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Chapter Twenty-Three:
Charlotte’s Point of View:
I just barely got the news about Francine, and Liza wasn’t picking up her damn phone. I tried three times before giving up and deciding to just drive down to Banner myself. You can’t just drop a bomb like that and not answer my calls. As I was hurrying out of Applebees -don’t judge me, they’ve got killer specials for Happy Hour- I heard my iPhone 11 notify me of a text coming through.
Finally Liza! Fudge.
I whipped it out and abruptly stopped walking. My eyes widened in disbelief.
Fucking really? Now!? Right now!!?
SMS: C’mon baby, just call me? I haven’t heard from you since you flew back to that desert wasteland you call home now. Did your replacement catch on? ;)
My EX girlfriend, Andee Calaway, was really doing this. Even after I told her to stop trying to reach out, an
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Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Four:
I tried to listen to Olivia and stop worrying about my girlfriend, but I didn’t have a good feeling about the way things were going at all. I turned my phone off after getting her text message, and attempted to calm myself down mentally long enough so I could lay down and doze off for a few hours. Napping is a luxury I never had when I lived in Russia. There was my full time job, the impossible time difference between Francine and I, and all of the other tasks I kept myself busy with on a daily basis. Since moving to America, all of that went away and I suddenly found myself bored to death. To combat this, I’d go to sleep after studying some English in my text books, and completing whatever chores needed to be done while Francine worked. There was only so much dusting, vacuuming, cooking and yes- even baking- that I could do before I lost my mind. Thus, I fell in love with naps. More often than not, I’d wake up to Francine kissing some part of my body, tha
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Five:
I was happy about my decision to stay in Siberia for two weeks, instead of only one like I originally planned. There was still so much to do, and time was passing by quickly. I stayed at Zlata’s longer than either of us anticipated, catching up on what we’ve both been doing for the last year. She even showed me pictures of her late husband, Bogdan, while I indulged myself with delectable pastries and several cups of hot tea. I felt like I was getting to know a side of my former boss that only a few others have seen, and I cherished the honor. Evgeniya came up in conversation, but I made it clear I didn’t want to stay on the subject. My inability to act unaffected wouldn’t allow me to talk about her for long, and I refused to let Zlata see me cry again. She only witnessed me doing this once, when I was so tired after the incident with Yuri that it rendered me unable to sleep for days. I came into her shop a day or two later, wiping away my tears as I groggily
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Six:
I was starting to become increasingly frustrated that I couldn’t get a hold of Francine. At this rate it had been almost two days since I last saw her over Skype, and I never heard from Olivia again after she responded to my text with the promise to check on her.What the hell is going on over there? Since dad left for Chelyabinsk early yesterday morning, I had his great big house all to myself. This allowed me to take advantage of blasting my little red portable radio while I thoroughly cleaned up in one of my father's many luxurious showers. It wasn't unlike the one I had back home in America, with it's glass door and expensive tiled walls. Francine insisted we rent from a respectable complex, and wanted to keep "my style of living" up to a nice standard. She knows where I come from, and how I had nothing growing up. It's important to her that I'm comfortable, which is more than anyone has ever given me aside from my dad. Lately all I'm
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Seven:
Liza’s Point of View:This was bad. Bad, bad, BAD. Why did we all agree I'd be the one answering Ceen's phone the next time Vasha called? I opened my mouth and started rambling without thinking. "How's your trip going-"“You'll have to forgive me for interrupting. You're talking too fast. I’m very tired and without patience, Liza. Where’s Francine? Let me speak with her.” I heard the sound of a car door slamming shut followed by the roar of an ignition. Small talk was out of the question completely, as neither of us knew enough of the other's native language to make it happen. As I wracked my brain for what to say next, I heard my friend curse softly under her breath. Fuck. Vasilisa was NOT happy. “Give me a second, Vasha.” I attempted to buy myself some time, knowing it would take the foreign girl a second to translate the English sentence.
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Eight:
Two days laterLiza’s Point of View:“Has she gotten any better?” I asked quietly as I slipped into Ceen’s room just after five in the morning. It was the soonest I could get here, since Saturday nights heading into Sunday mornings at the Casino are crazy busy. I’d hardly had enough time to wash all the glitz and glitter off my face before racing back to Banner. Olivia’s elbows rested on her knees as she held her head in dismay. She wouldn't look at me. Charlotte was asleep in the chair next to her fiancée’s, slumped against the wall with crossed arms. My friends looked completely spent.Speaking of, my stomach sank as I looked over at my best friend. Two nights ago, Charlotte called to tell me about Francine’s heart attack. The whole time she was talking, I kept thinking to myself; Twenty six year olds don’t just go around having heart p
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Twenty-Nine:
I woke up in blind terror very suddenly.Monsters were chasing me, and I couldn’t get away. No matter how fast I ran. My screams encouraged them, and eventually they had me pinned against a brick wall. One of them reached for my face with it’s menacing claws just as I was waking up. They’d never gotten that close to me before.I used to have nightmares like that one constantly, starting from childhood. Occasionally when I got black out drunk, I could avoid them, but they always found me again. These faceless monsters. They came to me in the form of long, spindly shadows. Every time they made an appearance, I became more terrified than I was when I last saw them. They wanted something from me, but what? I’ve dreamed of these assholes my whole life.Gasping for breath and whimpering, I ran my hands through my hair in exasperation and glanced toward the window. Dark grey clouds were peeking out behind one big,
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty:
“Yulia?”The sound of Evgeniya’s gentle voice came from the Church’s entrance, and echoed to where I was still standing up front by the painting. I wiped my eyes hurriedly and turned to face her. I noticed that she fingered her gold cross necklace as she slowly started walking toward me. The traditional Russian headscarf she wore was long enough to serve as a shawl as well, and it flowed around her delicate shoulders with each movement. The pattern, although beautiful with it’s elaborate pink and yellow floral arrangement, was making my head hurt to look at so I averted my gaze off to the side. I shouldn’t have been surprised to run into Evgeniya here. Maybe caught off guard was a better term.“Vasilisa. My name is VASILISA. Are you absolutely certain you’re the one who renamed me?”“It was a sudden decision, the name. Forgive me, I can’t get used to it.” Evgeniya replied with remor
Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-One:
Roughly a day laterThe worst part about traveling is not being able to get clean when I want to. Right before meeting Francine for the first time almost two years ago, I chewed about half a pack of gum and quickly wiped under my arms with deodorizing cloths. It wasn’t very pleasant, but at least I smelled nice enough for a proper first impression. I’d been too anxious to remember to purchase a package of those disposable cloths before leaving Siberia, and I finished my last piece of gum right after switching planes for the final time in Minneapolis three and a half hours ago. I tried not to think about it for much longer, because the third and final plane I was riding on finally landed. As soon as I received decent signal strength on my cellphone, I’d call an Uber and head home to shower immediately before going to the hospital my girlfriend was admitted into.Sick or not, I refused to allow Francine to see me in such a
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- Our Blank Canvas A Word From The Author:
- Our Blank Canvas Epilogue:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Forty:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Nine:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Eight:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Seven:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Six:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Five:
- Our Blank Canvas Chapter Thirty-Four:
