6. MJ #2
Mac walks in and takes a seat in one of the large chairs in front of Dad’s desk. He plops his backpack on the floor between his feet and I notice the zipper is open. He was always one of those messy kids in school and it brings a smile to my face to see some things haven’t changed.
“Actually, give me just a moment, I’m sorry. Would either of you like something to drink? I’d like to freshen up my water before we get started,” my dad says as he stands back up and shuffles out of the office.
“I’m okay, thanks, Dad.”
I hear Mac mumble, “No, thank you.”
Looking around my dad’s office, my eyes keep straying back to Mac sitting in the chair. He’s looking down at his feet where one is bouncing up and down from nerves. He’s done that since we were little, always fidgeting and moving around.
“Do I even get a hello? Or are you just going to pretend I’m not even here?” I finally break the awkward silence. That was a little more hostile than I intended, but it hurts that he hasn’t even acknowledged me yet.
“Hey, MJ,” he replies quickly.
“Actually, it’s Emmalynn now,” I say a little sterner than I meant. And honestly, I don’t even know why I said it. I started going by Emmalynn in college, and it’s what my parents have always called me.
Mac smirks at my tone. “Why Emmalynn?”
“Emmalynn is more professional,” I reply curtly.
“Ah, so I can call you MJ when we aren’t being professional?” He raises an eyebrow and my cheeks heat. His eyes flare with something I can’t quite read. Damn him for getting me all flustered.
Before I can come up with a cheeky response, he continues, “Nah, baby, I don’t think so. You’ve been MJ to me since you were seven and I’m not just gonna start calling you Emmalynn because you want to be,” he makes air quotes with his fingers, “professional.”
My jaw drops just as my dad returns. “Okay, I think I’m good now. Let’s get started.”
I sit there with my laptop in my lap, fingers on the keys, but I don’t type a single thing. I’m too busy replaying what Mac just said to me. And what was with that “baby” he used? He’s never called me baby before. Was it just a slip of the tongue?
The next thing I know, my dad and Mac are standing up and shaking hands. Mac sees himself out of the office and out the front door. I grab my stuff and scurry out of my dad’s office before he questions me. I guarantee he noticed I didn’t take a single note.
I go back to the library to grab my book but notice it isn’t where I left it. I could’ve sworn I sat it down on the ottoman where I was sitting and now it’s not there. Honestly, I was so distracted by Mac from the moment he walked into my house that I could’ve sat it down anywhere and not realized.
Still in a bit of a daze, I text Shannon that I seriously need some girl time. I have to tell someone about that exchange with Mac and help get my head on straight if I’m going to actually help with this case.
The rest of Monday moves on quickly. I spend some time with Mom in her garden after she gets home from work.
Taking a bunch of pictures of her flowers, I now have content for my Instagram but would still like some more by the creek.
I started a new book since I still haven’t found the one I was reading earlier this morning yet.
I’m lying on my bed listening to Taylor Swift’s folklore album and it’s putting me in a good summer mood. A text pops up on my phone from Shannon, confirming she can meet me for lunch on Thursday before her shift at Hal’s.
I text her back and look over at my desk. It’s covered in law school brochures and sticky notes. I really need to work on applications for law school, or at least pretend I sent them. All it would take is my parents looking at my desk to know I lied about submitting them.
Dad firmly believes that I have the potential to get into Harvard or Yale law, but I’m not so sure.
Truth be told, I struggled through the law-based classes my senior year.
I wish I could say that was one of the first signs I shouldn’t be going to law school, but it wasn’t.
College can be hard; I breezed through high school, but college wasn’t easy.
I stuck it out, but I wasn’t getting straight A’s. More like B’s and C’s.
Thankfully, Mom and Dad didn’t see my actual grades and when they asked about school, they accepted my answer that my GPA was a three-point-something. They didn’t know the “something” was closer to a zero than a nine, but that’s okay.
The first inkling that I didn’t want to go to law school was before I even got to college.
The focus was always pre-law, but there were a handful of majors I could pick that still fell under the pre-law umbrella.
I opted for business because I figured it was multi-functional and would give me the skills that would be beneficial in a few different areas.
I didn’t have to take the law classes until my senior year, which was a bonus.
I open up Facebook for some more doom scrolling, where I always go to check in on things happening in Oakridge .
The first post I see is on the Macdonald’s Auto Shop business page.
It’s a simple advertisement displaying their specials on oil changes.
I guess Mac wasn’t lying about that when I visited him the other day.
I keep scrolling, making note of the Movie in the Park dates and movies they’ll be showing.
As I scroll, an email notification pops up from my dad.
I open the email and see a link to Mac’s case file.
Looks like I know what I’ll be reading tonight.