32. Mason
Chapter 32
Mason
July 2023
Walking in my front door I’m met with a pile of clothes sitting on the end of my couch, some clean and ready to be put away, some needing to find their way to the washer; piles of paper scattered across my living room; and other random things that need to be put back where they go.
I have a love-hate relationship with the open concept of my apartment because as soon as you walk in the door you can see my entire living space and while I try to keep it tidy, some nights I don’t have the energy to pick up before I go to bed.
I stop to take a minute to appreciate the fact that I do have a place to live and that it’s thankfully been updated with freshly painted walls and cabinets, stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, and was furnished aside from the bedroom. I don’t have much for decor, but it’s got everything I need.
Since I’m picking up Callie from the airport tomorrow, I need to take some time tonight to tidy up. Even though I know she won’t mind the lived-in appearance.
Deciding that the easiest task will be the clothes, I take my shoes off and sit them on the mat beside my door before heading to the couch to gather both piles. One I take and place on the end of my bed for the time being then add the other pile to the hamper inside my closet before grabbing it and placing the clothes in the washer. I set them to start and turn on the cycle alarm so that I remember to move them to the dryer when they’re done.
The only dishes in the sink are the ones from dinner so I quickly hand wash and set them on the drying rack and head into the living room to pick up the paper tornado that’s spread everywhere. I’ve been bringing work home lately and as much as I don’t like to do that, sometimes there are no other options. There are papers laid all over the coffee table, a few stacks on the floor, and my case file folders are stacked on the couch.
I can’t just throw them all into my work bag and call it a day because these are for multiple different clients, and I need to keep them straight. Once all the piles are in their respective folder, I put them in my work bag and place it by the front door.
Once I am satisfied with the living room and kitchen I walk down the hallway to my bedroom. I grab the clean clothes from the end of my bed and divide them into piles—shirts, socks, boxers, tanks, and sleep shorts. I pick up each pile and put them in the corresponding dresser door before heading back to hang my shirts up.
This would be so much easier to manage if I kept up with this.
The washer goes off, so I switch the clothes to the dryer and start it. Now it’s time to jump in the shower.
Knowing that I need to get some sleep I crawl into bed and plug my phone in. Callie said she was going to FaceTime me tonight while she finished packing her suitcase. Just like the Callie I know. Procrastinating everything. It’s 8 pm and there are no missed call notifications on my phone, so I text her to check in.
Me : Just wanted to check in. Are we still FaceTiming tonight?
Callie : Ah, I’m so sorry! I meant to text you earlier that I wouldn’t be able to FaceTime tonight. I was needed at work after hours, so I will just call you in the morning if that’s ok.
Me : I hope everything is okay at work. Tomorrow sounds great.
Callie : I can’t go into much detail about it but it’s not something out of the ordinary. Just a last-minute visit with a patient. I’ll call you in the morning. Good night, Mason.
Me : Talk to you in the morning. Goodnight Callie.
Since Callie won’t be calling tonight I decide to just go to bed. I’ve got to be up early, and I don’t want to spend our first day back together exhausted from not sleeping.
I’m not exactly sure if going to bed earlier than I normally do was a good idea. The clock reads 4:48 am and I’m wide awake. I’ve got about six hours to kill before I need to go pick up Callie so I can either try to go back to sleep or get up and get my morning going. The bed wins.
Or so I thought.
At 6 am I give up trying to force myself back to sleep.
I get out of bed, throw on some gray sweats, and head into the kitchen. I hit brew on the Keurig, grab a paper and pen, and begin putting together a grocery list for this weekend. Callie had a couple of places she wanted to eat at while she’s up here, but I’d like to cook for her a couple of times.
After finishing my coffee and my grocery list I go back to my room to get dressed. If I get this grocery run over with now I won’t have to do it after we are done at the museum later today. So, I guess it’s a win/win for me. I don’t need much so it shouldn’t take me too long.
Groceries are put away, I’ve finished putting away all the laundry that I did last night, and Callie has made it to the airport to board. Now to fill my time until I need to leave to go pick her up.
Why am I so nervous about seeing Callie?
I have asked myself this no less than a million times since leaving my apartment. I’m now inside the airport awaiting her arrival and my nerves are going wild. I have absolutely no reason to be this nervous. As I’m processing my nerves, I notice that her flight has just landed so it won’t be too long before she’s back in my arms.
We started planning her time in New York the minute I left Georgia. She texts me all the time asking, ‘Is this place close to your apartment?’ or ‘How far away is this place?’. She’s never been to New York, so she’s got a long list of things she wants to do. She is only here for the weekend so there’s no way that we will get to all of them, but my goal is to visit her top three, one each day she’s here. Once she lands and we leave the airport we’re heading out to lunch before spending some time at the Rock Hall Museum.
I’m standing here nervously waiting for her to walk through. I can’t look away because I’m afraid that I’ll miss her. She’s blonde. She’s too tall. She’s too short. There she is! I spot her before she spots me.
Before I know it, she’s running toward me dodging people left and right. I couldn’t be more thankful for where we are, and how we’re doing. Never would I have imagined that she and I would be civil, let alone dating . Especially considering the hurt I put her through.
I pull her into my chest before either of us manages any words.
My left hand on her lower back and my right going straight for the back of her head. I gather her hair in my fist and lift her face so that I’m able to kiss her like I’ve been wanting to for far too long. Her lips part and I take that as an invitation to take it a step further.
I pull away sooner than I want to.
“I am so happy to see you, Callie.”
“I’m excited, too! Especially after that flight.”
“Oh no, was everything okay?”
“Yeah. I’m just a ball of nerves, that’s all.”
