Caprese was totally flabbergasted. She was on a mission to create the website/blog she always dreamed of. She wondered if she should stick with WordPress to host her site. Alternatively, should she choose another host? There were many available. Or maybe no host at all. She bit the eraser on her pencil. She scrolled through the information available to read about websites, hosts, blogs, and such. Her nails were already nubs from her biting, so she figured she would choose another nervous tic. The eraser on her pencil was the victim. Sipping her steaming cup of coffee with sweet and creamy coffee creamer, she sat back for a while. She thought to herself, I could be enjoying myself, actually writing on my blog instead of stressing myself out. These are nonsense articles that claim that one is better than the other. Who really knows? The real question should be which one makes me the most comfortable writing on. Is it the cheaper one that offers the most features I want? I could ask friends their opinions, but that’s just it; it’s their opinion and not necessarily the best for me. However, insight would be beneficial. Who knows. Caprese gave up. She decided to go to bed. She wanted to get a good night’s rest. Then, she planned to come back to her keyboard in the morning. Maybe, just maybe, a light bulb will magically appear in her brain when it’s well rested, she thought.

As soon as she woke up, her chest felt like a ton of bricks. Her breathing seemed shallow, so she inhaled deeply to get all the oxygen she could get into her lungs. Her heart felt like it would beat out of her chest. She thought… Maybe if I pinch myself, I can know that I am dreaming. Was this really happening? Caprese was extremely anxious. Here she was the next morning, groggy, unmotivated, and worried with anxiety. She thought she should eat something but she didn’t know exactly what she wanted to eat. Honestly, the thought of eating anything made her feel like she would dry heave,so here she was, trying to distract herself.

Caprese had a tennis ball she used to bounce on her hardwood floors in her studio apartment. However, she wanted to roll on the floor in fear. How did she find herself in this situation? The alarm she set for mid-afternoon sounded, and she was distracted from my thoughts. How in the world was it this time already? Then she remembered the time she woke up was late in the morning. Her job interview was scheduled for two pm this afternoon. She needed to clean up scrap papers on her computer desk. After that, she needed to freshen up. Then, she would dress in a casual but respectable outfit. Her closet was almost bare of clothes to wear for things such as a job interview. It consisted of t-shirts and yoga pants. and clothes that didn’t fit. However, she found a nice-fitting cream blouse and charcoal gray dress pants. Her tan dress shoes were comfortable; they would look perfect for the outfit she wanted to wear for the interview. Caprese couldn’t believe it! She was being interviewed by the local newspaper for a spot in the newspaper to feature her blog.

Later that evening, she plopped on the couch after she turned on the T.V.  to the show,NCPD: (in the dialogue for a show Caprese likes on TV …Carly, “You jumble your words when you speak about it. I think it’s probably because you feel jealous and mad about it. You don’t even know what you are saying, “said Claire.)

Caprese stared at her TV screen. Her brain was like a blank slate. For a writer, that is how Caprese felt this evening, a blank slate. She had returned to her apartment after her interview. She wanted to find something that would distract her from thinking about all the things. TV seemed like a good choice. So here she was watching the tube while staring at her computer.

On Saturday, she paused to think about the events that lead her to where she was now. She remembered how, in the local paper, there was an advertisement for a new columnist/journalist. Then she remembered where she landed the perfect job she now has. Caprese would start her first day on Monday. 

Today was her first day at her new job and she thought she was prepared. But, she felt far from prepared. Here she was. She was eating her lunch in her cubicle while stressing about writing the first draft of her first blog post. In the middle of her daydreaming, she noticed there was another person in the office with her. She saw that the woman was walking towards her, smiling. It was then that all her stress seemed to melt away.

… LET ME INTRODUCE YOU TO HELEN-the friend, Caprese was about to meet…

In the mornings, before Helen started her workday, she would always seem to be searching for her TUBE of lipstick. I mean, it’s not like she had several of the same colors, just lying around for her to lose one. No, the store had discontinued her color of choice. The last time she shopped the department store, she bought all the lipsticks they had in her color. She hoped they would last a while. At least until she decided on a new favorite color. It seemed like she didn’t have time to sit down and choose a lipstick color these days. She was handling so many responsibilities. Things had to lighten up. Even still, Helen faced her day like a deer in the face of car lights.

On her way to work, she had CRUEL thoughts that made her shirt SOAK in tears. Helen tried to hold those thoughts back. The last thing she wanted was a tear-stained shirt, early in the morning. She noticed that the YELLOW rose bush in front of her reserved parking space at work was covered with blooms. That made her smile. She thought about the CRAB meat she had at home for supper. Also, watching LABYRINTH, the movie, would hopefully relax her. Bringing herself back into focus, Helen opened the car door and stood beside the car, taking a Superman pose. She could do this!

Helen walked into the break room to punch in her time card. She overheard the conversations of the goody two-shoes excuse for a columnist. “Funny, you should ask. It’s me. I’m the oldest thing I use daily.” Helen’s co-worker was mocking her love for writing prompts she used in her column in the newspaper. Helen thought in her head as the insult was blabbered out of her non-favorite co-worker’s mouth. I mean, “How would I continue to take the hurt of the comments? Am I supposed to commit myself to a mental institution?” Helen said. So, that day, for lunchtime, Helen laid her forehead on top of her hands. She chose to sit at her desk to eat lunch instead of going out to eat with her coworkers today. Just a few minutes of peace before they would be back at work. Why would name-callers and those who make fun of others not seem to suffer for their evil deeds? She brushed those thoughts aside. Helen couldn’t think about that now. She grabbed her earbuds to listen to her favorite music. Maybe music and her turkey sandwich would ease the pressure on her nerves. At least she hoped it would for a while, at least. That’s when she gazed at the cubicle across the room. A brown-haired lady sat there typing away at her computer. Helen noticed the young lady had an empty lunch bag with trash on her desk. This indicated she also ate her lunch at the office. The girl was new; otherwise, she would have gone out to lunch like everyone else. The girl probably didn’t know anyone, so Helen thought she would walk over to introduce herself. It’s important to be nice, Helen thought.

AND THAT BEGINS THE STORY OF TWO FRIENDS, CAPRESE AND HELEN…

Their first draft

Before this story SPIRALS out of hand, I want you to understand the CRAFT of their friendship. I say CRAFT because their friendship was like it was designed by the Lord God Almighty. Like a friendship that was a SIGNAL of Helen’s answered prayers. For a long time, Helen prayed for a friend who was not SHALLOW. She wanted someone deep in thought and deed. She did not want someone DENSE. She also wanted someone transparent. Therefore, the Lord SENT her Caprese, Helen believed. Like a SHELL is to an ocean, one would know if you found Helen, you would find Caprese. Friendship to them was loyal and not a SHAM. Many times, they were found during their lunch hour at work. They were SLAPPING their hands on their knees in a belly laugh. This happened because of something one of them said.