Page 43 of Let Me

“I would love that,” I answer quickly before she can finish the rest of the question.

“Okay.Tell you what…I’ll pick a place close to my job.I’ll text you shortly.”

“Okay.”

“Alright.I’ll see you in a few.”

Sitting inside The Corner Grill, I watch Autumn come inside wearing a white blouse with a blue jean skirt that falls to her ankles.Both pieces hug her shape and complement her body.She’s a beauty – a sight to behold – and she’s taking time out of her day for me.

I stand as she approaches the table and say, “Hi.”

“Hey,” she says, sitting down in the chair across from me.“It’s good to see you.”

“You as well, Autumn.”

As she settles, the waitress comes over with a menu.It’s a work lunch for her, so she orders her food right away – a grilled chicken sandwich with fries.I’m not all that hungry, so I just order fries.

She says, “I was surprised to hear from you.”

“Why?”

“Well, you kissed me like there was no tomorrow on Sunday, and then you just disappeared.”

“I fell back into work,” I say, but I know from the expression on her face she doesn’t believe me, and she shouldn’t.It’s just an excuse.I didn’t contact her because I didn’twantto.I crossed the line by kissing her.I realize I can’t undo the kiss, so I thought separating myself from her would be the next best option.

It wasn’t.

It made me crave her presence even more.Sitting here with her right now is a relief.The void I felt from her absence is gone.I’m not scatterbrained.I can focus.Think.I’m at ease.I desperately needed this.

The food arrives quickly.Autumn takes a bite of a chicken sandwich that I imagine she’s had plenty of times before, then holds a napkin in front of her mouth and says, “So, tell me what exactly happened with your father?”

“He’s angry with me.”

“Why?”

I fidget with my glass of water and say, “He, like everyone else, thinks I’m wasting my life away.”

“Everyone else?”she asks, brows raised her eyes scanning my face like a barcode.

“Yes.My mother thinks it, too, but she’s always been the one to do everything in her power to appease me.She doesn’t want any rifts between us.No drama.No arguing back and forth like I do with my father.My mother is one of the most loving, kind-hearted women I know.”

“And your father is a bit more…um…stern?”

“He’s a businessman.His father passed the grocery store down to him, and he actually didn’t want it because it meant he’d have to forgo his dreams.But to satisfy his father, he took it on and kept the store profitable for years.He had bigger dreams for me.Told me to follow my dreams and not to worry about the store.I wasn’t supposed to be working there, bagging groceries.I was supposed to be an economist, an accountant, a city planner—I was to hold a position where I could make a hefty amount of money so I could pass my success down to my family.The thing is, there’s no chance of me having a family, so most of the things my father wants for me aren’t going to happen.It’s wishful thinking.That’s what I need him to understand, but he can’t wrap his head around it.He thinks I’m going to be here forever.”

“In a sense, you will be.”

“How’s that?”

“You’ll be in his heart forever.You’re there now, even though it may not seem that way.His anger is a direct result of the love he has for his only son.What parent doesn’t want to see their child thrive and win at life?”

“You’re right, of course, but I have to look at situations realistically.”

“And what’s real to you?What do you want to do with your life?”

I throw both shoulders up and say, “I don’t know.”

“That’s not true.Youdoknow.”

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