smirked. "Huh?" I asked confused. "Well, it's 12:22 and we just shared our first kiss. Not to mention, the number 22 is also a master builder who turns dreams into reality no matter how large or impossible it may seem according to astrology buffs," Grayson pointed out. "You are amazing," I smiled meeting his lips again.

Grayson and I dated for exactly 22 months before we tied the knot. I even inherited a group of friends who I adored mercilessly. The number 22 went from my believed bad omen to representing the most promising moments in my life.