A Tale of Two Omars by Omar Sharif Jr

Author:Omar Sharif Jr. [Sharif, Omar Jr.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-07-12T00:00:00+00:00

After a few months of dating, things began to change with Gabriel. He went to Mexico with friends, and when he returned, he was different. We became less physical and slightly less communicative. Since Gabriel was the first person I had truly dated and loved, I wasn’t ready to lose him, especially after it seemed I’d lost Mom. I tried to get his attention by working out more. I bought him gifts regularly and worked to keep up conversation between us, but he wasn’t responding. I didn’t know how to deal with it when Gabriel began withdrawing a little at a time, so I was persistent in finding other ways to keep his attention.

I went to see my cousin Lisa in May and asked her to borrow a thousand dollars so I could take Gabriel to the Turks and Caicos Islands, thinking it would make things better between us. At first, he was excited about going, and then, the night before we were to leave, Gabriel called me and said, “I don’t think we should go. I think it’s over.”

“What’s wrong?” I asked dismissively.

“It’s not you, it’s me. I’m—I’m a mess, Omar,” he replied flatly.

“No, you’re not,” I insisted. “You’re just stressed or something. That’s why you need this vacation. Let’s just go. We’ll have a good time and things will get better.”

Gabriel kept talking, but I wasn’t hearing him, largely because I wasn’t prepared to accept what he had to say. I knew something was going on with him, and it wasn’t good, but it didn’t have anything to do with me. I didn’t want to tell people we hadn’t gone on the trip that I had paid for. Besides, I was committed to making it work between us. After a round of convincing, Gabriel agreed, and we went on the trip.

Turks and Caicos should have ignited something in Gabriel. The clear waters, powder-white sand beaches, magnificent restaurants, and exciting nightlife offered a perfect romantic vacation for us. But the sweeping views and incredible backdrop didn’t change him. As soon as we hit the beach, I could tell by his behavior that I’d wasted my time. He stared at the ocean as if he were somewhere without me. Gabriel had told me how he felt, but my heart felt something different.

A few hours later, we went back to our room to change for dinner. We had plans to go to a nightclub that evening. I was hopeful the energy in the club would lift his spirits, and we’d have fun dancing and laughing the way we had before he’d gone to Mexico. While I was deciding what to wear, Gabriel took off his clothes, flung them over a chair, and went to take a shower. A small plastic bag with white powder dropped out of his shorts pocket onto the floor next to his shoes. I bent down and picked it up. My mouth fell open while I waited for my thoughts to catch up. My family had raised me to be against drugs, and until now, I’d never seen cocaine.

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