Page 25 of December Wishes
“Wow, you know my work schedule?”
“It hasn’t changed much since you started working here.” Ari sheepishly looked away, as if she had been caught stalking poor Skylar. “Do you have time for me to ask you something?”
Skylar glanced at the clock before sitting back down. “I’ve got ten minutes on my break.”
Ari nodded hello to John before sitting down in the other chair. Her heavy jacket and clomping boots made her sound like she weighed a hundred pounds more than she did. Then again, with a frame like that, she could have easily been 180 pounds of lean muscle mass.Maybe. I’m terrible at guessing how much people weigh.She’d believe it, though.
“Thanks.” Ari politely moved Skylar’s lunchbox to the side so she could fold both arms upon the table. “It’s about Mik. Oh, and this conversation never happened.”
Now I see what Mikaiya was getting at.If only she had texted Skylar an hour later! “I’ll do my best. Although I don’t know what you could possibly want to ask me instead of her. We’ve been here for a year already. You probably know her better than I do.”
“Well… I can’t ask her.” Ariana ran her hand through her hair, mussing up what had been perfectly combed only a second before. “Because this is kinda sensitive in nature.”
“That so?”
Ari glanced at the counter. John popped in and out of the kitchen, but otherwise, they were alone. “Yeah. It has to do with us. I mean, what’s going on between me and Mik. Like you said, it’s been a year since you two moved here. Guess I could use some outside perspective about our relationship.”
She’s gotta be kidding me…
“You think Mik is happy with me? Be honest.”
She wasn’t kidding!
“Uh…” Skylar nearly swallowed her tongue. “That’s quite the position to put me in.”
“Sorry. I’ve got a bunch of weird thoughts running through my head. You know that Mik and I were supposed to get married before she skipped town ten years ago, right?”
“Yeah, I heard something about that.” Oh, had she. When it wasn’t the first thing out of Mik’s mouth when they first moved there, Skylar had heard a million whispers on the townsfolks’ lips. Those who had been around for the big drama in 2009 were more than happy to share the story when given the chance. It was the sort of story Skylar wouldn’t have heard in Portland, where things that happened a decade ago were often forgotten thanks to the high turnover of residents.I was still learning about public access legends when I moved away.Shit, Skylar had no idea “Grimm” was filmed in Portland until six months ago. Someone from Paradise Valley told her, like it wastheirpoint of pride!
Ari scratched her neck. “Guess I was wondering if she thought it was worth it moving back, even if it meant she got back with me. Can’t ask her myself, because she’ll tell me whatever I want to hear. She doesn’t like rocking the boat much now. She’s changed a bit…”
“So have you, from what I understand.”
“No shit, huh? I think she had a bigger reaction to it than most. Then again, they saw me grow up as it happened. Mik disappeared for ten years and came back to see… this.” Ariana gestured to her square torso and the muscles beneath her coat. Becoming an EMT had been good to her physique, from what Skylar heard.Then again, I saw some of Mik’s old pictures. I don’t get it. Girls change when they grow up, too.Only in towns like Paradise Valley did eighteen seem like such serious adulthood to everyone around. As if people didn’t keep growing and changing – and that included physically. “Still, kinda weird that I’m the butch one now.”
Skylar shrugged. “It happens, I hear.”
“Guess I was wondering if Mik had said anything about our relationship recently. Don’t tell her this, but I’ve been thinking about our future. Not only moving in together – she told you about that, right? – but farther into the future. It’s hard giving up the love you have with your high school sweetheart. Sometimes I think I’m an idiot for getting back with her. Then I think about how right it always feels, you know? Like she and I were meant to be together from the moment we met. Ah, listen to me. I’m not making any sense. We knew each other a while before we started going out. Maybe I’ve been watching too much Disney since my roommate sprung for that Plus subscription.”
Skylar couldn’t help but laugh. “Are you a Disney Princess? Or is that Mik?”
“Oh, youknowshe’s the princess! That was true back then! You should’ve seen her on that softball team. Everyone’s favorite cute shortstop. She was in the running for homecoming queen before Missy Melonie scored the winning shot at the game that took us to the regional basketball playoffs. People don’t forget moves like that.”
Going to school in this town must have been a trip.Skylar was grateful she missed it.
“For what it’s worth,” she began, “Mik seems happy with you. Now, is she happy about living with her grandma and me? Not so sure about that. But she talks about you a lot. God knows she spends enough nights over at your place.” Skylar didn’t want to think about what those two were doing, although according to Mik, they spent many a night waking each other up with the snoring. “She clearly loves you. I try to not ask too many questions about it. All I know is what I see.” She bit her lip. “I think you’re the reason she can tolerate living in this town.”
That was supposed to inspire Ari into doing whatever it was she wanted with Mikaiya. Instead, she sighed. “Kinda afraid of that. If there’s one thing I know about her, it’s that she’s bigger than this town. I always kinda knew that she was never meant to stay here. She was always meant for places like Portland or Los Angeles.”
“As someone from the LA area, I can tell you that they’re two totally different places.”
“You know what I mean. Mik likes big towns. Lots of energy. Plenty of cultured people she can talk to. Have intellectual conversations. She was like that back in high school, too. Total English class darling who had discussions with the teacher while the rest of us were lost. She talks about wanting to go to Europe and Asia. I thought she was joking until she said she’d help me get my passport. She knows I’ve hardly ever been out of Oregon, never mind America…”
Skylar sympathized with her. There were plenty of small town minds in Portland, too.
“Guess I’m afraid I’d be holding her back if she decided to stay here because of me. I know she’s gotta look after her grandma, but Abby ain’t gonna be around forever. She’s got lots of spunk and spite in her, so I give her a solid ten more years. What about after that? We won’t be forty yet. What if Mikaiya wants to…”
Skylar interrupted Ari before this conversation continued into somebody’s pizzeria shift. “You can’t do that to yourself. Mik’s her own person. She makes her own decisions. Trust me. She’s good at forming a plan and acting on it.”
