Chapter Thirty-Six
Now
Unlike some parents, Piper’s had opted to keep her bedroom exactly as it was when she went to college. Pictures from high
school dances and football games smiled in frames on her nightstand. Academic awards and her high school diploma hung on display,
and her collection of well-loved books filled floor-to-ceiling shelves along an entire wall. Even the stuffed bear she’d had
since birth sat jauntily on her bed atop a Carolina blue–striped comforter. Piper had once loved returning to her frozen-in-time
haven, but now she felt like a stranger, an out-of-place guest in her home.
Nothing had changed since her last visit home. Except her.
And because of that, everything was different.
She hated upsetting her mom, but Piper couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt freer—more excited about her life. Her confession
had wiped the slate clean, leaving a blank canvas to rewrite her story. No more awful medical lectures she didn’t care about.
No more late nights with the cadaver. No more feeling empty on dates with Tag.
Though the small matter of figuring out what to do with the rest of her life terrified her, an immense sense of freedom and
joy from no longer being shackled to any obligations dwarfed any fears.
Seven days had changed everything.
As soon as she’d set up her phone, her contacts having imported from the cloud as promised, Piper found Wyatt’s name and pressed call with a shaky hand. She’d blocked him ages ago but had kept his number to screen his calls, although she’d never needed to. It had been years since his name had flashed across her phone screen, and seeing it teleported her to the anxious teenage thrill calling him had always elicited.
When the call went straight to voicemail, she followed up with a text, letting him know she was home, had a phone, and would
love to talk when he had a chance. She added a heart emoji for extra measure.
Next, she dialed Allie, who picked up right away.
“How are you? How’s Wyatt?” Piper asked in a rush.
“Ha! At least you masked your reason for calling by asking about me first. I’m fine, and Wyatt’s doing great. Everyone at
the hospital is impressed by how quickly he’s bounced back. He’s coming home tomorrow.”
“He is? Oh, thank goodness.” Piper let out a breath.
“I’m surprised he didn’t tell you himself. He got a phone yesterday,” Allie mused. “I’m headed to the airport now to fly home
to Cedar Falls, and my mom and Wyatt should fly in tomorrow night.”
Piper’s heart sank like a stone in water. She’d called Wyatt the second she got her hands on a phone. Why hadn’t he done the
same? Was it possible he thought she and Tag were actually dating? Or had he changed his mind about her already?
“If you talk to Wyatt, can you tell him to call me?” She hoped her voice didn’t sound as distraught as she felt.
“Sure. Hey, let’s all get together Tuesday night at Charlie’s Diner, okay? Ethan’s flying into town that morning, and we’re
long overdue for a Lonely Only reunion.”
Piper enthusiastically agreed and signed off with Allie, already feeling like Tuesday was too far away when in reality, two more days in her parents’ air-conditioned home was nothing compared to the long, hot days on the beach. She caught up with Ethan next, solidifying plans and assuring him she was not too sick of the taste of prickly pears to enjoy a margarita with him in the future.
She tried Wyatt again and was about to leave another voicemail when her mom knocked on her door.
“Do you have a minute to talk?” her mom asked, walking into the room.
It wasn’t really a question, but Piper nodded, sitting up straighter against her bed’s headboard. Her whole body tensed, preparing
for a fight.
“I’m worried about you, Piper.” Her mom perched on the edge of the bed, clasping her hands in her lap. “I’m not sure who that
was at dinner tonight, but it wasn’t my daughter. I’ve never seen you behave that way.”
“I’m sorry I ruined dinner, Mom. But I’m not sorry about anything I said.” Piper concentrated on keeping her breath even.
Barbara pressed her lips together. “I wonder if you’ll feel different after you settle in more. This could all be in response
to the trauma you’ve been through. Understandably, you’re confused.”
“I won’t feel different.” Piper shook her head, confident. “And I’m not confused. I have more clarity now than ever about
what I want out of life and who I want to spend my time with.”
Her mom stared up at a spot on the ceiling. “I still don’t understand what happened between you and Tag. You two seemed so
perfect together.” She looked back at Piper with a deep frown. “I hope you come to your senses before it’s too late.”
Her mother wasn’t even putting herself in Piper’s shoes. Exasperation bubbled in Piper’s gut before erupting like a volcano.
“Mom, enough!” She threw her hands up in the air. “Maybe I don’t want perfect. Maybe I want something messy and honest and
real.”
Her mom shook her head. “I don’t think you know what you’re saying.”
When Piper was growing up, her mother had always had all the right answers, and Piper had been all too willing to follow her
lead, but not anymore.
“I know about your conversation with Wyatt.” Piper folded her arms tight across her chest and jutted her chin out. “Before
he left for boot camp. I know you tried to keep us apart.”
“Is that what this is about?” Her mom shook her head with a laugh. “Piper, you were a heartsick teenager about to ruin your
life over a boy who—”
“A boy who what?” Piper interrupted, her eyes flashing. “Loved me? Was my best friend?”
“Sweetheart.” Her mom grabbed her hand, but Piper pulled it out of her grasp.
Barbara’s eyes narrowed. “Say what you want, but I knew that boy would be trouble for you, and I was right. Because of him,
you were on a plane that crashed in the middle of nowhere, and we almost lost you!” Her mom’s voice broke, but she blinked
back tears.
“ That boy is now a grown man, and he has a name,” Piper said through clenched teeth, but she put an arm on her mom’s shoulder to
comfort her. “Wyatt’s one of the best guys I know. He loves me for who I am, and he believes in me. What happened to us was
not his fault, and I’m not certain I would have survived without him. Why do you always think the worst of him?”
