Are you busy? Or is this a bad time? I saw that old microphone in the window of the shop on Verity Street today, the one with the rusted stand. It looked so lonely sitting there, like someone just forgot to turn it off and walked away. It made me think of... well, it doesn't matter. Are you actually doing something?
I'm just sitting here. The radiator is making that clicking sound again, it's driving me mad. You always get so poetic about old junk, though. It's just a microphone, Ana. Why are you acting so weirdly? You've been hovering around a specific point all afternoon. Just say it.
It’s not "just" a microphone, Pia. That's a reductive way to look at things. How can you even know it's just junk? It’s all just... people's things, isn't it? Anyway, you're being uncharitable. The radiator is just old. It's not like it's trying to be difficult. I suppose what I meant was... well, it’s a bit much to just drop a thing on you out of nowhere. Even if it is important.
If it's important, then just say it. Don't make it a whole thing about the hardware. You've been circling that shop window for ten minutes in your head, but you haven't actually said anything. Is it about your job? Or is it something else? You're making me wait for nothing.
The job is fine. It's just paperwork and those endless meetings in the conference room with the bad lighting. You're being impatient. Everyone expects everything to be a grand revelation, but life doesn't really work like that. It’s just... I was thinking about what happened last Tuesday. At the dinner. Before we left. It’s not that you need to know everything right this second, though you're making it very difficult to focus.
Tuesday? We hardly said anything at dinner. You were too busy staring at your wine glass like it held the secrets to the universe. If you're going to bring up a Tuesday dinner, just get on with it. I have to finish these files before bed, and they're incredibly dull.
You’re so focused on those files. They’ll still be there. And you don't even know if my wine glass was the point, do you? You assume because you're looking at the glass that the glass is what's important. It’s a lazy assumption. But... Tuesday. Everyone was so loud. It was almost too much. I almost told you something then, but then Marcus started talking about his promotion and... well. It’s just about the silence.
Marcus is always loud. He doesn't know how to turn it off, so why act like his promotion ruined your moment? You're making this so much more dramatic than it needs to be. If there's something about Tuesday—really something—then just tell me. Otherwise, you're just making a mess of the evening.
It’s not a mess, it's just... messy. Why do you always want it to be so tidy? You assume there’s a neat little package to hand you. But it's more like that microphone, just sitting there. Marcus is just a distraction. The real thing is... well, it's about the way you looked at me when we were walking to the car. It was almost like you were waiting for me to say something. But then you didn't.
I wasn't waiting. I was just wondering why you suddenly looked so somber. You always do that, though—turning a simple walk into some heavy, silent drama. If you have something to say, say it. Don't turn it into a mystery of how we looked at each other. It’s exhausting.
How do you know you weren't waiting? You act like your own reactions are objective facts. It’s exhausting to be the one constantly pulling the thread while you just sit there and wait for the knot to loosen. It's just... something happened with the lease at the office. Or at the apartment. It’s not about the look. It’s about the fact that when we were walking, I felt like... well, it's nothing. It's just a feeling.
The lease? You're jumping from the look on my face to the apartment paperwork? You're all over the place. If you're losing the flat, just say you're losing the flat. Don't make it about a look or a microphone. You're making me work too hard to find the point.
Is that what you think you're doing? Working to find the point? You act like there's a clear path here. The lease is just a thing, it's a logistical mess with the landlord, nothing more. But when the light hit the window on Tuesday, as we were leaving... it was like everything became very quiet for a second. Even with Marcus. It's just that... well, the lease isn't the thing. It's much more inconvenient than that.
"Inconvenient" is such a vague, cowardly word. You're acting like you've been carrying a heavy secret all day, but you're only giving me these little crumbs. If the lease is more than just a mess, then what is it? Just say it, Ana. Stop making it so difficult.
Why do you need a grand gesture? You act like if it isn't a explosion, it isn't worth saying. It's just a thing that's happening. The landlord wants the place back, but that's not even the crux of it. The crux is... well, there was that moment at the table. Before Marcus started his little speech. You looked so certain of everything. It made it harder to tell you that I might not be able to stay.
Wait, what do you mean you might not be able to stay? Are you moving? You're talking about the lease like it's some abstract problem, but then you say you might not be able to stay. Is this about the apartment, or is this about us? Stop being so vague.
Why must you immediately jump to "us"? That's such a heavy assumption to make. It’s just a matter of space, of where things belong. If the lease ends, there are other places. But when you ask it like that, it feels like a trap. It's just... Tuesday was when it really hit me. How you were looking at the empty chair beside you. It made the whole thing much more complicated.
The empty chair? You were sitting right there, Ana. You weren't looking at an empty chair. You're talking in riddles to avoid the actual conversation. If you're moving out because of the landlord, just say you're moving out. Why are you making me guess what's happening in your head?
You were there, but you weren't there, were you? You were already thinking about the next thing. That’s the trouble. You think because you can see the chair, you know what the space means. It’s not just about the landlord, though the rent is going up. It’s just that... if I move, it feels less like a new flat and more like... well, it's hard to explain without you making it a drama.
You're doing it again. You're retreating into these vague, heavy things to avoid being direct. "If I move..." If you move, where are you going? You're acting as if the mere mention of a new flat is a tragedy. If it's just about the rent, then just tell me the rent is going up.