Chapter Thirty-two #2
“Okay, but only if you’re sure,” she said as they parted. “You know, I think you’ve hit it out of the park. This house is amazing. It’s a completely different house with so much life.”
“It feels so much different. It’s a warm and inviting place instead of, well, just awful.”
“I think so too. Thank you for having us. We loved getting to meet some of Matty’s people. She’s really good for you. And after talking to Bette, I think you’re great for her too.”
That made her heart beat faster. She loved that others felt like they were meant for each other.
Once everyone was gone, the house felt strangely quiet. The excitement still hung in the air, but it wasn’t too heavy.
With the feeling of success, she decided she would definitely do the final step in reclaiming the house. It was more than time.
While Matty was stuffing empty plates and cups into trash bags, she went upstairs.
Her bedroom no longer doubled as a kitchen.
It didn’t have a coffee pot or two laundry baskets for clothing, towels, and bedding.
Her bed had been moved from the far wall since the table for the makeshift kitchen was gone.
But there was still one thing left in the house that would truly rid it of Joyce. The box of notes.
She thought when she picked it up, she would have a heavy feeling, but she didn’t. It was more like grabbing the pot of leftovers that had well overstayed in the refrigerator. It needed to go.
When she walked down the stairs, each foot felt lighter. The burden was about to be done. Like she had set the trash out on the curb, and it just needed to be picked up.
“You know, I think this was—” Matty started talking the instant Reese was in the living room but then halted when she spotted the box.
Reese didn’t falter. “Join me outside with a box of matches?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Reese was smiling warmly as she exited through the back door in the kitchen. They still needed to work on creating a nice backyard. It wasn’t really her thing, but Matty had all sorts of ideas. For now, it was a patchy backyard with some plastic chairs and a small round fire pit.
She set the box on one of the chairs before going over to the modest grill near the back door on the porch.
They kept it there when not in use. Under it was a nearly empty bag of charcoal and a bottle of lighter fluid.
She grabbed the bottle as Matty was coming out the door.
Her eyes widened at the sight of the bottle, but she didn’t say anything.
Normally, Matty would start the fire pit, but Reese wanted to do it herself, even if it wasn’t the best way. She just needed the box, lighter fluid, and a match. It didn’t need to be pretty.
“You sure about this?” Matty asked quietly.
“Yes. I’m absolutely sure.”
Reese took the wooden box and placed it in the pit, then lifted the lid. It was a box she remembered Joyce used to keep her checkbook, bills, and miscellaneous papers in. There would be no more debts harbored in it after this.
“You know, there were a lot of times she wasn’t bad.
She was a good mama when it was convenient to her, and those times, my god, those times were bliss.
They didn’t happen often, but that made them even more precious to me.
Well, until I was old enough to realize that they were strictly when they aligned with her time or intentions.
"Sometimes," she swallowed back a hard lump.
“Sometimes she was a great mama, but that was a very rare percentage of the time. The rest was hell and honestly not enough to make up the difference.”
Matty came up beside her, her hand settling on Reese’s lower back. “I’m sorry, baby. There’s nothing that can change the past, but I feel like this will help you move forward.”
“I think so too. Now, let’s do this.”
She popped the little flip cap up on the lighter fluid bottle, reaching it out over the pit. She didn’t squeeze the bottle for a long moment. It needed to happen, but it was surreal to realize it was actually happening. She’d thought of this moment for months. She was finally silencing Joyce.
She applied pressure to the bottle. Clear liquid spurted out onto the box, soaking the top notes. The white paper contrasted so sharply with the brown box and charred remains from their previous fire.
Matches were quietly handed to her. Matty’s thumb rubbed her hand when they exchanged the bottle for them. Reese smiled weakly at Matty through light tears. It wasn’t so much sadness as she was finally getting to the end of a very long, rough journey.
It took her two tries to get the match lit. She was never really good at them. When it hit the notes, fire erupted instantly, flickering up.
“Wow,” she laughed, eyes wide. She looked over at Matty. “Might have used too much lighter fluid.”
Matty laughed, looping her arm around Reese’s waist. “That’s okay. It’ll burn off.”
They watched the fire a little longer. Relief like she had never experienced flooded over her.
This was her new beginning. She’d taken back everything she set out to.
It was only forward from here. She had everything she wanted and then some.
Never had she imagined how her life would go when she came back to town, but it was the best decision ever.
She had a job she loved, a home that truly was hers now, and best of all, the love and support of so many.
Especially Matty, who loved her so fiercely that sometimes it took her breath away.
This was a life worth fighting for. She’d never regret the work it took because it gave her everything and more. A life worth loving.