Chapter 26
CHAPTER 26
C lara
I walked between a crowd of people with Gabe strolling next to me, clutching a bag to his back. We approached a sitting area with a loading gate just on the other side of it. Above it was the flight number and the destination letters right next to it: NYC.
He turned to me. “Well, this is it.”
“It sure is. You sure you're going to like the big city? It's so much faster than Checotah.”
“I think I can adjust quickly to it. You know how I am: I like things fast.”
I laughed. “Yeah, you do. Do you want me to wait with you until they start boarding?”
“Nah, you can head out now. I don't want to keep you.”
I nodded. “Thanks.”
I leaned in for a hug. I inhaled his scent one last time, tearing up as I realized this would be the last time I saw him for a while.
He squeezed me. “Do me a favor.”
“What's that?”
“Take care of yourself, Clara. I love you. I mean that in the most brotherly way.”
I smiled warmly. “I love you, too, buddy.”
He released me from our hug and then stepped away, heading toward one of the seats available. I turned to walk away. I folded my hands in front of me, sighing as I dropped my shoulders and started making my way back to the front of the airport.
“Hey, Clara!”
I turned around. “Yeah?”
“Good luck with Levon. I'm happy for you.”
I smiled as I raised a hand to wave. “Thanks, Gabe. Good luck in New York!”
When I turned away, I was wearing a frown. I idly wandered toward the front of the airport with my head down and my shoulders sunken as if I had just lost my best friend.
I haven't even heard from Levon all week , I considered sadly. But I'm glad Gabe is happy. That makes me feel even better about the whole situation.
I took a deep breath and smelled sage. Instinctively, I popped my head up. I spotted Levon standing no less than ten feet away with a bag over his shoulder and a rolling suitcase behind him. It was the same tattered case decorated with that awful plaid he insisted was stylish enough for traveling. I let my eyes wander from the case to his face, my features contorted with confusion.
I turned to see if Gabe was still sitting but he was gone. The terminal must have opened for boarding and he was likely seated in the window of the airplane. I wondered if he had spotted Levon before I did.
I blinked rapidly as I turned back to Levon. He was much closer now. I took a breath and shrugged my shoulders, closing the space between us. The sea of people billowed around us and enclosed us in our very own private circle. However private it might have felt, we were still in public. And I was getting angrier by the second.
I cleared my throat and shrugged. “What are you doing here?”
“My flight just landed. I saw you walking by with Gabe.”
“Yeah, he was about to board his flight to New York.”
He furrowed his brows. “I thought that was next month.”
“That's what I thought, but he decided to leave sooner to handle his affairs.”
“Right. That makes sense.”
I folded my arms over my chest and lowered my voice so it was still audible for Levon but not audible enough for the swarming bodies around us. “You could have at least told me you were leaving the country again instead of making me worry about you.”
“I didn't think it was important.”
“That's rich. Sounds like you haven't changed much.”
He huffed with frustration. “Well, why didn't you go with Gabe?”
“Why would I have gone with Gabe?”
“I mean, he was going to New York. Are you just going to stay here while he's there?”
I stared at him with confusion. “Yeah, why would it be any other way?”
“I just know how you feel about leaving the Midwest and I was confused.”
“Well, that makes two of us.”
He shook his head. “I didn't come here to argue, Clara. I came to make sure you were happy. Once things were wrapped up in Canada, I flew back immediately.”
“Well, I can't say I'm happy.”
“Why wouldn't you be happy?”
I shrugged. “You took off. That made me upset.”
“But you left the morning after we hooked up.”
“I had to clear my head.”
He eyed me carefully. “Clearly.”
“And I did well to clear my head. I wrapped up all my loose ends and I feel more confident than ever that I made the right decision.”
“Well, if you're firm in that decision, I don't see a reason to stick around.”
I stared at him. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I hope it works out for you. I know how you feel about traveling and your significant other being away for long periods of time. I mean, that's what made us break up, but you seem fine doing it with someone else.”
“I literally have no idea what you're talking about, Levon.”
“I'm talking about Gabe.”
I blinked. “What about Gabe?”
“You're back with him, right? That's why you're here? To see him off?”
“I'm seeing him off as a friend .”
Levon parted his lips to respond but quickly shut them. His brows knit together and then he broke out into a laugh, shaking his head. “Wait, I thought you were back with Gabe.”
