That last week in Nantes was an evaluation. I'm strumming through my things and packing up a myriad of mementos. I'm checking all the drawers in the room, finally strumming through tourist books and hoping I haven't missed anything - be it a stray sock or an art installation. Meanwhile my friend and I are going in opposite directions. I found myself in that apparthotel a lot. The weather was seriously the worst. It was always raining, with a nasty overcast and ending with a bitter cold. Pretty much the good days were over. Fete de Musique was last weekend. The BBQ was that Sunday so all goodbyes were had with the dancers. I'd also sat most of that night playing Candy Crush Saga. I did this while everyone was enamored with watching a tour video. That night I think her friend was finally over me. She gave me several looks of death during this BBQ now turned viewing party. Seriously, I didn't understand why someone would enjoy watching themselves unedited for nearly two hours. I was rather full, extremely tired and it was better for me to play a game on silent mode then fall asleep. For that I think I was punished. My friend claimed that she needed to bond with them. Then she had several dates lined up with him. So I was left to my own devices which were always flukes.
One day I walked to the Paradis mall hoping for wi-fi. It had no air conditioning and a wi-fi network that lasted about twelve feet. While walking back her friend claimed she saw me as she was driving past. I guess I was walking too fast for her to bother offering a ride. Another day I took the tram as far as it would go. I then walked an overgrown park looking for this rose garden the one dancer had told us about. Instead, I found several old bag ladies and graffiti. I wanted to get my last croissant amande and the bakery I liked most was closed over two days straight. I finally decided we could both go see the chateau. She asked could we wait for warmer weather so that took a few more days. When it was finally sunny I was asked to meet her over their house to do our last loads of laundry and bring over the "not taking" bag. Since her friend had the luxury of owning both a washer and dryer we could go castle hunting that same day. Their silly washer took nearly two hours to wash and the dryer an additional two hours to "steam dry". I figured we could easily do a load and be back by the Electrolux chime. So I got all dressed up and did my hair and makeup. I then schlepped all the way to her friends house with both my laundry and my bag of unnecessaries.
When I arrived she wasn't even dressed. Yet I was wearing some statement necklace and had did my nails. I started our clothes while she looked at my huge duffle. Then she went to take a shower and upon her return I realized my whites were pink. They were pink from an orange scarf she had gifted me. Well not gifted me - she donated to me. She loved to donate things she didn't care for anymore. I typically re-gifted to my roommates and whatever they didn't want I officially donated without telling her. So I began to wonder could I go get bleach and get back in time for us to do anything at all. However, somewhere in between her judgement and my mistake she had mentioned that she wasn't going with me anywhere. That was the same night as her dinner and sleep over. So now I was dressed up with nowhere to go and being asked if I could hurry with my laundry so she could get to her date. I rode all the way to the store and got bleach and a sandwich. I ate my jambon & butter on the tram back because lunch and the chateau were now out of the question. Once back she left me to the laundry and I pretty much sat there for the next four hours. My clothes never got back completely white in the wash, so I put the clothes to soak in the sink and there in the kitchen I found a bottle of perfectly fine bleach in the cabinet. Once done with my laundry I put what I wasn't taking with the other stuff, packed the keepers in my new reusable bag from my unduly bleach trip and left the key under the mat for her friends. I then schlepped all the way back but now waiting for one of the last trams while cold in a sleeveless dress.
The next day I met her in front of the chateau. We went to see some other temporary exhibits and then entered the castle itself. We then left abruptly and later I realized we'd missed half of the chateau due to some haste on her part. She had already woken up at his place. Then she accompanied him on his way to work. Now she was with me and could not stop talking about him. I asked could we have lunch and she informed me she was meeting him for lunch. Then when he said he couldn't meet her we went to a burger spot. However, now she was asking me should she get him something. When he declined that too she seemed pissed off. He said he was going home to eat and I think it bothered her that he wasn't willing to come out or take her hand outs. So we left the burger spot abruptly so she could catch him at home. We were leaving in the morning and in my eyes there was still so much to do. I'd forgot certain things at the hotel that should have been in my leave bag. She was also now responsible for money I had transferred to her and I needed some cash. So we're walking down the street and she's scolding me. Why did I need money? Why was I trying to add stuff to the bag? She then handed me a 20 from her wallet and proceeded to walk away from me. Her last words were "is that enough?" I think I walked the streets for all of an hour before going back to my hotel. I didn't even have enough change to take the tram legally. So I wound up dodging controle for a bit. Then it occurred to me to break the 20 in a nearby kebab shop. So two French Coke liters later I was schlepping again.
Once back at the hotel I realized I hadn't left much out. I just had some multi buy things like these Christian LaCroix tins and French Tic-Tac boxes I didn't necessarily need in Paris. I also had makeup I'd bought and I just didn't want to travel with loose pigment in glass jars. Besides all the major stuff like my Tous cross body purse, all my H & M skirts and long sleeved things were at her friends. Those were all things I wouldn't need. I didn't bother to double check. Besides she made sure to tell me how she'd already went through everything and merged it into her stuff. She didn't want to burden her friends with a lot since their flat was small and quite messy. All I got was an image of everything stuffed into my backpack which was originally inside of my duffel. So I ignored her for the remainder of the night, got drunk on French Coke and attempted to eat everything in my kitchenette. Anything left over including eggs and ramen noodles were placed in a donation bag for her friends. On the way to the train station I reminded her friend several times to make sure she got it out the backseat. In the back of my mind I imagined her stopping just outside of the train station and catapulting it all into trash. One could hope she'd forgotten and found garlic salad dressing and rotten eggs well after we'd gotten into Spain. I'll never know.
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