19. Darcy
19
DARCY
“ W hy did you do this?” I asked, returning to Liz’s side. “Why invite me here when you know Callum’s here too?”
I had called Liz immediately after Callum drove away from my house. I knew she would see the offer on the store soon, since it was in both of our inboxes, and I needed her to hear the information from me. But it meant she also forced some of the other details out of me. She had prodded until I told her that Callum spent the night last night. I was upset when she was giddy about it, seemingly ignoring my outrage.
“Didn’t you hear his radio interview this morning?” Liz asked as someone practiced closing the theater’s red curtain. While it closed, all the kids waved at Liz and me who stood on the auditorium floor off of the stage.
“I heard it,” I mumbled.
“Okay! So you know it was just a misunderstanding. He wants to preserve your family legacy. He was only trying to help!”
“By tearing apart the store and making it some big musician’s paradise? That probably means drinking and doing drugs long into the night. He might think Maplewood wants that, but he’s sorely mistaken.”
Liz’s eyebrows bent down in a frown.
“Is that really what you think all musicians are like?” she asked. “I think you have a simplified version. They are people, you know.”
“I know that,” I said, feeling defensive. I had to admit Liz was probably right. I was carrying around some story of what musicians were like, though to my credit it was always perpetuated by the media. I saw people doing drugs to gain their artistic edge and imagined a recording studio lobby filled with girls just waiting for some attention from famous people. I was envisioning my dad’s hardware store like some moralless building where people went for debauchery. I knew it was the worst-case scenario, but I couldn’t shake it from my mind.
“Look, maybe you should talk to him,” Liz said.
I glanced back to the sound table where Callum was standing with another man and showing him some of the knobs and buttons on the console.
“Unless you’re not interested in him. And if that’s the case, Darcy, then it’s time to put the man out of his misery.”
I thought back to earlier when Randy had asked me on a date. Something inside of me had made me say no. Something was telling me that whatever Randy had to offer wasn’t right for me. Was that because I wanted a life with someone else?
The thought hit me hard, and I quickly looked away from Callum. Liz was pushing the costumes back into the plastic tubs and pushing them off to the side. The kids were going to do a run through of the show before eating pizza and then setting up for the performance tonight. As she grabbed another box, she looked at me, waiting for a response.
“I don’t know what I want,” I said; but then, because I needed to try out the words, I said, “I am interested in him.”
“I know you are!” Liz said, smiling at me, and I rolled my eyes at her. She always thought she could read my mind. And, to be honest, many times she was right. “So, get over yourself and see what this could be. If you don’t want him to renovate the hardware store, then tell him that. And if you want a hand in what those renovations look like, then I know he would let you. You have the power here, Darcy.”
I listened to Liz’s words carefully. It was like I could finally see the situation clearly. All along I had had the power to reject his offer on the hardware store. So why did I get so angry about it? Was it because he threatened to destroy my dad’s legacy, perhaps? But some part of me wondered if I was upset about more than that. Was I pushing back against Callum’s attempts to get closer to me?
From the beginning I had assumed Callum was only looking for a fling. I thought he would sleep with me and move on, preparing for his next tour and forgetting all about Maplewood. But when I thought back to all of our interactions, I started to wonder if that was a reality I had pushed onto him. In the same way I was holding on to the worst stereotypes of musicians, had I pushed a story onto Callum that was false?
“Will you be alright?” I asked, looking back at the stage where the kids were lining up for their first number.
“I think we put out most of the fires,” Liz laughed. “It may not be perfect, but they’ll have a show tonight. Thanks so much for your help.”
“Of course,” I said. I kept my eye on Callum, hoping he wasn’t about to rush out of the room now that I had resolved to talk to him.
“Go talk to him,” Liz smiled, giving me a gentle shove on the shoulder. “But make sure you’re back here for the performance. Maggie and Alan will never forgive you if you miss it!”
“I’ll be here,” I assured her. I gave Liz a hug and told her how amazing she was for helping her kids, and all the others, put on this show. Then I was gone, crossing to the back of the room as butterflies fluttered around in my stomach. I had no idea what I would say to Callum, but I forced one foot in front of the other until he noticed me coming and gave me a smile.
“Think you got it?” he asked the man standing next to him.
“I’ll give it a go,” the man said. Callum switched places with him, encouraging the man to take the primary position behind the board.