“Why would I be back with Gabe?”
“I just assumed since you didn't call that you had made a firm decision about where you stood with me.”
“Yeah, I,” I faded as I realized we were still standing in the airport. “I should have called you sooner, but I was afraid to call.”
“Why were you afraid to call?”
“Because you're you.”
He stared at me blankly. “What?”
“The way you are—you're just you . I figured even if I did tell you what I was feeling that you would choose your job anyway. That's just the way you work, Levon. You're always working and you're always leaving and you never stick around to see things through.”
He hung his head forward slightly, appearing guilty.
“Gabe was my loose end. I needed to make sure things were properly complete before I came to you to talk about my feelings. I didn't want anyone to feel awkward or blind-sided.”
He shook his head. “I just don't understand why you didn't call me sooner.”
“You're always doing whatever you want. You're impulsive. And while that can be great for adventures, it's not always great for a working relationship. I was worried that even with all my feelings on the table, you would still take off for Canada.”
“I would have gone to Canada, yeah. That's my job.”
I held up my hands as if to surrender. “See? Case and point.”
“But I would have come back immediately.”
“Is that supposed to mean something?”
He scoffed and turned, licking his lips as he glanced around. “Listen, can we go get some coffee and talk? I feel like we're just about to make a scene.”
“Why not make a scene? Half the town knows about our personal business.”
“Yeah, but we don't need to alert the authorities.”
“It would be nice to have an unbiased third party. I feel like I can't trust you.”
He frowned suddenly. “The feeling is mutual, Clara.”
I sank.
We were just hurting each other. Our argument didn't even serve a purpose. It was just a hurtful back-and-forth without any end in sight. I sighed as I flipped my hair back away from my face, grasping one strand to play with it.
“Do you have a ride?” I asked. “Or do you need to ride with me?”
“If you'll allow me to ride with you, that would be great.”
“Alright, let's head out.”
I followed the line of people heading for the front of the airport. If I had just walked faster, I could have avoided the whole arguing mess, but then again, I wouldn't have seen Levon.
And part of me was happy to see him.
My heartstrings tugged as if a surgeon were attempting to slit the threads. I held my hand over my heart to quell the rising panic in my chest. I hadn't argued with Levon in years. It felt like we were retracing our steps to our previous relationship. He had left, I was heartbroken, and then we argued about it.
That was pretty typical for us.
He caught up to my pace and I listened to his professional shoes clack against the tile. His rolling bag hummed behind us as we approached the automatic doors and stepped out into the sun-stained sidewalk. He followed me to my car. I popped open the trunk and he slung his bags inside, shutting it before climbing into the passenger's seat.
I sat quietly while he got settled. Once we were both strapped in, I started the car and drove us to the nearest coffee shop. It was the one downtown that I loved—the same one where Jen worked. I parked in the parking lot and sat quietly again, wondering what was to come of this conversation.
“Are you okay?” he whispered. “I can leave if you want.”
“No, I think it's important that we talk. We seem to have lost each other somewhere in the past week.”
“Yeah, I'll say.”
I shot him a hard look.
He raised his hands. “Hey, I come in peace.”
“That's not how it seemed in the airport.”
“You came at me, too, Clara.”
I sank in my seat. “Yeah, I guess I did.”
“Apology accepted.”
I rolled my eyes as I stepped out of my car. We walked into the cafe and I ordered my usual before he ordered his.
I smiled when he was done. “Still hooked to those cappuccinos, huh?”
“They've always been my favorite.”
“Plain black coffee suits me right now.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Wow, that's new.”
“Yeah, it was a recent development.”
“How did that happen?”
I shrugged. “I was late to work enough to not mind adding anything else. I think I've acquired the taste at this point.”
“You used to put almond milk and sugar in your coffee.”
“I still do that,” I admitted. “As a treat.”
“Well, I'm glad that didn't change.”
I stared at him and he chuckled nervously.
I shook my head. “You're such a strange man.”
“I do my best.”
I wandered to a nearby table and plopped down in a chair, watching him sit down in front of me. I stared at him for a while. I studied the way his eyes encompassed me as if they were attempting to absorb every part of my image. It was a way he had looked at me before, a way I had missed, and I must have been doing the same thing because he cracked a smile.
“So,” he said. “Shall we get started?”
I sighed. “Yeah, let's get started.”