2. Mason
Chapter 2
Mason
June 2023
Two days ago my phone rang. Ma was frantic on the other end. My heart immediately sank, expecting the worst.
It took me a while to calm her down enough to actually understand what was going on. She explained that there had been a small fire in one of the barns. Thankfully no one was in the barn when the fire started and none of the animals were harmed.
Dad asked me to come down to help them move the rest of the animals that were still in the barn and help them prepare for the contractor that would be coming out once the insurance claim was handled.
So now I'm back in my hometown of Harbors Grove, Georgia.
For the next two weeks.
There’s a lot of work to be done on the farm to get it ready for the contractors, not to mention the paperwork that goes along with filing an insurance claim like this.
There is one other thing I hope to accomplish while I’m down here. Although, I’m not sure if or how I’m going to make that happen.
There’s this girl, a woman now, who was a huge part of my life before I moved away to college and I’ve got a lot of explaining to do, not to mention the apologies that need to happen as well.
I’d love nothing more than to be able to do that while I’m down here. Lord knows she deserves that conversation to be face-to-face.
There’s also my best friend’s sister, Jo Ellen, whom I met when I was in college. She lives about an hour away in Magnolia Falls. Although we aren’t that close, we have stayed in touch over the years, talking here and there. Most of our interaction happened when she’d come to visit her brother in college, and we’d all hang out.
She’s been on me for years about getting back out into the dating game. She knows I had a pretty rough breakup in high school, but I never went into detail with her like I did Holden, her brother.
Me: Hey Jo. I’m visiting my parents and didn’t want a repeat of you being mad at me. So, this is me letting you know. Lol.
I doubt she’ll reply right away so I place my phone in my left front pocket and carry on with the paperwork dad handed over to me this morning. The initial report is that arson or foul play is not suspected but we are waiting on the fire marshal to declare the cause.
As I’m skimming the insurance claim I feel my phone buzzing in my pocket. It’s Jo Ellen.
“Good morn…” I’m cut off by Jo Ellen screaming in my ear.
“MASON! Are you really here? Like ACTUALLY in town?”
“Yes, Jo... I am actually in town. I’ll be here for the next two weeks helping my parents with some things.”
“Oh my! I heard about your parent’s barn! Please tell me everyone is safe.” You can hear the worry in her voice.
“Thankfully, they are fine. All the animals are fine, too. I’m down here helping them handle a few things before the rebuild work gets started.”
“I am so glad to hear everyone is safe. I wish you were in town under better circumstances.”
“Me too. But I’m glad to be back.”
Jo Ellen is quiet for a few seconds before adding, “If you need any help, let me know. We should meet up for lunch. Does tomorrow work?”
“Tomorrow works. I’ll come to you. Is one o’clock okay with you?” I ask, hoping she says yes. I could use some time away from the chaos of the farm.
“Yeah, that sounds great. See you tomorrow.”
“I’ll text you when I’m leaving here. Bye, Jo.” I click the button to end the call, taking a deep breath.
I feel like I’ve been staring at this paperwork for days, but in reality, it’s only been a couple of hours.
I’ve finally made some progress with the insurance company. I was able to gather everything they needed and fax it over to their office. While I wait for a reply from them, I pull out a manila envelope and address it to the contractor. They won’t be able to come out to the farm until I’m back in New York so I want to make sure everything is in one place and Dad can just hand over the file to them.
I’m cleaning up the mess I’ve made on the coffee table when I hear Ma call for dinner. “John, Mason… dinner is ready. Come on in and get cleaned up.”
“Coming,” I say, standing up and feeling my age in my knees. I’m not sure if all those years of football are what’s made my joints mad or the fact that I’m inching my way closer to thirty-five.
As I enter the kitchen I notice Ma trying to balance three dishes to carry to the table. “Ma, sit at least one of them on the counter and I’ll bring it once I’m done washing my hands.”
“Nonsense, I got this son,” Ma retorts. I wish she wasn’t so stubborn, but I won’t fight her.
“Okay, I’ll be in shortly,” I say as she walks through the doorway to the dining room. I turn on the water, dampen my hands, and add a few pumps of soap before lathering it up and washing it off.
I’ve always loved my mom’s kitchen. It’s always been her favorite room in the house. There aren’t many memories in this house that didn’t happen in this kitchen.
The bones of it are the same as it was when Josh and I were little. She’s updated a few things over the years but the overall feeling has remained the same.
When you enter the kitchen you see the original wood cabinets that are now adorned with black hardware. The counters are butcher block and Ma finally got her farmhouse sink complete with a black faucet to match the rest of the hardware. The only other upgrade Ma had done was putting in a dishwasher a few months ago. Up until then, she refused, saying it was easier to hand wash the dishes.
Dad and I make our way into the dining room where we find Ma sitting in the chair she’s always sat in, and I grab the chair across from her. Our table sits eight but hardly ever is there enough people here to fill it up. Dad takes his seat at the head of the table and we begin passing the food counterclockwise.
“Y’all remember Callie Grace, right?” I ask nervously as I pass the mashed potatoes to my dad. Callie and I spent a lot of time with my parents over the four years we dated. She loved my parents and my parents loved her. I never heard the end of it from Ma when we broke up. She was one of the only ones rooting for it all to work out.
“How could we forget that ray of sunshine?! You two dated all four years of high school and spent every spare minute y’all had together.” Ma says curiosity in her eyes.
I don’t reply right away, not knowing what to say next. I’m not sure if they’ll share my feelings in trying to get in contact with her again. It’s been fifteen years since I ended things with her. I know Ma didn’t want things to end back then but maybe she has different feelings now. Maybe she’ll tell me to leave well enough alone and move on. Maybe she’ll fully support me in reaching out to Callie.
