Stages of Grace - By Carey Heywood Page 0,64
I still can't shake off the melancholy.
Ryan drives first, we are maybe five hours from Tampa, and we'll stop halfway for a bite and to refuel. I'll drive the last leg. I want to learn my way around, and Ryan promises to point out important landmarks.
"Do you think you'll apply at any doctors’ offices?"
"Probably. It’s all I really know how to do."
"Well, you don’t have to rush. You can work with me as long as you'd like."
"I don’t want to become a pain."
"You?" He seems shocked. "Impossible."
"That is sweet of you to say."
"I am sweet. UTAH!"
I laugh and shake my head at him. Yes, he is very sweet. When it’s my turn for the final leg of the trip, the increase of congestion on the road surprises me. What's the big deal on a Monday afternoon? I try to remember if it had been like this when I went with Kate to see the mermaids. One welcome change is the temperature. It must be eighty degrees. I shrug off my green cardigan at a red light.
"Is it always this beautiful?"
"We do get quite a bit of rain, which you have so far missed, but otherwise, yes. It is this beautiful most of the time."
"I might even get a tan."
"That'd be a shame."
I glance at him, one eyebrow raised in a silent question.
He shrugs and looks straight ahead. "You have lovely skin."
I don’t say anything. Part of me wants to argue his compliment, to say, ‘but my skin is so pasty.’ Instead, I allow myself to accept his compliment and maybe even believe it, making a mental note to buy sunscreen. When we are less than an hour away, I start to recognize places from my trip before. Little things, a road sign, a shopping center, a school. Ryan laughs each time I shout, pointing out something I think I've seen before.
When we pull into Kate's driveway, I turn excitedly to Ryan and say, "I live here now."
"That you do. Come on. Let's go find Kate."
When we get to the front door, I pause to let Ryan open it, until he reminds me that this is my house now.
"Oh right," I say, pushing open the door. "Kate," I call out. "We're here."
Kate slowly makes her way from the kitchen to greet us, pulling us both into a hug. She raises her hands to my face, placing one on each cheek and kissing me, then does the same with Ryan. After that, we begin unloading my car. Most of the boxes go straight into my new room. The ones that do not fit go in the spare room with the daybed. When Ryan carries my TV in, I can't decide where to put it. After talking with Kate, we decide to switch it out with the smaller TV in her living room. I don't have a cable jack in my new room so Ryan sets the old living room TV in the room with the daybed.
Kate sits in the corner chair and Ryan on my bed while I unpack my clothes. I'm almost surprised to see how much I have since I haven't done much shopping in the last year. Once I have the dresser filled, I confess I need a break.
"Pool?" Ryan asks.
"That sounds wonderful" I admit.
"I might even get in myself," Kate adds.
Kate and Ryan leave so we can all change. I'm the first one in the pool, Kate not long after. Ryan takes longer than I expect. When he finally walks over, he apologizes for the delay. There was a work call he had to take.
"Everything alright?" Kate moves over on the pool step to give him room to pass.
"Nothing big, just a technical issue with the credit card reader, but it's all sorted now."
"This feels so good." I had grabbed a float and am lying on my stomach. "I might just fall asleep."
"Like last night?"
"What happened last night?" Kate asks, looking at Ryan.
"Grace passed out, mid chat."
"I was tired. Moving is tiring" I try to explain.
"It was a first for me, I have to admit." He mock hangs his head in shame. "I didn't know I was so boring."
"You are not boring." I lift my head to look at him.
"Stop teasing her, Ryan." Kate flicks her hand at him, then turns to slowly get out of the pool.
"Need a hand, Kate?"
"I've got it, dear. Why don’t you get a raft like Grace?"
"Brilliant idea," Ryan says, swimming towards me.
"She didn’t mean mine," I say, paddling with my arms away