his drink had just been brought by the waiter when his friend arrived.  "so, who do want me to be this time, the protagonist or the antagonist?"  the friend chuckingly asked upon settling to the chair in front.

"a little bit of both," came his reply.

"whoa, that's not good," his friend replied back.  "same old shit?"  the friend then asked.

he took a shot of his drink and played a bit with the glass with his thumb upon placing it on the table.  "yeah… so what else is new, right?  as you pointed out, 'same old shit,' different day," he sighed as he observed the ice on his glass slowly blend in with his drink.

"you see, that's what i don't get with women around you," the friend then bursted in, breaking the uneasy silence.  "i mean for god's sakes, they're staring at a surefire 'happily ever after' right in the face and they treat you like today's paper?  i mean, how dumb can they get?"

"easy there, you haven't had your drink yet and you're going ballistic already," he told the friend.  "i mean, i dunno… it's like… you know those professional basketball players, say in the nba, where there are dozens of very, very good players who take a run at chasing the championship.  some take different routes, different approaches, yet in the end, they come up empty handed, you know?  until such time that they get old, and they're still chasing it, and until they retire without winning one.  all their life–their careers–they're hell bent on getting one, just one, yet somehow, fate doesn't grant them any.  yet there are others who have two, three, four, even five…"  he then trailed off bowed his head down, then took another shot of his drink.

his friend, noticing that he's getting too serious, jokingly butted in, "sooo, you're comparing women to championship trophies?"  he let out a wry smile which slowly became a grin.  he then looked at his friend, and fired back, "i don't know what the hell i was thinking back there…"

as the laughter died down, he then told his friend, "hey, what do you want?" as he motioned the waiter to their table.  "i'm having what you're having," came the reply.  "another glass of mojito please, and add another one for my friend here."  "very well sir," the waiter acknowledged.  "this is your treat, right?"  the friend asked him.  "don't worry, i got you covered," was his reply.

"seriously, i know how you feel.  i know how it can be frustrating, especially for someone like you.  i know what you've been through, and i appreciate the trust you've given me, telling me everyrhing that's happened.  but sometimes, you know, you've got to hang in there.  keep the faith.  women are mysterious and surprising individuals.  believe me, i know.  just continue to be who you are and eventually, you'll get there," lectured his friend.

"i know.  i've always heard that," he replied.  "not just from you, but from others as well.  not that i don't appreciate what you're telling me, believe me, i do.  it's just that whenever i do find someone worth giving everything to, the same thing happens.  i get hurt, i heal, i start over.  it's a painful cycle, you know?"

"maybe you don't have to give your entire self, or not use all of your emotions or love to that person at first, but you know, just ease it up at first, then turn it up a notch as you go on," the friend suggested.

"but that's not me.  i'm not that way.  i'm an emotional person.  i don't know, that's how i was born, i guess.  and it doesn't feel right if i don't do it the way i do it," he lamented as the waiter arrived with their drinks.

taking a sip at the glass of mojito, his friend asked him, shifting in a slightly different direction, "hey, have you talked to this woman you told me about that you went to that disaster lunch with that you're going to stop seeing her?"

"nope, not yet.  i've asked her several times if we could talk, but she's either too busy, or avoiding that talk with me," he said.

"maybe she knows what you're going to say and doesn't want to hear any of it," the friend replied.

"maybe, but still, i have to tell her.  don't worry, she'll know." he replied back.

"speaking of talking, what's this i heard that a certain someone from your past started communicating with you again?  is this true?" his friend inquired.

"yeah, it is," he replied with a smile.  "it's surreal, you know?  i mean, she just came out of nowhere after about two years after ending a conversation on a bitter note.  i just couldn't believe that we're, well, 'talking' again." he continued.

"so what have you talked about so far?  did you have that talk about… you know, that 'talk?"" his friend prodded.

"no, not yet," he said as he took a sip of his drink.  "she just basically still remembered my mobile number and everything started from there.  i mean, i'm glad that we established ties again.  we used to be very, very close, remember?  maybe more than that.  but as far as what happened between us, i just told her that it's still an unclosed chapter in my life which may remain that way, or if fate would have it, would finally be talked about between us and close whatever needs to be closed."

"did she tell you about, well, maybe having that 'talk' at all anytime soon?"  the friend then asked.

"no, but i'm leaving it up to her.  if she wants to, then we'll talk.  although i did let her know that there are still some things i needed to know and answers to questions that i wanted to hear.  but i'm not forcing her to do anything.  as i've said, i left that chapter of my life in the backburner, although it's still an open issue, i've conditioned myself that that may be remained open forever, so as not to expect anything from her," he answered.

"well i hope she does have that talk with you, for both your sakes," his friend told him.  "by the way, how's this other woman you talked to me about?  has she made her presence felt after you two went out a couple of weeks ago?"

"nope, unfortunately not.  but you know her, she only remembers me when she misses me.  unlike me, i think about her all the time," he answered.

"you know what, you should drop her like a hot potato.  it's obvious that she's using you to fill her missing emotional needs because she knows how you feel about her.  she's treating you like a spare tire.  and you're not one.  you're in for the long haul.  she's not.  forget about her,"  the friend insisted.

he let out a deep sigh, took another sip of his drink and replied, "whatever… maybe… i dunno… let's just see what happens when she does holler."

"you know what," his friend started, "i have this frien
d once who told me, 'i can tell you what you need to hear, when you need to hear, or what you want to hear, but eventually, you're going to have to make that decision yourself.'"

he nodded at what his friend said.  "i know.  hey, thanks for listening.  i owe you one."

"no you don't.  you already paid for my drink, that's enough," his friend said, laughing.  "nah, you can always count on me.  i'll always be here," the friend continued.

he raised his glass and offered a toast.  "here's to you, my friend."

his friend met the toast and refuted, "no, to you, my friend.  here's to you hoping that you find that someone you've long been waiting for and finally making you happy."

"amen, my friend," and both of them burst into laughter.  "hey, i'm eyeing someone new, have i told you that?"  he said.

his friend was a bit surprised, sarcastically replied, "here we go again…"