Just a Spoonful of Sugar, Chapter 11
Chapter 11. Enjoy. If this seems real, it's because they are mirrored images of what others have done to me.
Chapter 11: Life’s Confusing Paradoxes
At the same instant that Tamara was sleeping soundly in the room at Willy’s factory, Belinda had just left one of the many candy shops in town with a cloth bag in her hands and a determined look on her face. Her intentions were to buy as many of the Wonka Marshmallow Rounds as she could get her hands on.
After having visited three different shops and finding only a small number of the candy she was looking for, she decided to stop by the shop where Tamara worked. She knew that her roommate was employed there, but she had resolved herself to feigning ignorance as a means in which to influence the man in the pin-striped shirt who owned the shop. Maybe he would know where her elusive roommate had disappeared to.
How was it that Tamara had reacted in such a caring manner about a man whom she claimed to not even know? What if she really did know Willy Wonka? Belinda asked herself. Perhaps that was the reason why she was starting to have such paranoid suspicions about her roommate in the first place.
Ever since Tamara happened to find the evidence of her secret project scattered across the dining room table, Belinda had wondered why she had not even seen her roommate. In fact, she had stood and watched as the younger of them left to go to her room and lock herself away for the night.
It was no secret, Belinda Hutchinson had never really fallen in love. In fact, her experiences with men seemed to border on nights watching old movies with a box of tissues and a package of her favorite chocolate Marshmallow Rounds nearby. The actions that were taken in the movies always seemed to work, so why would they not work with her? Aside from quotations from films, she had composed poetry as well as copying words of love straight from classic literature.
Belinda knew precisely what she was doing and contrary to Tamara’s assertions, love letters and gifts were intended to be flattering, not offensive. After all, what was she doing besides giving the man of her dreams everything that she could? She simply wanted nothing more than to shower him with her affection and have said things returned.
What she could not understand was why he had yet to reciprocate such loving intentions.
Among other things, Belinda was completely convinced that she was doing nothing wrong. In fact, she was following the suggestions from the movies almost to a ‘t’. ‘Never give up’ and ‘always be willing to give fate a little nudge’, were the philosophies that she had internalized.
Ever since the day Belinda had laid claim to Willy Wonka, she had become jealous of anyone who showed even the slightest interest in the reclusive chocolatier. To this woman’s twisted way of thinking; he belonged to her.
As she walked, her feet shuffled along the ground as her thoughts drifted back to Tamara. There was no question in her mind, her roommate was behaving in a very strange and unsupportive manner. If she did not know any better, the negative words that Tamara had spoken obviously stemmed from incurable jealousy and immaturity. After all, it had been Belinda’s idea to ensnare Willy Wonka and not Tamara’s.
It is not my fault that I had the idea first, she thought with a smug smile. Just because Tamara has no boyfriend of her own, does not mean that she has the right to act so negatively about my good fortune.
While Belinda had completely convinced herself that she was doing nothing wrong, she did not let go of the assertion that any rationally-minded person would never have reacted as Tamara had done. In fact, the younger woman’s actions still remained a mystery.
As the sounds of her slopping footsteps brought her back to the present, Belinda’s thoughts continued to drift. Tamara had left without her umbrella, which she never did. Of course, that did not stop Belinda from contemplating why it was she had not even seen Tamara at home for more than twenty-four hours.
By this time, Belinda had finally reached the door leading into Bill’s candy store. The shop was still open, and it would remain as such until the next hour was due to strike. This would give her a good ten minutes.
She opened the door and calmly walked inside. Approaching the long counter that extended along the back wall of the shop, she stopped and observed the dark-headed man who was working there. In his hand, he held a jar of the rainbow colored Everlasting Gobstoppers. The star-shaped objects somehow beckoning her to come closer.
As she did, she noticed that he was focused on what looked to be an inventory list. His gaze would shift from the list to the candy and back again as she seated herself on a stool and waited. Casting a glance around, she released a sigh of relief when she noticed that she was the only customer in the shop.
This was a good thing, because among other things, Belinda did not fit into group settings very well at all. In fact, most people did not know this, but she did not feel comfortable around large groups of people. Instead of behaving in an accepting manner, she generally tried to manipulate them back to her way of thinking.
It was, perhaps for that reason that she had attached herself to Willy Wonka in the first place. She simply preferred one-on-one dialogues to groups.
Her abhorrence to group settings perhaps explained why it was the young woman was trolling the town looking for candy as opposed to being at work. The truth was, just before she had started to write her incessant letters to the chocolatier, she had been fired from her job. The rationale for it was incompetence as well as being unable to work compatibly with others. Because of incessant complaints by her co-workers, the boss had no other alternative but to dismiss her from the job.
As her thoughts shifted to that an angry scowl shadowed her face until the candy-seller raised his head and spoke, his voice suddenly bringing her crashing back down to earth.
“May I help you?” He asked.
Abruptly, Belinda opened her eyes to see that he had moved the gobstoppers back to their place on the shelf and tucked the inventory list away.
“Do you have any of Wonka’s Marshmallow Rounds by any chance?” She asked as she cast the bag with the other candy down on the ground by her feet. Knowing that he could not see it, she inhaled slowly and waited for him to respond.
“I have some left, would you like one?” He asked.
“Actually, I would like to buy all of them that you have,” she said, her voice emerging somewhat rude. She cleared her throat in the hopes of concealing that.
“I think I still have some left,” he said. “Wait here for a moment and I’ll go check.” Instead of going to the back room where he knew he had some, he made his way over to the shelf and retrieved the requested candy. As he returned to the counter, he watched as she dug in her purse and pulled out several bills.
Extending them to him, she put the candy in her bag, but kept one on the counter in front of her. Taking this as her chance, she cast a glance around the shop. “Excuse me for asking, but I was just wondering something.”
“What’s that?” Bill asked.
“I have this friend who told me that she works at a candy store here in town, and I have already asked at several places,” she began, the lie rolling off her lips as though practiced. “Does Tamara Jenkins work here?”
“Yes, she works here part-time.”
“Where is she now?” Belinda asked. “I mean; if she works here, then wouldn’t she be here?”
“Usually she is, but I gave her a few days off to work through some personal matters. She should be back here by Friday, though,” Bill offered freely. “Perhaps you might check back then.”
“You mean; she’s gone until Friday?” Belinda asked, feigning innocence.
“Yes, but if you’re her friend, then you can leave a message for her with me and I’ll be sure that she gets it,” Bill responded.
“No, that’s alright,” she said. Without thinking that he could easily catch her in an overt lie, she continued speaking. “I’ll probably see her later since we live together. I guess I’m sort of surprised that she’s not here because I haven’t seen her since she got home two nights ago. I suppose I figured that she would have come here as opposed to going anywhere else.”
He swallowed and looked at Belinda, his expression unreadable. It seemed clear that he was not quite certain as to what to make of her, but yet there was something in her words that concerned him. He watched as she casually bit into the candy. “Are you telling me that Tamara never came home yesterday?” He asked.
“M-hum,” Belinda nodded as another bite of chocolate and marshmallow disappeared into her mouth. “It’s strange because she never told me she was going back to Somerdale or anything.”
“She’s probably alright,” Bill said, his voice filled with unconvinced undertones.
Belinda shook her head. “I don’t think so.” Her words emerged in such an overtly syrupy sweet manner that Bill’s eyes unconsciously widened.
“Why do you say that?” He asked.
“No reason really,” Belinda said simply, but then looked directly at him and spoke, her voice a soft purr. “I just figured that she’d have left a message. She always leaves a message when she goes away.”
That was true, the candy seller thought. Tamara never left to go on unexpected trips without at least leaving a note saying where she was going.
Belinda took a deep breath and waited for her roommate’s boss to tell her something reassuring. Right at that moment, her imagination was starting to play strange and unusual games with her. What if Tamara had run off to the factory and was trying to win over Willy Wonka?
Bill took a deep breath. “If I hear anything, I’ll call your apartment. I take it you have the same phone number as she does.”