As we are waiting for her suitcase at baggage claim I can’t help but think to myself that I cannot wait to get out of this airport. Thankfully her suitcase is one of the first through making for a quick turnaround.
After grabbing her suitcase, I take her hand and, as smoothly as possible, maneuver through the crowds of people. We make it out quickly and once again I pull her into a hug. I’ve missed this so much. Callie is not only someone I want to spend the rest of my life with but also someone I need to spend the rest of my life with. Just having her close by is calming down every nerve in my body.
We make our way through the parking lot towards my car. Once we manage to find it, I place her suitcase in my trunk. Walking around to the passenger side, I open the door for Callie before heading back to the driver's side.
“I don’t know why but this isn’t the car that I imagined you’d drive but it does suit you well.”
“What do you picture me in, if it’s not this?”
“Umm, something fancier. Maybe a BMW or Mercedes.”
“I feel like that’s a very typical pick for a lawyer, but I happen to love my car. It’s what I’ve been driving since law school and she’s still treating me well. Hopefully, it’ll last me a good while longer.” Callie isn’t the first and probably won’t be the last to bring up that I’m not driving a nicer, more expensive car. My Acura TL has been good to me and I don’t see a reason to trade her in for a newer, nicer car. I know she isn’t bringing it up to be mean or judgmental.
“New York is more than I ever could have imagined.” Callie’s watching out the window, taking everything in.
“The city is something else. When you live here you don’t much care for the tourists, so I guess we’ll be those people they don’t like this weekend.”
“What, why don’t y’all like the tourists?”
“Well, when you’re walking down the street trying to get to work or the diner up the road on your lunch break and you’re being stopped every five feet for a tourist to snap a picture… you end up not enjoying them being here.”
“Note to self, try not to stop to take pictures so often or do so quickly.” She laughs.
Her laughter is my favorite sound. So peaceful, easy to listen to.
“For our first touristy destination I went with Rock Hall Museum since it’s close to the airport. Figured we could either stop somewhere close to get lunch before we visit or if you’re not hungry stop somewhere for an early dinner afterward.”
“I’m not too hungry, are you?”
“No, I can wait a little to eat. There’s a bistro close by that we can hit up afterwards, on our way back to my place.”
“Sounds perfect to me! Thank you again, Mason, for chauffeuring me around New York while I’m up here. I appreciate it.”
I smile at her and put the address for the museum into my GPS.
The museum is about seven miles from the airport but since there is no direct path it will take us about twenty minutes to get there. That gives us some time to catch up on life as if we haven’t talked almost every day since I left Georgia.
“How’s everything been back home?” I ask.
“Work has been hectic, but I’ve gotten used to the new program and flow of things so that’s getting better. Mom and Dad are great. I had such an amazing time visiting with them and need to make it a habit to get back there more often. Jo Ellen and I, as you know, have gotten closer and I really enjoy her company. It’s nice having a female friend that I can trust and hang out with regularly.”
“Jo Ellen is a great person. I don’t know her as well as some, but I know enough to believe she’s a person worth having in your circle.
“She’s really been helping me lower my guard. I know we’ve talked about this a little but her knowing you as an adult has really helped me get rid of what little reservations I had. I know who you were at 15 and again who you were at 18. I went into this scared, not being trustful of what would happen once we opened the door to the long-distance aspect. Don’t get me wrong. I am very happy with the choices we’ve made. I just want you to know where I am and how I’ve gotten there.”
“Thank you for being honest with me. I suspected reservations and hesitation about the long-distance thing, given our history. You’re really giving me more than I deserve if I’m being honest. I wasn’t expecting us to be where we are today so quickly. I know that you’re a smart woman and that you’ll let your guard fall when you’re ready. I’m not trying to rush you, and I hope that’s not how it’s coming across.”
“Mason. No, absolutely not. I know that you’re not rushing or pushing me in any sense of the word. I wasn’t expecting us to get this far as quickly as we did, either, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t happy about it. I know we broke up on such harsh terms, but we were teenagers. As much as I’d love to say that had we stayed together we’d still be happy. I can’t honestly say that. I have no idea where our relationship would have gone if you hadn’t ended it before you left.”
I can’t argue with that. So, I don’t.
“You’re right. Let’s just be happy with where we are and focus on what we’ve got now.” I say right before Siri tells me to turn left into the next parking lot.
“I guess we’re here,” she says while laughing.
We park and head into the museum. I’ve never been here and after looking at pictures online and reading reviews I’m actually looking forward to this tour.
We spent the next two hours walking around the Rock Hall Museum which is a beautiful Georgian-style home; the pictures that I found online do no justice to this place. The architecture alone is breathtaking, let alone the smaller features offered. The tour guide led us from room to room in the manor explaining what the purpose of each was.
That was a lot more fun than I imagined it would be. I’m glad that I toughed it out and did this with her. I can’t say I was overly excited about it when she brought it up a while back.
“Wow. That was amazing. I loved the layout and colors of that house.” Callie says excitedly once we are headed back to my car.
“I checked it out online before I bought our tickets and seeing it in person was one hundred percent better than those pictures could ever do. I think the fireplace in the guest parlor was my favorite part. What about you?”
“The fireplaces were gorgeous, but I think my favorite was the toy area in the Hewlett Memorabilia room. I loved the doll house and dolls that they had set up. I’m sure that room holds many memories within it. The entire house, actually.”
“My place is about 30 minutes from here. Did you want to eat around here or grab something closer to my house?”
“I think I’m thirstier than I am hungry. Can we just stop at a gas station before heading toward your place?”
“Sure,” I say as I walk over to open her door before walking around to the driver's side.
I find the closest gas station and stop for drinks and Callie picks up a few snacks for later.
The car ride back is quiet. Callie is watching out the window as we make our way outside of the city towards my place.