Part 3

So things calmed down a little after Sully left. Gaby was mostly staying with her aunt the full time, so we didn’t see quite as much of her as we were used too. It seemed Sully even brought out the best in us as a group. She really had become the glue that had held us together. And with her gone, we had to do a little adjusting. But we still had our fun. August had came and with that, it was Gaby’s turn to leave. But not for good. She was going to Houston for a few months or so, to spend time with some friends and her cousin who was already in Houston. So she needed a way to get to Houston, and she was considering taking the bus there. That’s where Karah came in. Karah is so smart. Karah really wanted Gaby and I to work, she was all for it from the beginning. I have to give her the credit for really giving me opportunities to see Gaby. Thanks Karah. Well there was a wedding, in a small town outside of Galveston. Karah, and another friend Terri really wanted to go to it, but they didn’t want to go alone. They wanted a guy to go with them. So I was there for the taking. To make things even sweeter, since we were going to Galveston for this wedding, we had to go through Houston. So guess who ended up going taking Gaby to Houston? That’s right, we did. Karah was the driver; Terri was the co pilot and Gaby and I in the backseat. (Get those thoughts out of your head) We drove there and talked the whole way. I was still unsure about the whole Gaby situation. I had heard rumors that she liked me, and that she wanted to be together, but I wasn’t for sure. I became beautiful. I guess in her boredom, or maybe in the quest to make me look even more ridiculous, Gaby put make-up on me. I let her of course. Who wouldn’t? You say you wouldn’t, but I know you would. A beautiful girl wanting to get near your face and touch you with her hands? Please, you’d give in just like me. So I got the full makeover, the eye makeup, the cheeks, and the lipstick. I thought I looked pretty hot. I would have dated me. After much laughing (by the girls, at me of course) we started to talk about relationships. It was inevitable. I don’t recall exactly how it came to be, but somehow a question got raised to Gaby about having a boyfriend back in Mexico. Now I had heard first thing from Gaby that she didn’t, but Karah and Terri didn’t know that information. So when Gaby said, yes, that she had someone back home, it came to my complete surprise (and horror). I didn’t know how to deal with that? She had told me the contrary? I didn’t really know what to believe so I sucked it up and tried to act the same. Sure she could have a boyfriend, that’s cool. I mean right from the start, I knew I didn’t stand a chance with this girl, so why was I so surprised? Right? Well we ended up calling her cousin and her friends, and they were busy so they asked if we could kill some time before they picked up Gaby. So we went to Ikea and then to the Galleria. It was nice to spend a little bit more time with Gaby before she had to leave. Then we got the call, and we met her cousin and the friends to drop her off. I remember buying her a ring pop and telling her to have fun in Houston. Then we drove away. Karah, Terri and I, went for the rest of the weekend to that town outside of Galveston. It was nice, the wedding was little but nice. The ceremony was outside under a gazebo, and it rained on us. It kind of put a damper on the whole wedding, but the reception turned out nice. It wasn’t too big, but it was in a nice place. The girls danced and had fun, and I just chilled out in my chair. I decided I would drive back so we started to head back later on that night. I think I drove about 4 ½ hours home, because the town was farther south than Houston. I loved driving though, it was something I really enjoyed. Plus it kind of took my mind off of Gaby, who at this point I was pretty confused about. So did she or didn’t she have a boyfriend? And even if she did, would it really matter to her? He’s far away right? Was she that type of girl to do that? I dismissed that thought. I mean I thought me and her had been making a little progress, was that just in my mind? These questions were something that I had been fighting in my mind. I knew I liked her, and I sort of thought she liked me, but could I be wrong? I mean girls can flirt and act like they like you, but still in their minds only see you as a friend. So I tried to not think too much of it. I knew we were good friends, but I didn’t want to get ahead of myself and think we were more than that. So now that both girls were gone, the group slowed down quite a bit. Matt and I still hung out like usual, but the group as a whole started to break slightly. I remember one day, I was at the computer at home and I was checking my email. I went to my address book to check an address, and there it was, staring right back at me. “Hermosa Preciousa” I had forgotten I had gotten her email address. I wondered if I should send her an email, just to say hello, how are you doing, that I like you more than any other girl on the planet. I contemplated it for a while, and then came to the conclusion of, why not? So I wrote her a short email. I asked her if she was doing ok there in Houston, hope she was having fun, and that we all (well just me) missed her in San Antonio. I didn’t know if she would write me back, for all I know she could have been tired of me and was glad to be away. So I let it be. I checked my email everyday of course, and not to long after I got her reply. She was doing well; her and her cousin were going to a high school to learn some more English. She was doing basic things, movies, going out to eat, and other things. She never made mention of the guy in Mexico though, the one she was or wasn't dating. I never asked about it either. We actually emailed a lot. Every other day I would get one from her, sometimes I would even see her on MSN and we could chat. We actually became closer friends over the email and the chat lines. I guess when you’re talking through an email, you only have so much. You have to get to the point of the matter, because if you don’t say what you want to say before you push “send” you’re out of luck. Nothing is better then being in front of someone and seeing their expressions and the way they react to you. But for people like me, people who find it easier to write down their thoughts instead of say them outloud, it was the way I preferred. The months went by quickly. 9/11 ocurred, because of which she wrote me saying she was scared to fly. I wished for her return to me. Karah told me she would be coming back soon, and she would be bringing her cousin with her. November started. Now I have for some reason, had a thing with the winter months. And winter to me means November and December. I always seem to find girls in the winter. My first girlfriend was named Alison, and I had met her before in the summer. But I got to really know her at Garner State Park during Thanksgiving Vacation. Which is in November. I got my first kiss under a bridge downtown a month later, on Christmas Vacation. After that went sour (stupid whore) , I didn’t have another girlfriend for a while. Then I went to Vallarta in 1998 and met Iliana, even though I attempted to like her, we turned out so much better as friends. I met her on a warm Vallarta day, in December. Then came my second girlfriend, Becky. I met her at my aunt’s house on a cold winter day, you got it, in December. But Gaby was different, she would break the cycle of my winter girls, I had met her in July. The most unwinter months of them all. So I waited for Gaby’s return. Karah called me and said she was going to arrive during the day, I don’t remember what day, but it was right at the beginning of month, and it was a weekday. Karah asked me if I wanted to meet her and the girls for lunch that day, so I said sure. I arranged it with my boss to take longer lunch and drove over to the place. They had picked Cheesy Jane’s as the place. It was a good little hang out, they had burger and fries and milkshakes. I remember getting there as they were pulling up. Gaby got out of the car, she was still beautiful. I was so happy to see her again, we ate lunch, the 4 of us, and then we parted ways. I was ecstatic she was back in San Antonio, I wanted to hang out with her again, do more things then we did before. I wanted to see if this girl liked me. Because I so much liked her.