“Is everything okay?” Worry is heavy in Ma’s eyes as she looks over at me, dropping her fork to her plate.
“Don’t worry, Ma. I’m good. Everything is fine.”
“Then what’s going on, son?” Dad speaks up from across the table. He’s always been the get-to-the-point kind of guy.
“I’ve been thinking about reaching back out to her, but I’m not sure if it’d be a mistake,” I say nervously before taking another bite of meatloaf.
There’s silence for a few minutes while I assume they’re gathering their thoughts. I haven’t talked about Cal to my parents in years so it’s safe to assume this caught them off guard.
“Son, I think the only mistake would be living with the what-if of not reaching out to her. You never know what she’s up to or where she’s at in life. It could go either way, really, but do you want to continue not knowing for sure?” Dad’s always been good at these types of things. I should have known he’d know exactly what to say.
“I agree with your dad, Mason. I think you should at least try to contact her,” Ma flashes me a look while pushing her food around her plate.
I glance from Ma to Dad making sure their body language matches what they’re saying. “Thanks, guys. I was worried y’all would tell me this was a bad idea because of how everything ended between us.”
“Well, it wasn’t the best ending, that's for sure. But you’re both older now and maybe it’ll be different. But you won’t know if you don’t try,” Ma says after taking a sip of water.
I hope she’s right.
“You’re right. You’re right. I’ll see if I can find her. I’m not even sure if she lives in the area anymore,” I add before gathering the last of my food onto my fork.
Dad stands to gather the plates, turning to me before saying, “I ran into her mom at the grocery store about a year after you left for college. She told me Callie stuck around locally for college but, of course, that was a while ago.”
“Well, let’s hope that she’s still close by,” I say, standing to help clean up dinner.
After I’ve loaded the last dish into the dishwasher I head up to my childhood room and pull out my laptop. I start with Facebook, typing her name into the search bar.
There she is.
According to Facebook, her last name is still Callahan, which immediately spiked my excitement knowing she wasn’t married. Unless she’s engaged . Of course, my brain would go straight to that.
Shit.
I’m limited to the details of her page. She has almost everything locked down. Very on brand for her. Just a profile picture and her location. Magnolia Falls.
Wait.
I’ll be in Magnolia Falls tomorrow, meeting Jo Ellen for lunch. I doubt I’ll see her though. I don’t even know if she still lives there, works there, or if she even uses this Facebook account anymore. Her profile picture is from early last year.
Now my brain is going in so many directions. Can this work in my favor? Will I be able to find Callie to do what I should have done fifteen years ago?
I close my laptop and sit it on the bedside table. As I’m closing my eyes, I’m hoping I’ll run into Callie tomorrow. Magnolia Falls isn’t that big of a town. If I remember correctly, there are only two stoplights on the main drag. One can hope, right?
I’m sitting in the parking lot of the Italian restaurant just outside of Magnolia Falls listening to the end of a true-crime podcast as I notice Jo step out of a white SUV parked in the row behind me.
“Hey Jo,” I say while walking towards her car.
“Mason! Hi!” She says sporting a huge smile on her face.
We stand there for a second before she pulls me into a hug.
“It’s so nice to see you. Holden and I were just talking about you a few weeks ago. I was asking him if he’d heard from you.”
“Work has been busy and I haven’t been as good at keeping in contact with people the last few months. Let’s head in and grab a table.” I say, turning to walk towards the restaurant.
Jo Ellen quickens her pace to catch up to me. “Have you met anyone yet?”
I can’t lie to her so I just shake my head no.
“I really wish you’d allow yourself to get out there. I don’t know the details of your last relationship, but Mason it was fifteen years ago. I think it’s time to give yourself grace and move on.”
I knew this topic would come up. Jo Ellen has been pestering me about this for years. I sigh before answering her. “I’ve gone on a couple of dates. My focus after finishing college was my law firm and creating a solid career for myself and my future family. I haven’t had time, much less the desire to date.”
We are greeted by a young man at the host’s stand. Following him through the maze of tables we are seated at a small table close to the bar. He takes our orders before turning and walking away.
“Mason, I know you and I are not as close as my brother and you are, but please just hear me out. You’re not giving yourself enough credit. You’re thirty-three years old and own a law firm. You’re doing better than a lot of people your age,” Jo looks at me with pleading eyes.
“Jo, the thing is...” I say, stopping to gather my thoughts. “There’s only one person that I have any desire to move on with and I’m not entirely sure I’ll ever get that chance. I’ve come to terms with what I did to Callie and I’m ready to apologize and explain myself to her. She’s it. I’m sorry, Jo.” I don’t know why I’m apologizing to her. I know I don’t owe her anything.
Jo Ellen leans forward on the table. “Callie…?”
I can’t read her facial expression but it seems like she’s questioning a whole lot.
“Yes. Callie. I know I haven’t ever talked to you about my relationship in high school but she’s the one I’m stuck on.”
Sitting up straighter Jo Ellen looks at me, then back to the table before looking at me and saying, “Mason, I work with a woman named Callie. Do you think… No. It can’t be.”
“Wait, you work with a Callie? My Callie lives in Magnolia Falls…” I lower my voice to a whisper before adding, “According to her Facebook.” I’m almost ashamed to admit that last part.
“What’s Callie’s last name?” Jo Ellen asks, hopeful.
“Callahan. Callie Grace Callahan.”
Jo’s eyes go wide before she quickly schools her expression. But I saw it.