Finally
Grayson
My life has been a series of intense situations. My biological parents lost custody of me for the first time when I was three, they continued to work case plans enough to get me back. By the time my little sister Suzy was born, I was ten and had been removed and reunified three times.
Technically that should have been enough for us to be permanently removed. I suppose we’re lucky that our biological parents weren’t the worst of the worst. They both had drug problems, we lived in squalor and I pretty much took care of my sister on my own. It was easy for the teachers at school to tell there was a problem again because I started to miss school a lot for not wanting to leave my baby sister home with them.
My parents kind of had a hail-mary chance when it came to getting us back, technically I had been removed from my mom twice and my dad twice, but not three times from either one of them. Once they broke up they got separate case plans and dragged everything out until we finally had an attorney stand up for us in court.
It was awful and not something I really like to think about. It was not the best time of my life, that’s for sure. Once we were finally in a secure home we attended a large adoption event. I met my dad Harry there and it turns out that Harry’s wife Caroline, my mom, was there too playing with my sister. It seemed like it was meant to be and what was an intense in a bad way situation, became an intense in a good way situation. We were welcomed with open arms by a large family that was very well off.
My childhood was gone but I haven’t wanted for anything since I met the Beauregards, my family. I was so happy that Suzy was so young when we were adopted because she barely remembers the trauma. She still gets scared in the middle of the night sometimes, she has flashbacks almost like nightmares but in general, she is doing so well now.
All of that is the reason I became a family law attorney. I don’t know if it’s my behind-the-scenes knowledge or passion for child welfare, but I somehow managed to get a job at one of the city’s biggest law firms. I’m their only Family Law Attorney, I try some big cases but still fit in as much pro bono work as possible.
At work, I have the reputation of being the nice guy. I get it, most successful attorneys are cutthroat and only take the big cases, but family law isn’t like that, at least not most of the time.
It’s nearly the end of the year and everyone is talking about the company’s New Year’s Eve party. I’ll go, it’s good to keep up appearances but I’m not so sure that I’m excited about it. What is New Year’s without someone to share it with?
A boisterous feminine voice rings out from behind me, “Grayson! Head out of the clouds, what’s on your mind?
Right away I’m sure it’s Cleo, so I shrug, “Oh uh. Just waiting for my coffee to finish.”
She sounds even closer when she says, “That may be but you’re a million miles away from here.”
I turn around and see my colleague Cleo looking at me with an accusatory stare. We’re friendly at work but that’s all. I’ve done my best to make her think I’m a good guy but that’s because… well that’s because of Cleo’s friend.
At least I hope she’s her friend, if not she has been stringing me along for years. You see a few years ago I stepped into Cleo’s office because she was changing out the artwork on her wall, and it was so bright and colorful that I wanted to take a look. But when I got closer I saw the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.
Creamy skin, dark brown eyes, and long sunkissed brown hair. She looked adorable and sexy at the same time. I was a man compelled, my soul came alive looking at that girl, I wanted to know everything about her.
It didn’t take long for Cleo to notice my dopey stare. After a few minutes of relentless teasing, she told me that she knew the girl but now wasn’t the right time to meet her. I trusted her and because of that, I’ve never let go of the idea of the girl in the photos.
Now it’s been almost three years and I’m still hung up on that girl. There are new photos on Cleo’s walls but she’s still in them, I swear she only gets better every time I see her. How long can I wait? The answer is I don’t know, but I haven’t hit my limit yet, I can see myself waiting my whole life for her.
Either way, I’m not going to say that to Cleo but I’ll give her something, “I guess I was thinking about the New Year’s Eve party.”
She giggles a response, “Oh yeah, got a hot date?”
I can’t help chuckling, “No.”
When her eyebrow raises in question she says, “Are you sure?”
“What?”
She smiles like she can’t contain it, “Well, I’ve got one for you… if you’re interested.”
The way she said that it could be anyone but I can’t help feeling like she’s talking about her, my dream girl, “You don’t mean?”
Cleo smiles and nods, “Yeah, I do,” she continues but it’s hard for me to pay attention, “Briala has agreed to go out with us for New Year’s if you still want to meet her of course.”
My brain is lit up right now with so many things, I feel like one of those old computers you can hear crunching numbers but I try to talk anyway, “I uh. Yes… yeah of course I do I just… whoa…”
“I hope you keep it together better than that when you’re in court,” she laughs.
“Hey, don’t pick on me, this is just surprising I wasn’t sure you’d ever…”
I can tell she gets a little offended because she puts her hands on her hips and interrupts me, “Hey! I told you I would introduce you when the time was right, it is now, I keep my word.”
I didn’t mean anything by it and my brain is still scrambling like the images on a slot machine, “Briala you said? Why have you never said her name before? It’s beautiful.”
“It wasn’t the right time,” Cleo wears a teasing smirk as she starts to walk away.
“Hey! Wait…”
“I’ll text you the details,” Cleo giggles to herself with a satisfied smile, before she turns and walks out of the break room.
Wow, I’m going to go on a date with Briala. Briala, it’s like a song, it’s probably good I didn’t know her name before because now that I do, it’s like I feel even more strongly about her. Tomorrow is New Year’s Eve, tomorrow I’m going to meet Briala.
When I finally got my coffee I made my way back into my office and finished the work I needed to get done before the weekend. After work, I went home and went to bed early. I have a dream girl to think about and I didn’t want to do it in the office.
