24. Mason
Chapter 24
Mason
Five Years After Graduation
I can’t seem to focus on anything. Everything I do brings me back to Callie.
Going to class; Callie. Grabbing take out; Callie. Hanging out with friends; Callie.
Literally everything .
I left Georgia five years ago. I’ve completed college and am currently in law school. As much as I want to go back and fix things I can’t. I’m sure she’s moved on and I need to let her go. My brain has been fighting me on this, though. Reluctant to let her go. Just in case there’s ever a chance for us to reconcile.
Last year I met a girl, through my roommate, named Lauren. She was gorgeous. Long blonde hair, a fit body due to her cheerleading lifestyle, very smart with great life goals. We went on a few dates and then decided to try out dating. The first two months were great. We had a lot of fun together.
I broke things off with her four months into dating. I got so much shit for breaking up with her. Why? Because our goals align, we both live an active lifestyle, and we live close to each other. There was one thing wrong with her, though.
She isn’t Callie.
I regret the way I handled my relationship with her. Well, the ending of it anyway. The rest of our relationship, to my knowledge, was great. The ending, though, that wasn’t.
Instead of talking to Callie about my feelings, I broke up with her. I was so scared of dating long distance and the fear was putting negative thoughts in my head that I started to believe. Hearing friends tell me to let it go didn’t help either. I wish I hadn’t listened to the fear or my friends. Maybe then Cal and I would still be together and life would be happier.
It would look a lot different, that’s for sure. My late nights would be spent on FaceTime instead of out with friends trying to get me back in the game . I’d be more than willing to go back home and visit my parents.
I haven’t been home since I left but once. Ma demanded I come down for Christmas last year. I went straight to their house and did my best not to leave until it was time to head back to New York. I knew if I ran into Callie or her family, it would only bring up shit I didn’t want to deal with.
“Hey man, my sister’s coming in tonight. You wanna go out with us?” My friend Holden asks. Holden was my roommate in college and we’ve grown really close. His sister, Jo Ellen, comes down on her breaks from school to see him and we all typically go out while she’s in town.
“Uh, I don’t know. Not really in the mood.”
“Come on, man. It’ll be fun. Besides, you know Jo is going to drag you out whether you like it or not.”
“Fine. I’ll come.”
“Awesome. Go get dressed. And brush your hair. You look rough, dude.”
Nightlife in New York is way different than it is back home in Georgia. I hate how crowded everything is here. People bump into you every second and hardly anyone notices it or cares to acknowledge that they’ve done it. I miss the southern, small-town vibes of home. Everyone knowing you and all of your business gets annoying but I much prefer the company there.
Holden and I talk about it all the time. He’s from a small town in North Carolina and neither of us loves living up here. If it weren’t for school and the high probability of getting a job we’d both move back.
“Earth to Mason…” Jo Ellen says from across the table. I don’t know how long they’ve been trying to get my attention. I basically zoned out the minute we sat down. I’m terrible company these days.
“Sorry. What’s up?”
“I was just asking how school was going. You looked like you were in another world over there.”
“Eh, I kind of was. School is going alright, though. I’m enjoying it a lot more now that I’m out of gen. ed. classes. The assignments and overall coursework are more manageable and fun. You’re done now, right?”
“I would be, yes. But I took off a semester to travel abroad. So I’ve got this last semester to finish then I’ll be graduating and if all else goes as planned I’ll be in Georgia after that.”
“What’s in Georgia? I thought you’d go back to North Carolina to be close to family.” She’s got my interest now.
“I’m planning on moving down there with the guy I’ve been dating. You must have missed that part of the conversation when you were off in la-la-land.” She laughs lightly.
“Oh yeah. I didn’t hear about that. I hope it all works out for you.”
“Thank you. Speaking of dating… how’s that going?”
“Uhhh. Do we have to talk about my dating life?” I ask, rolling my eyes.
“Okay then… that’s my answer.” Jo Ellen turns back towards the others and jumps into their conversation.
I don’t even know why I agreed to come out tonight.