Page 11 of Once Upon A Second Chance

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The Blue Pine Inn's neon sign flickers outside my window, casting erratic shadows across the fading wallpaper.

I sit on the edge of the bed, bourbon swirling in a motel glass, the granola box Penny touched sitting on the nightstand like some sad shrine.

My phone lights up.

Rebecca:You're really working in that hick town?

I drain the glass, the burn down my throat less satisfying than it should be. The ice cubes clink as I pour another.

The room smells like cheap cleaning products and the ghost of Penny's rose shampoo.

Then I’m back in Penny's dorm room, Knoxville, senioryear.

Rain patters against the window as Penny traces the Columbia acceptance letter with trembling fingers.

"You're really going?" Her voice is small, trying so hard to be brave. I pull her into my lap.

"Just for med school," I promise against her hair.

"I'll come back."

She turns to face me, green eyes glistening. "You'll forget me." I kiss her, slow and deep.

"Never."

The lie tastes bitter now.

I pick up my phone, thumbs hovering over composing a new message:

To Penny:Remember when you called bourbon "old manwhiskey"? I finally get it.

I stare at the words. Delete them. Type them again.

The bourbon isn't working.

Neither is the distance.

Outside, a car door slams. Laughter floats through the thin walls—some happy couple returning to their room.

I toss back the drink and reach for the granola box. The cardboard is smooth under my fingers.

Twelve years.

A divorce.

A thousand miles from everything I thought I wanted.

And the only thing that feels real is the way Penny's breath hitched when I reached past her in the grocery aisle.

My phone buzzes again.

Rebecca:We need to talk.

I turn it face down on the nightstand.

The granola box stays.

Chapter Four

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