served crackers, cheese, and champagne. I wasn’t one to drink too much, but I gladly accepted the champagne to calm my nerves. I wasn’t sure if I felt nervous about actually going back home or some other reason. A reason I knew but didn’t want to admit. A reason I was hoping wouldn’t pop up at the last minute. Home held nothing but memories of Finn. Gulping down the rest of the champagne, I took a deep breath, popped in my headphones and turned on my iPod. Thank god for good music and short flights. Feeling tired, I hit the play button and ‘The First Time’ by Boys Like Girls came on. How fitting I thought to myself, as I dosed off before we’d even left the runway.
We landed in Boise about ten minutes ahead of schedule, which was good because I was more than ready to get off and stretch my legs. Nothing kicked off a weekend away from home like two screaming kids in coach, and a passenger behind me who—despite all the leg room you get in first class—couldn’t keep their knees out of my back.
After exiting the plane I walked down to the baggage claim and waited for my suitcase to come around on the carousel. I looked around at all the passengers and wondered if they were here to see family, there on business, or taking a vacation from life. If I were them, I’d choose the latter.
Spotting my bag, I hauled it and myself over to the Hertz car rental and after filling out all their paperwork, went out of the terminal and saw my car waiting by the curb. I smiled to myself because Weston would have shit his pants if he’d been given this small little Ford Escort. I didn’t need anything fancy or big since it was just me. After loading up the car, I climbed inside, adjusted all my mirrors, and started making my way to the highway headed east. I plugged in my auxiliary cord so I could listen to my music instead of the radio and started blasting All Time Low through the speakers. I loved this band and I was rocking out and singing at the top of my lungs.
Taking my time and driving the speed limit, about an hour and a half later I was finally pulling into Mountain Home. Looking around, not much had changed since I left. The Wal-Mart was still at the end of town and hadn’t been made into a Superstore thank god. I smiled as I passed the local coffee shop, Beans. That place held a lot of memories of after school study sessions, hanging out, and sitting on the plush purple couches inside holding hands with Finley. It sort of felt surreal being there again. I was overwhelmed by lots of good memories, and lots of memories I’d pushed away because they caused me pain.
My parent’s house was in the middle of town but it only took a few minutes to get there. Pulling into the driveway, I put the car in park and sat for a few minutes looking at my old home. Dad had apparently found time to fix the shutter that had always been hanging on by a nail, and was literally one gust of wind away from falling off. But other than that, the place looked exactly the same. The lights in the living room and one of the bedroom lights upstairs were on. Taking a deep breath, I opened my door, unloaded my bags and made my way to the front door. “Here we go” I whispered to myself.
The front door swung open and I found myself wrapped in my Dad’s arms. Richard Tucker was the most loving man I knew. He was about six feet tall, had a little bit of a belly, and a dark head of hair that is starting to go grey. I would never tell him that though or he’d spend the next two hours in front of a mirror examining every strand of hair. He wanted to remain young forever. Either way, I loved him with my whole heart and he’d always made me feel warm and safe.
“Oh baby girl, I’ve missed you so much.” He said squeezing me extra tight. It felt so nice.
“Hi Dad. I’ve missed you too. Where’s Mom?” I pulled back a little bit to look into his chocolate brown eyes.
“She’s fussing upstairs with your old bed, trying to make everything perfect. Don’t give her