Chapter 53
Chapter Fifty-Three
FREYA
ELSIE
How’s Luci’s visit going?
FREYA
Amazing.
Though she’s currently ransacking my store.
She’s ‘helping’.
Ireply between bites of my sandwich, where I’m propped behind the counter.
ELSIE
Yikes
That girl is a tornado
Elsie’s only met Luci in person once, when she came to Connecticut three years ago to see me and my mom, but they were quickly thick as thieves.
“Wait, did you want these in color order?” Luci calls, ducking her head from around the shelf she’s tucked behind.
“No, by brand,” I reply. “Just leave it, I’ll do it in a second.”
FREYA
She wants to organize the yarns by color.
ELSIE
I mean, it might be nice?
FREYA
Not you too…
“I want to be helpful!” Luci yells. “Are you sure you don’t want them by color? I feel like it’ll be cuter!”
“We need the brands together, you psychopath!” I laugh.
“Whatever,” she grumbles.
FREYA
I’ve managed to keep her at bay.
ELSIE
Probably for the best
How are her and Oscar getting along?
I cringe, thinking back on last night. I tried calling Oscar this morning but I couldn’t get an answer. I just wish he would tell me what’s going on.
FREYA
He’s been busy, so they haven’t properly met yet.
ELSIE
Really? I would have thought she’d have wanted to give him the ninth degree
FREYA
I’m sure she’ll get her chance.
ELSIE
Is everything alright?
I deflate slightly. How does she always know?
FREYA
I think so?
It’s just been hard few weeks.
ELSIE
Oh, Little Peach
Of course it has
When’s the funeral? I’ll be sure to come down for it.
FREYA
I’m not sure yet, the county still have to release his body.
I feel sick about it. They’re doing a full autopsy because he died in the line of duty, but it means that Joni and her family are stuck in an awful limbo, waiting for him to come home.
ELSIE
That poor family
I can’t imagine what they’re going through
FREYA
I know.
ELSIE
How’s Oscar doing?
FREYA
Honestly, I’m not sure.
He won’t really talk to me about it.
I want to be there for him, but I don’t know how.
ELSIE
I think you just have to keep showing up, he’ll talk to you when he’s ready
FREYA
Yeah.
We’ll be okay.
ELSIE
Of course you will
I blink back tears, checking to make sure Luci’s not watching. Luckily she’s still engrossed in whatever mayhem she’s wreaking. She can be like a cat, you don’t want her going too quiet, or else you’ll find out she’s been getting into something crazy.
I push out a harsh breath, wanting to change the subject.
FREYA
Did I tell you Joyce finally came in?
Finally pulled that stick out her ass, I guess.
ELSIE
Yeah, she said
That’s great news!
I frown at my screen. Surely I’m not reading that right.
FREYA
She said?
You guys talked?
ELSIE
We did
I took your advice and called her
FREYA
And???
ELSIE
And…
It was actually quite nice
She’s good fun to argue with
I grin. If this was a spinning chair I’d be whirling around right now.
FREYA
I told you!
She just missed you.
ELSIE
I told her she needs to play nice
FREYA
I’ll believe it when I see it…
I can’t believe this. I knew Joyce was just sad about Elsie going. I should have placed bets, I’d be a millionaire right now.
A few minutes later, my sandwich is nothing but crumbs and Luci’s falling into the folding chair she pulled out from the back this morning.
“But just imagine it. Your whole store could look like a rainbow.”
“Yeah, and I’d never be able to find anything!”
“Sometimes you’ve got to do things for the aesthetic.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“I’m a genius, you’re just not ready for my brilliance.”
I ball up my sandwich wrapper and throw it, smiling as it bounces off her head and rolls away onto the floor.
She shoots me an affronted look. “I’m not picking that up.”
“You know, they’re not going to put up with your attitude in grad school.”
“I’m taking Creative Writing. I think an overinflated sense of self is kind of mandatory.” She raises a brow, her mouth twisting into a smirk.
“You have to tell me everything about the rest of your cohort,” I demand.
“Obviously,” she sighs, “you’re going to be getting minute by minute updates.”
“I look forward to it.”
“They’re gonna be a nightmare.”
I smirk. “You’ll fit right in.”
“I hope so.”
There’s a tinge of vulnerability in her voice. I lean forward, all joking aside. “Hey, you’ll be great.”
“You think?” She looks down at her hands, twisted in her lap.
“Of course, you are.”
“What if I’m the worst one there?”
“That’s not going to happen. I’ve read your stuff, you’re amazing.”
She nods, still unsure. “There will probably be some loser man writing fan fiction about his ex-girlfriend.”
“Luci, there’s going to be at least ten loser men. Loser men as far as the eye can see.”
“There’d better be,” she grumbles.
“And you wouldn’t have gotten in if you were a bad writer.”
“Maybe they felt bad for me.”
“Oh, shut up.” I chuckle. “Do you hear yourself?”
She sighs, scratching at her temple. “I’m just freaked out, it’s a lot of change.”
I scoot towards her and take hold of her hand. “But it’s good change. It’s you finally living your dream.”
“I guess…”
“Don’t guess, you know I’m right.” I give her arm a little shake. “I love you and I’m so proud of you.”