Her mom took a steadying breath and smoothed her palms along her pants. “I don’t think the worst of him. It’s never been about
Wyatt, but your relationship in high school was way too serious. What kind of mother would I be if I let you throw away college
or your career before you even started? I was just trying to protect you.”
Piper’s nostrils flared. “And now?”
Her mother opened, then closed her mouth.
“I think you’re threatened that Wyatt’s given me the strength to believe in myself. To follow my own path instead of yours.”
“I’m sorry you feel that way.” Her mom stood. “I disagree with your decisions, but I don’t want to fight with you. I know
I’m not always the easiest person to talk to, so I came here to give you this.” She pulled a business card out of her back
pocket and handed it to Piper.
Piper plucked the card from her mother’s grasp like it was an explosive. It read dr. linda barrett , licensed counselor . She arched an eyebrow at her mom.
“Several of the ladies in Junior League recommend her. She’s supposed to be the best for this sort of thing.”
Piper wasn’t sure if “this sort of thing” referred to surviving a traumatic event or rebelling against your mother, but she
wasn’t opposed to talking to a therapist. There were many ways doing so would help her process everything she’d been through,
but she knew with absolute certainty that she was making the right choices for herself.
Finally.
“I’ll set up an appointment.” Piper extended the tiniest of olive branches to her mom.
Her mom paused on her way out and looked over her shoulder. “Piper, you’re my whole life. Everything I do is because I want
the best for you.”
Piper sighed but resisted the guilt trip. “I know, Mom, but it’s time for me to decide what’s best now.”
Her mom nodded, her brow still furrowed, and closed the door to Piper’s room behind her.
Though there’d been no real winner in the conversation, Piper felt victorious, bulletproof. Superman standing on railroad tracks, unflinching, while a silver train barreled toward him. She’d been polite and hadn’t let her emotions get the best of her while standing her ground.
Her mother no longer intimidated her. Perhaps, for the first time, Piper saw her mother as she truly was—an imperfect person
just trying her best. Taking her mom down from the pedestal Piper had placed her on years ago relieved some of the pressure
she’d put on herself to live up to Barbara’s high standards. With some distance, Piper recognized her mother’s opinions were
just that—her own. Piper didn’t need to take them on anymore.
To distract herself from overthinking their conversation, Piper paced the length of her bedroom, inspecting old photos and
trailing her fingers over the worn spines of her childhood book collection. She pulled out her well-loved copy of The Return of the Queen and breathed in the comforting musty scent. She’d missed this—being surrounded by the fictional worlds she’d spent so much
of her childhood exploring.
From atop her collection of special-edition Narnia books, she picked up the tattered notebook she used to meticulously track
which books she’d lent to friends (mostly Wyatt at a certain point), when they’d been “checked out,” and when they’d been
returned. Opening it up, she frowned at the last entry. According to her notes, Wyatt still had her copy of The Silver Battle.
Flipping through the worn pages, she ran a finger over the pen indentations that detailed the long-running relationship between
her and Wyatt and their mutual love of fantasy stories. Pages and pages of shared adventures, hours spent discussing the nuances
of world building and arguing over their favorite characters. She hoped their own story wasn’t over yet.
Something slipped from the pages and bounced off her foot. Her old Cedar Falls library card. Picking it up, Piper smoothed her thumb over the worn piece of plastic that had once been her most prized possession. Her gateway to adventure. Did library cards expire? Moving to the bed and propping herself up against the headboard, she pulled out her phone and scrolled to the library’s website. Using the digits on the back of her library card, she logged in and found her account still active, with a detailed history of books she’d checked out over the years.
An event announcement popped up for a retirement celebration for her favorite librarian. She clicked the link. In the large
photo at the top, Mrs. Koh still had the same kind eyes and salt-and-pepper hair Piper remembered. She scanned the page, smiling
at the flood of memories coming back to her.
After 40 years of exceptional service, it’s time to bid farewell to our esteemed Library Director, Mrs. Koh! Please join us
for a special retirement celebration to honor her remarkable career. Mrs. Koh earned both a B.A. in Communications and her
Master of Library Science from the University of North Carolina, and has been the guiding light of our library, bringing knowledge,
passion, and dedication to every aspect of her work.
Piper knew that librarians weren’t volunteers, but she’d never given much thought to what actually went into becoming one.
Opening a new browser, she searched “How to become a librarian,” an idea taking shape in her mind. In her soul. Her research
quickly revealed that an ALA-accredited master’s in library science was the essential requirement. When she opened a new tab
to explore options, the program at the University of Denver popped up first.
Piper tapped further, taking in pictures of a welcoming campus with redbrick buildings and lush green trees, and before she knew it, she’d fallen down a rabbit hole reading course descriptions for their master’s in library and information science degree. The two-year program was no joke, including classes such as Cataloging & Classification and Information Literacy, but every description she read resonated with her so much she felt foolish for not having contemplated this career path earlier. It made such complete sense. Like the answer had been there all along, but she’d been blind to it.
Was she really even considering this? Did she even want to go back to school again? To study information technology and organization?
So she could sit in a library all day and help patrons discover their new favorite author?
Yes. Yes, she did.
The answer erupted from deep within her like a volcano, flowing freely. Not because she felt obligated to please someone else,
but because something inside her resonated with the idea. Or at least, resonated enough to want to explore the possibility.
She may not be ready to dive headfirst into a totally new career, but for the first time in ages, she felt a spark of excitement
when thinking about what the future might bring.
As clear as glass, she could picture herself going to school in Denver, studying at the library, then coming home to Wyatt
in the evenings, cooking meals together, walking his dog, and drinking wine on the porch under the stars. The more she envisioned
the possibility of that life, the more she wanted it.
Now she just needed Wyatt to call her back.