Page 86 of Into the Mountains
“You were right?” He says it like a question.
“Ooooo, please say that later, but naked.”
“But naked orbuttnaked?” His smile radiates to his eyes and I want to trace the lines that appear in the corners there.
I roll my eyes at his sad attempt at puns and ask, “What was I right about?”
“Ethan catching on. The last thing he said was to have fun on my date with Charlie.”
We both laugh and I point in his direction. “Your kid is so smart sometimes, it’s scary.”
“Trust me, I know. And he’s probably going to be a hostage negotiator when he grows up at this rate.”
“Convinced you to get another cat, huh?”
“Another three-legged one, because he thinks Hobbles feels lonely with siblings that aren’t really like him. Says he would feel more comfortable and safe if there was a kitten there that was like him.”
I nod my head to the side, considering. “I mean, he does have a point. Everyone likes to be seen in someone else. Likes to feel seen or relatable in some way and it must feel lonely to not have that.”
“Which is why we are more than likely getting another one. But this is the last one.”
“Sure it is.”
Our second first date flows smoothly and even though we’ve been technically seeing each other again for the past week or so, it feels natural. Like this is where I was supposed to be all along. But the universe has a way of meddling and exposing the path She wants you to take as we go along. Even though we lost years that we could have spent together, I wouldn’t change the way it’s turning out now.
I feel like I’m floating on a cloud. Practically weightless, being whisked off to magical worlds I’ve never seen before while we sing in harmony together about all the sights we see. A lot of time has passed since I have felt anything close to this feeling.
We walk hand in hand to the car and I can’t help but ask again. “What did Frank tell you earlier when he whispered in your ear?”
“He told me not to squander my second chance,” he answers.
“Oh did he now?” I twirl my body around toward his and almost crash into his chest as he tugs me in.
“He did.” Skin to skin, heat sings through my body and it’s a chorus I wish could be a never-ending one.
“And are you going to take his advice?”
With a firm press of his lips just long enough to coax that little fire inside a bit more, he responds, “I’d be an idiot to do otherwise, honey.”
And just that one little word brings me back to a past I thought I moved on from.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
CHARLOTTE
FIFTEEN YEARS AGO
“Such an idiot.” Mom brushes my hair back with her fingers and kisses the top of my head while Dad listens in the kitchen, busying himself with the coffee pot.
The gurgling water echoes through the large space and it makes me think of the last time we were all seated around the coffee table, four people taking up space instead of three. Four cups of coffee leaving behind the scent of freshly ground beans, with voices permeating the space in between sips. Nothing but laughter and the feeling of all things good.
Knowing it’ll never be like that again deepens the crack left in my chest and opens it a little bit more, my sobs more intense, mourning for the person I thought I’d have longer than a summer. Longer than the few short months we spent together.
Mom doesn’t say anything else as she strokes my hair and occasionally tries to soothe me with her words of affirmation. “You are so much stronger than anything he could do to you.Feel your pain now, but don’t let yourself drown in the hatred you’re going to feel. It’ll be okay.”
She’s had a good day today. The day nurse said earlier that she’s been mostly lucid. When I came home with tear-stained cheeks and went to the couch to her side, I was shocked she asked what was wrong. She wasn’t confused as to who I was. She was just there, which made me cry even harder for a completely different reason.
Coffee mugs are set down on the table with low clunks as I finally get my tears under control. I can only imagine what I look like as I come up from my mother’s arms and bring my hands to wrap around the mug Dad put in front of me. It’s a plain navy blue mug. No puns, no funny pictures. Just darkness. Poetic.
