Moving On Chicken-pot-Pie

“Do you think you ever entirely get over your first love?” I asked this as I forked a carrot out of my chicken-pot-pie.

Jackie and Kim both looked at me and I could tell that they knew exactly what was going on in my head.

“When did he call you?” Kim asked taking her eyes off of me to focus on removing the crust from the top of her pie.

“Who? What do you mean?” I asked, trying to seem clueless.

“Jess, when did Jess call?” She asked giving me a no-nonsense look.

“We know he did,” Jackie said, “so don’t even try to hide it. When did that prick decide to mess with your pretty little head again?”

“Last night,” I replied with a sigh, “but it was totally innocent. He wasn’t screwing with me. Just friendly conversation.”

“Uh, huh,” Holly said. “Friendly conversation which turns into continuous conversations, which turns into you getting stuck in is traps again and then released with more scars on your heart. We have been through this with you before, my dear.”

“I am over him,” I said, “I really like Blake and I know he treats me better than Jess ever thought about.”

“Then what’s with the original question?” Kate asked. “You don’t just ask something like that unless something is weighing on your mind.”

“Ok, you are right. You all are right.” I finally had to admit my weakness. “Ugh, I hate the control Jess has over me. He always treated me like crap, filled my mind full of lies, and I still have this uncontrollable attraction to him. I hate it!”

“Do you wish Blake was Jess now?” Kim asked.

“No, I don’t think so,” I said. “Do you mean like if Jess treated me like Blake does and we were together? I don’t know. I mean, no. No, not at all.”

“Oh, man,” Jackie said. “You’re screwed. Why did you even take his call? You know you can’t handle him, and you have such a good thing going with Blake.”

“I know,” I leaned back on the sofa and clasped my hands over my face to ease the pain in my head. “I should’ve known better. Plus, when Blake called later I was short and rude to him for no reason at all and I couldn’t help it. It was just all so wrong.”

“Well, you need to remember all the tears, heartache and humiliation Jess caused you in the past and then compare that to anything bad that Blake has done to you,” Kate said.

“Blake has never made me cry or feel bad,” I said. “All he has done is make me happy and put me first, but my heart still skipped a beat when I saw Jess’s name and number pop up on my cell phone. I should’ve had the reaction to hit ignore rather than act like a little boy-crazy junior high girl.”

“No luck, he’s your lost treasure, not that he is a treasure at all, but you know what I mean,” Holly said. “He is something you never fully conquered, and we all know how you and your achiever personality type are. I guarantee if you would have got Jess wrapped around your finger and then you be the one to end it, then we would not be having this conversation.”

“She’s right,” Kim said. “That’s how you roll, Lex. It is how the majority of girls roll. You have the routine of seek, conquer and then move on. If you don’t ever conquer, then you can’t move on.”

“So what do I do?” I pleaded. “Jess is unconquerable, and I am not going to jeopardize what I have with Blake on the hopeless chance of rekindling something with Jess.”

“Then you have no choice than to let it pass,” Kate said. “It will suck for a while, but in a couple of days you will forget about him again, like you had done before last night. Next time he calls, just don’t answer.”

“Jess wasn’t your first love was he?” Holly asked.

“No, well maybe, I don’t know,” I said, continuing to confuse myself. “I guess Riley was my first love, but that was young love so it doesn’t really count.”

“Blake is way better looking than Jess anyway,” Jackie said, taking a bite of chicken. “Not that Jess is bad looking, but Blake is better than him on so many levels. You really shouldn’t have any second thoughts.”

“I know,” I said picking my plate back up off the coffee table. “I spent so much wasted time and heartache on Jess. I just wish I could sit him down and tell him how much pain he caused me and make him realize what a selfish son-of-a-bitch he was.”

“That, my dear, is closure you may never get,” Kate said, “and I would not do it in front of a crowd and seem like the crazy ex-girlfriend. Maybe you can have a one-on-one with him someday, but don’t go through life with him always lurking in the back of your mind. That’s not fair to you or whoever you are dating.”

“You are right,” I said. “Jess never would have treated me the way Blake does and he never once apologized for any hurt he ever caused me.”

“You just have to move on, Lex,” Kim said. “You may never completely, one-hundred percent get over Jess, but the good thing is that you already have a head start. Last night was just a bit of a set back. You’ll recover from it and be going forward again. Trust me, and Blake is the perfect copilot for you.”

Holly’s Chicken Pot Pie

1 (8oz) can refrigerated crescent rolls
2 cups diced, cooked boneless chicken breast
1 can cream of chicken soup
½ cup low-fat milk
1 (16oz) bag mixed veggies
1 medium yellow onion chopped
2 celery ribs chopped
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon pepper
Buttered flavored cooking spray

Heat oven to 425°F. Spray buttered flavored cooking spray in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat on the stove. Add onion and celery, cook until slightly tender. Add chicken, veggies, milk, cream of chicken. Stir until well mixed. Add spices and reduce heat to medium low for two minutes. Poor mixture in a 9 X 13 casserole dish. Unroll crescents and place each strip on the mixture so that they evenly cover the filling. Place in oven and bake 15 – 20 minutes or until crescents are lightly brown and crisp.