The Glimpse of My Past

Diane’s P. O. V.

Cutting my flashback, I looked at Liam before I answered him. “Hmm, I usually celebrate my birthdays at home. Mom would just cook a special dinner, and we’re all set. And, hello?” I beamed with delight before I continued.

“Isn’t it too early to prepare for that? We still have one month left, and I didn’t want my birthday celebration to be grand, Liam. I only want it to be as simple as possible, like how we celebrated my graduation two months ago. Just a simple family dinner will do, so you don’t have to bother. Besides, it will fall on Tuesday. We have to work on that day,” I gently patted him over his right shoulder.

“I just want to give you the best birthday blast you could ever have, sweetheart. To think that I have the same birthday as the woman I loved? Well, how do you expect me to celebrate it with you? Sorry to say, but I will never make our birthdays together as simple as what you’ve always wanted it to be. This year will be different.” He grabbed my left hand and kissed my knuckles while driving.

“Thanks for always making me feel special, Liam. Even though I only answered you after two days, you are still courting me every single day. You never took me for granted. Most especially, you also love my family, and that made my heart fall for you even more. I love you,” I expressed my feelings as my heart started to melt. I was becoming dramatic again.

Oh, I must have done something good in my past life to deserve a man like him!

“Of course! My queen deserves all the special things in the world. You deserve to be treated this way, and in the coming days that I’m with you. I would never get tired of pampering you for the rest of our lives. Also, your family was already my family the moment I met you. I love you more, Diane! Always remember that,” Liam replied as he lightly squeezed my soft hand.

Every time I was with Liam, I felt like I was beyond exquisite. Even though there were a lot of beautiful and smart women in EGC, I was way far better compared to them because I have him.

Oh my God! Why are you always like this, Liam? You’re always melting me like a heated butter and because of you, my heart didn’t want to calm down from fluttering so much!

Liam later dropped me off at a nearby Moonbucks Coffee Shop. That was always our routine whenever he would fetch me in the house, and from there, I would just walk my way to EGC.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

He would always drop me off at Moonbucks then he would change his car that his personal butler already parked there earlier. Liam doesn’t really like that setup because he doesn’t want me to get tired of walking, but I was the one who insisted on him. After all, it wasn’t that far, and walking was already an exercise for me.

The staff greeted me as soon as I entered the Moonbucks. The crews were kind of mischievous here because they were always asking me if I could be the face of their coffee shop for marketing strategy.

Although Liam already gave his permission for me to do the pictorial and in-house commercial, I was still thinking about it. I was a camera-shy type of person, and modeling wasn’t even my passion.

After I bought my favorite chocolate chip cream frap, I was surprised when I saw Lorenz, who was sitting quietly at the corner of the coffee shop. I was about to go, but I decided to say at least ‘hi’ to him. It was my first time to see him after our graduation day. Indeed, people got so busy after school days, and that was what we called adulting.

Lorenz’s face was so serious in front of his laptop while his fingers seemed to be in a rush while typing on its keys. He looked impatient as fine wrinkles could be seen on his forehead, and he was also biting his lower lip. For some time, he would also brush his hair up using his left hand while his right was navigating the mouse pad.

He was so preoccupied at the moment-to the point that he did not even notice me. That was when I strode near my gay best friend, and with my free hand, I suddenly slapped him over the shoulder, making him lean forward on the table.

“Hey, sissy! After all these months working at EGC, it was so nice to bump with you here!” I squealed at him.

The other customers looked in our direction with their raised eyebrows. Perhaps, due to the loudness of my voice that it seemed to roar around the whole ground floor. If Karen was with me, I could even hear a cuss from her. I found it awkward, so I just looked at them apologetically, slightly bowed my head, and they just returned to their businesses as if nothing happened.

Oh, and it looks like this is the very first time I saw Lorenz without any makeup at all!

Lorenz was undoubtedly surprised when he saw me. The shock made him paralyzed to his seat before he realized what he should do. After a few seconds, he immediately closed his laptop, hurriedly placed it inside his laptop bag, wore the strap, and quickly grabbed my free wrist. He then dragged me up to the second floor of the café where there were only a few customers-just about four.

That was when I glued my eyes at Lorenz, making the hands of the clock stop. Oh my God!

Shock occupied my whole body as I stared at him and began raking my eyes on him from head to toe. It was a good thing that I didn’t drop my frap. It was quite expensive, and I could only buy this once in a quarter.

But what happened to my feminine and gay best friend here? Where did his soul go? Since when did a ghost possess his body? Because the man in front of me was not the same Lorenz who I met and used to be with way back in college.

The Lorenz I knew was the one who was clumsy, soft, flirt, and scandalous. The Lorenz I used to be with was an open gay who couldn’t report to our school even without the least shade of makeup. Now? Standing straight at six-feet flat, he could almost beat Liam into being a straight man.

I was still stunned and couldn’t even blink my eyes when he asked me, “Diane, are you okay?”

And his voice? It was so manly and too far from his sassy and girly voice before. I swallowed painfully because I couldn’t believe who was in front of me. I even asked myself if my eyes were fooling me. That was when I blinked them as I continued to glance at Lorenz’s face.

He did not even have the slightest trace of eyeliner, foundation, and lip gloss-which used to be very thick before. Now, his face was bare at all.

The strap of his laptop bag was placed on his right shoulder, and I must admit that he looked finely attractive while wearing his maroon tuxedo and leather shoes. I put my frap over the nearest table, and with my trembling fingers, I touched his shoulders, and those were stiff, so as his arms and elbows. Lorenz had brawny muscles that both Karen and I had never noticed before.

It was even crazy that his fingers were not flicking at all, and the fingernails of my once witch and gay best friend were masculine too! Those had some dirt as if those did not even experience a manicure.

“Oh my God, sissy! I-Is that really you? But what happened? Wait, were you p-possessed by an unknown entity? D-Did you have an accident, that’s why your f-father decided for you to undergo reconstructive surgery? Did you still remember me?” I stammered at him.