Belinda took a deep breath. “Yeah, it’s the same,” she said as she packed up her candy and turned to leave the shop.
Chapter 11: Life’s Confusing Paradoxes
At the same instant that Tamara was sleeping soundly in the room at Willy’s factory, Belinda had just left one of the many candy shops in town with a cloth bag in her hands and a determined look on her face. Her intentions were to buy as many of the Wonka Marshmallow Rounds as she could get her hands on.
After having visited three different shops and finding only a small number of the candy she was looking for, she decided to stop by the shop where Tamara worked. She knew that her roommate was employed there, but she had resolved herself to feigning ignorance as a means in which to influence the man in the pin-striped shirt who owned the shop. Maybe he would know where her elusive roommate had disappeared to.
How was it that Tamara had reacted in such a caring manner about a man whom she claimed to not even know? What if she really did know Willy Wonka? Belinda asked herself. Perhaps that was the reason why she was starting to have such paranoid suspicions about her roommate in the first place.
Ever since Tamara happened to find the evidence of her secret project scattered across the dining room table, Belinda had wondered why she had not even seen her roommate. In fact, she had stood and watched as the younger of them left to go to her room and lock herself away for the night.
It was no secret, Belinda Hutchinson had never really fallen in love. In fact, her experiences with men seemed to border on nights watching old movies with a box of tissues and a package of her favorite chocolate Marshmallow Rounds nearby. The actions that were taken in the movies always seemed to work, so why would they not work with her? Aside from quotations from films, she had composed poetry as well as copying words of love straight from classic literature.
Belinda knew precisely what she was doing and contrary to Tamara’s assertions, love letters and gifts were intended to be flattering, not offensive. After all, what was she doing besides giving the man of her dreams everything that she could? She simply wanted nothing more than to shower him with her affection and have said things returned.
What she could not understand was why he had yet to reciprocate such loving intentions.
Among other things, Belinda was completely convinced that she was doing nothing wrong. In fact, she was following the suggestions from the movies almost to a ‘t’. ‘Never give up’ and ‘always be willing to give fate a little nudge’, were the philosophies that she had internalized.
Ever since the day Belinda had laid claim to Willy Wonka, she had become jealous of anyone who showed even the slightest interest in the reclusive chocolatier. To this woman’s twisted way of thinking; he belonged to her.
As she walked, her feet shuffled along the ground as her thoughts drifted back to Tamara. There was no question in her mind, her roommate was behaving in a very strange and unsupportive manner. If she did not know any better, the negative words that Tamara had spoken obviously stemmed from incurable jealousy and immaturity. After all, it had been Belinda’s idea to ensnare Willy Wonka and not Tamara’s.
It is not my fault that I had the idea first, she thought with a smug smile. Just because Tamara has no boyfriend of her own, does not mean that she has the right to act so negatively about my good fortune.
While Belinda had completely convinced herself that she was doing nothing wrong, she did not let go of the assertion that any rationally-minded person would never have reacted as Tamara had done. In fact, the younger woman’s actions still remained a mystery.
As the sounds of her slopping footsteps brought her back to the present, Belinda’s thoughts continued to drift. Tamara had left without her umbrella, which she never did. Of course, that did not stop Belinda from contemplating why it was she had not even seen Tamara at home for more than twenty-four hours.
By this time, Belinda had finally reached the door leading into Bill’s candy store. The shop was still open, and it would remain as such until the next hour was due to strike. This would give her a good ten minutes.
She opened the door and calmly walked inside. Approaching the long counter that extended along the back wall of the shop, she stopped and observed the dark-headed man who was working there. In his hand, he held a jar of the rainbow colored Everlasting Gobstoppers. The star-shaped objects somehow beckoning her to come closer.
As she did, she noticed that he was focused on what looked to be an inventory list. His gaze would shift from the list to the candy and back again as she seated herself on a stool and waited. Casting a glance around, she released a sigh of relief when she noticed that she was the only customer in the shop.
This was a good thing, because among other things, Belinda did not fit into group settings very well at all. In fact, most people did not know this, but she did not feel comfortable around large groups of people. Instead of behaving in an accepting manner, she generally tried to manipulate them back to her way of thinking.