“Use the run-through as a practice round,” Callum explained. “And let me know if you have any problems. I’ll check back in to help before the show starts.”
“Sure thing,” the man said. He nodded at Callum and then glanced at me to give me a slight smile. Callum grabbed his coat from the back of the chair and led me a few feet away where we could have a bit of privacy.
“Could we talk?” I asked. Loud notes from the piano pounded out across the auditorium and the children thundered onto the stage with loud footsteps.
“Let’s go outside,” Callum laughed. He pushed open the door at the back of the room and we found ourselves in an elementary school hallway. The walls were covered in colorful bulletin boards and children’s art.
“Were you serious about the things you said on the radio?” I blurted out, unable to hold this in anymore. Callum’s eyebrows rose in surprise.
“You heard it?” he asked. I nodded.
“I heard it,” I said. “Was it true? Are you ... looking to settle down, or whatever you said?” My words were dismissive, as if I needed to give him an opportunity to back out of this.
“I meant it,” he insisted, holding my gaze. “Whatever this is between us, it’s different than anything I’ve ever felt before. And I want to see what’s here.”
“You’re only here for the summer. What about when you have to go back out on the road?”
“You’re right,” he admitted. At least he wasn’t denying it. “We have flights already booked and ticket holders that would be quite upset if we suddenly cancelled all their tickets. But we have time off. I want Maplewood to be my home base. I want to come here anytime they send us home.”
“And the store?” I asked. My words were still tight and guarded. I couldn’t bring myself to believe what he was telling me. Some part of me still believed he was simply trying to trick me into giving up the hardware store. It didn’t matter that there wasn’t much logic to this. I couldn’t stop worrying that his actions were somehow selfish and designed to hurt me.
“I meant what I said. I should have talked to you about it first. The truth is, I talked to my lawyer about it, and before I knew it there was an offer. I really thought I could make you feel better about selling.”
“It’s not about the money,” I said. “It’s never been about that.”
“No, I know that.” Callum dropped his head. “It was dumb of me to think that offering you more money would somehow make up for all the memories you have of that place. But I wanted to make it easier for you. If you don’t want to sell, I totally get it.”
“And the plans for the recording studio?”
“I really do want to do that!” Callum said. “If there’s a spot to record here then it means more time at home. More time with the people I care about.”
His words from the radio interview echoed through my head: I’ll have a home near people I love.
“I’ve been in a lot of recording studios that are cold and dark. It’s supposed to be a place to inspire creativity. A place to take risks and allow musicians to find the true sound and feel of their song. I want to help people find that.”
His eyes sparkled as he spoke of the place. It was an excitement and energy I hadn’t seen from him before.
“You’ve really thought about this,” I said.
“It was only a distant thought when I first came here. But then I met someone.”
My breath caught in my throat as he said it.
“And the more time I spent with you, the more I saw a future here in Maplewood.”
Callum took my hands in his own, and I felt the warmth radiating through him as he tried to express his feelings to me.
“I love my music,” he continued. “And I can’t imagine a world without being able to express myself through songs. I never imagined I would care about anything else except my music. But everything changed this summer. I’m starting to think there’s room for other things in my life. Music isn’t enough anymore. Call me selfish, but I’m ready to love more than just that.”
I felt my heart leap in my chest as he said this. He leaned down and kissed me then and I felt how cautious he was. He was asking me a question with that kiss, and I wasn’t quite ready to give him the answer. I kissed him back, but I was tentative, and Callum could feel it. He pulled away and waited for me to speak.
His words were racing through my head, and I felt overwhelmed by the information. Something inside of me was holding back, still skeptical. I knew Liz would say my break-up with John had left me less trusting of others. I could almost hear her words echoing through my head. But Liz and I were different people. She was quick to trust. For me, I needed proof.
“Let’s go,” I said, pulling on his sleeve. I walked down the hall and hoped he would follow me.
“Where are we going?” he asked. “Doesn’t Liz need us?”
“We’ll be back in time for the show,” I assured him. He followed me outside to the school parking lot. “Do you have your guitar?” I asked, turning back to him.
“My guitar? It’s in my trunk.”
“Grab it,” I said. I fished out my keys and unlocked my car as he rushed to his own. He moved his guitar from his trunk to my back seat before jumping into the car with me. He didn’t ask me again where were going, but I felt his eyes on me as I drove and couldn’t miss the slight smile on his face as he embraced this next adventure.