She kept her eyes straight ahead. Neither her head or her eyes turned over to him. For some reason this made him feel like she was telling him the truth.
"I'm a very jealous person. I like to think of people I date as belonging to me. Not like I'm their owner or something," she looked over at Todd for a moment then returned to looking at the road, "but you know that feeling when you're first dating someone? When you're both falling for each other? There's nothing more important in the world during that moment Anybody who's been in
love
knows it. When it's all over I can't stand being in contact with that person if it can't be like that anymore."
"Mm. That makes sense, how someone could feel that way."
"Like I said. It seems like a waste of time? Why not just talk with other people who I've never felt that way about?"
By Jasmine's tone, it sounded like she was actually asking him for an answer to that, although by words it seemed like a rhetorical question.
"So this friend we are going to visit. You must've never dated then right? I mean since you're talking."
"We have never dated." she said.
He began imagining who this guy might be. Even though she said she never dated him she must've had some attraction to him. He hoped that the guy was not too much more attractive than him. Hopefully not so much taller and more well built. He could still be more attractive by being interesting if the guy was only a little taller and stronger than him, but if the difference was too large there was no way he could compensate by being interesting.
"Are you getting jealous?" she said. It was like she was reading his mind. "Don't be."
Todd gave a whimper and hopped out of the back seat and came onto his lap. He held Todd so that he wouldn't go jumping on Jasmine in the driver's seat. She was smiling.
"No there's nothing to be jealous about. I mean I'm not looking to get into a relationship anytime soon." Then he awkwardly added quickly. "Not to say that you'd be interested or that you're even available or anything. Never mind what I just said."
"Relax. You talk so stiff."
From a side glance he sneaked while petting Todd, he caught a grin on her face. The hum of the
Subaru
's engine filled the empty time. He then realized that there was no music playing. He couldn't remember when it stopped.
"Hey, how come you left those photos at my place the other day?"
"Oh that?" she looked at him for just a moment. The grin was no longer there. "I think I should probably tell you that another time. We're almost here. But in short, they weren't what I was looking for."
