Hello. Goodbye - Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight.

Jamie woke up the next morning with the biggest headache, ever. Getting home at five in the morning was definitely something he didn't miss from his younger years.

A few friends called him out after dinner. Since it had been a few years since he'd seen many of them he gave in. Turns out he'd be the designated driver who had to chauffeur everyone home. He didn't mind. At least it got him out in the world mingling with people other than his teenage siblings and senior citizens.

Of course he didn't forget about the woman who currently stirred something inside of him.

He never felt this way with any of his ex-girlfriends. Never felt a sense of natural chemistry. Is that what you call it? He wasn't sure.

What he was certain of, was that the comfortable silence that fell between them at times was worth more than two bags full of gold.

Even more, was that he actually found it easier to express how he felt, the moment he felt it. He didn't want to be upset last night and even though his typical first gentlemanly instinct would be to let it go, he showed her he wasn't happy.

Jumping out of bed, he hoped she hadn't left the city.

Grabbing his cell phone he noticed the time. 3pm.
"Oh no..." He moaned.
Getting ruggedly dressed in jeans and a plain shirt, he zoomed down the stairs.
"Where are you going?" His mother asked.
"Gotta go, Ma. I'll be back soon."
"OK..."

Jamie threw the front door open as he burst out to the front porch.
He was stopped on his tracks with the sight before him.

"Finally," Lily muttered with an exasperated sigh as she got up from the front porch step she had been sitting on for a few hours.
"What time did you get home? Must have been early in the morning if you slept this late."
"Yea, 5 in the morning."
"Have fun?"
"Yup."
"That's great," she replied dryly.

Suddenly she felt enraged inside, but her cool exterior, of course, covered it.

Recently she had noticed she was able to express how she felt on her face when she was with him. She hoped today would be an exception.

Lily was fighting hard not to feed the bad monster within her. The big bag Jealousy monster, that is.

As if he could read her, he asked, "Jealous?"
She huffed out loud, "No. I have no reason to be. We hardly know each other."
"You've learned a lot about me since we've been together here."
"I have," she agreed, "your life here is completely different from the life you left back home."
"That's your home. Not mine."
"Yes, it is. And I'm starting to think, maybe I should start heading back..." Uncertainty began to creep in her mind.
"So, why are you here?" He asked.
"I promised you I'd come back."
"Promise fulfilled." He didn't know why he was beginning to act like a jerk. This wasn't him.
"Right... So, you want me to go?" She asked cautiously.

Why did she feel like she just swallowed a clump of sawdust that was getting bigger and bigger by the second.

They stood there awkwardly. Why was this different? The slow conversation they just had didn't feel at all the way it was just yesterday or the days before.

Shoving the big bad jealousy monster aside, she blurted out, "I don't want to leave."
Just as he blurted, "I don't want you to leave."

"Good. Because your mother invited me to stay in the guest room until I'm good to go back."

Jamie's eyebrows rose in disbelief.

"My mother? Let you, a woman friend of mine, sleep under the same roof as me?"
"Not like you'd pounce on me or anything. We had a chat in the morning."
"How long have you been here?"
"Since 10 this morning."
"Wow.. And all that time you two were talking?"
"Yup..."
"Well? About what?"
"I told her.. About, you know... My promotion..."
"Oh..." He frowned, "Can we not go over this again? I never liked that job. Getting fired has been the greatest move forward, so far. I'm not mourning my job."
"You might not be, but I sure as hell am."

Taken aback with her off-hand comment about his old job, his head snapped around to look at her deep frown.

"I'm thinking of quitting. Your mother just helped me to think first before I decide impulsively."
"Yeah, she would say that. She's the most practical woman I know."
"She has great advice."
"Sometimes her practicality makes me think that may be I'm wasting my time."
"How? What makes you think that?"
He shrugged, "It's just a feeling I get. Sometimes, I feel like I'm loafing around when I should be in a stable job and not chasing after some artist's dream."
"But she's fully supportive of your dream. She said so. This is the perfect time to go off and try your hand at a dream because of your family's full support."
"You really think so?"

"Yes. If your mother wasn't behind you, I think she'd be the first to say so."
"You're right, she is like that. Hmm.. so you got to know her in just one sitting?"
"We're not the best of friends or anything. What I do know is how much she cares about nurturing her children's dreams."
"Speaking of dreams... what was your dream, growing up?"
"To be a teacher."
"So what happened?"
"I realized I didn't like public speaking."
He chuckled, "That, I can understand."

She playfully slapped him on the arm and he slipped it around her waist as they walked in comfortable silence all the way back home.