“I love you too,” she mumbles.
“What was that?”
“I love you too,” she says louder, rolling her eyes.
“That’s better.”
The waiter shows us to a table in the back of the restaurant. It’s small, lit by warm sconces dotted around the walls. Luci slides into the booth across from me, leaving space for Oscar to sit by my side.
I check my phone, hoping for a message from him. I still can’t shake the image of his face last night. He looked so broken, and I have no idea how to even begin to put him back together.
I heard from one of the customers that there was a barn fire outside of town yesterday. Was that what he responded to? I don’t think he’s been to another major fire since he took over, at least nothing that he’s mentioned. It must have been difficult, leading the crew without Mack.
I check my phone again. It’s five past seven.
“Anything?” Luci asks, nodding down at my screen.
“Not yet.” I lock it and look back up at her with a strained smile.
He probably just got held up at the station, but things are intense right now.
A waiter appears, asking if we’re ready to order drinks. “We’re just waiting for one more,” Luci replies. The waiter nods and walks away, returning a few seconds later with a bottle of water and three glasses.
“Was there anything else you wanted to do around town while you’re here?” I ask Luci.
“Nothing specific. I’m happy just hanging out with you.”
“When do you have to go back?”
“My flight’s on Tuesday.”
“Do you need a ride back to the airport?”
“If that’s alright.”
“Yeah, of course.” I tug at a strand of my hair, the awkwardness settling. Usually talking to Luci is as easy as breathing, but something about this situation has the words stalling in my mouth.
I feel my face flush red as another ten minutes pass.
“Should you maybe call him?” Luci probes gently.
“I’ll send him a message. I don’t want to disturb him.”
“Freya, he’s twenty minutes late for dinner. I think you’re within your rights to disturb him.”
“Yeah.” I sigh. “I know, you’re right.”
I go to Oscar’s contact and hit the call icon. It rings once before switching to voicemail. I leave a message, trying to sound relaxed.
“Hey, it’s Freya, just wanted to check in. Me and Luci are at the restaurant now, so just let us know what your ETA is.”
Luci’s watching me with a frown.
“What?” I ask.
“It only rang once.”
“So?”
“So, that means he saw you calling and rejected it.”
“Maybe he turned it off.”
She gives me a tight smile, crossing her arms on the table. “Yeah, maybe.”
“He’s probably busy. He might be on a callout or something.”
“Sure, it’s probably that.”
The waiter reappears. “Are we still expecting someone?” he asks tentatively.
“Yes?” I reply.
He sees my uncertainty. “It’s just that we do have another reservation behind you, so…” He trails off awkwardly.
“It’s fine,” Luci cuts in. “Can we get two glasses of your house red? We’ll be ready to order in just a moment.”
“Luci,” I hiss as he walks away. “I think we should—”
“Freya,” she says gently. “I don’t think he’s coming.”
I pull at a loose thread in my sweater. “He’ll come.”
“Freya.”
“He’ll come,” I protest.
“I think we’d have heard by now if he was just running late.”
“Then maybe I should go to the station?” Oh god, why didn’t I think of that before? Maybe he’s hurt? Maybe something went wrong on a callout?
“Hey, hey, it’s okay.” She reaches out and takes my hand. “If there was a problem, then surely his mom would have called, like last time?”
God, I don’t know if I can go through that again. “She might have forgotten?”
“She would have called,” she says more firmly.
“Okay.” I nod, trying to calm my breathing. She’s right. If there was actually something wrong, then I would have heard about it by now. Hell, in a town like this, half the restaurant would be talking about it already. “I’m going to text Valerie, just in case.”
“Good plan.”
The waiter brings by our wine and pulls out his notepad, ready to take our order.
I look up at Luci with a panicked expression but she just takes a quick scan of the menu, ordering a pasta dish for each of us.
She knows me well enough that she’s able to predict my orders with an almost scary level of accuracy by now.
Thank you, I mouth. She gives me a wink.
I tap out a quick message to Valerie.
FREYA
Do you know if Oscar’s okay? He was supposed to meet us for dinner but he hasn’t shown.
Her reply comes within seconds.
VALERIE
I’ve not heard anything. No news is usually good news, but I’ll try calling him
FREYA
I tried, I couldn’t get an answer.
VALERIE
I wouldn’t worry, sweetheart. He’s probably just running late
FREYA
Yeah, probably.
“She’s going to try calling him,” I say, placing my phone face up on the table, just in case.
“I’m sure everything’s fine.” Luci reaches over to give my hand a squeeze.
“I’m just worried about him.” I prop my elbows on the table and lean my face into my hands. “He’s not been himself.”
“Yeah, he did seem kind of out of it last night.”
I brush away my bangs, which have fallen in front of my eyes. “He wouldn’t tell me what was happening.”
“Maybe he just needs some time to process?”
“I don’t know,” I say. The last few days have been so confusing, I have no idea what to do about any of it. “I just want to help him, but I don’t know how.”
“I’m sure he’ll come to you when he’s ready.”
“I hope so.”
I check my phone again and see a message from Valerie. I scramble to unlock it.
VALERIE
He’s here.