It was, perhaps for that reason that she had attached herself to Willy Wonka in the first place. She simply preferred one-on-one dialogues to groups.
Her abhorrence to group settings perhaps explained why it was the young woman was trolling the town looking for candy as opposed to being at work. The truth was, just before she had started to write her incessant letters to the chocolatier, she had been fired from her job. The rationale for it was incompetence as well as being unable to work compatibly with others. Because of incessant complaints by her co-workers, the boss had no other alternative but to dismiss her from the job.
As her thoughts shifted to that an angry scowl shadowed her face until the candy-seller raised his head and spoke, his voice suddenly bringing her crashing back down to earth.
“May I help you?” He asked.
Abruptly, Belinda opened her eyes to see that he had moved the gobstoppers back to their place on the shelf and tucked the inventory list away.
“Do you have any of Wonka’s Marshmallow Rounds by any chance?” She asked as she cast the bag with the other candy down on the ground by her feet. Knowing that he could not see it, she inhaled slowly and waited for him to respond.
“I have some left, would you like one?” He asked.
“Actually, I would like to buy all of them that you have,” she said, her voice emerging somewhat rude. She cleared her throat in the hopes of concealing that.
“I think I still have some left,” he said. “Wait here for a moment and I’ll go check.” Instead of going to the back room where he knew he had some, he made his way over to the shelf and retrieved the requested candy. As he returned to the counter, he watched as she dug in her purse and pulled out several bills.
Extending them to him, she put the candy in her bag, but kept one on the counter in front of her. Taking this as her chance, she cast a glance around the shop. “Excuse me for asking, but I was just wondering something.”
“What’s that?” Bill asked.
“I have this friend who told me that she works at a candy store here in town, and I have already asked at several places,” she began, the lie rolling off her lips as though practiced. “Does Tamara Jenkins work here?”
“Yes, she works here part-time.”
“Where is she now?” Belinda asked. “I mean; if she works here, then wouldn’t she be here?”
“Usually she is, but I gave her a few days off to work through some personal matters. She should be back here by Friday, though,” Bill offered freely. “Perhaps you might check back then.”
“You mean; she’s gone until Friday?” Belinda asked, feigning innocence.
“Yes, but if you’re her friend, then you can leave a message for her with me and I’ll be sure that she gets it,” Bill responded.
“No, that’s alright,” she said. Without thinking that he could easily catch her in an overt lie, she continued speaking. “I’ll probably see her later since we live together. I guess I’m sort of surprised that she’s not here because I haven’t seen her since she got home two nights ago. I suppose I figured that she would have come here as opposed to going anywhere else.”
He swallowed and looked at Belinda, his expression unreadable. It seemed clear that he was not quite certain as to what to make of her, but yet there was something in her words that concerned him. He watched as she casually bit into the candy. “Are you telling me that Tamara never came home yesterday?” He asked.
“M-hum,” Belinda nodded as another bite of chocolate and marshmallow disappeared into her mouth. “It’s strange because she never told me she was going back to Somerdale or anything.”
“She’s probably alright,” Bill said, his voice filled with unconvinced undertones.
Belinda shook her head. “I don’t think so.” Her words emerged in such an overtly syrupy sweet manner that Bill’s eyes unconsciously widened.
“Why do you say that?” He asked.
“No reason really,” Belinda said simply, but then looked directly at him and spoke, her voice a soft purr. “I just figured that she’d have left a message. She always leaves a message when she goes away.”
That was true, the candy seller thought. Tamara never left to go on unexpected trips without at least leaving a note saying where she was going.
Belinda took a deep breath and waited for her roommate’s boss to tell her something reassuring. Right at that moment, her imagination was starting to play strange and unusual games with her. What if Tamara had run off to the factory and was trying to win over Willy Wonka?
Bill took a deep breath. “If I hear anything, I’ll call your apartment. I take it you have the same phone number as she does.”
Belinda took a deep breath. “Yeah, it’s the same,” she said as she packed up her candy and turned to leave the shop.