“I forgot, you kiddos don’t know what it’s like to not have access to a cell phone all the time!”I handed her the picture, and she tucked it back into its place in the album.“A page is like a text message before cell phones existed.You would call a friend’s pager number and after the beep, you would enter your phone number or a coded message with numbers, then you would wait for them to return your call, assuming they were somewhere they had access to a pay phone or someone’s house phone.”
“And did Mom call back at your house?”I asked her, really curious because this was a new perspective of Mom and Dad that I hadn’t heard before.
“No, I never heard the phone ring, so he must have entered a code for her.When I asked him who Ellie was and he just blew me off because he was already mad at me that night.Later, I had found out that he met your mom a long time before me and that they used to keep in touch the entire time we were dating.”
“Oh.”I said, not sure how to respond to that.Obviously, I was all for Mom and Dad but that must have sucked, finding out that your boyfriend had been talking to someone else throughout your whole relationship.
Carrie came into the room then, still bouncing around on a high from the Duke acceptance news.“Mom, we’re meeting up with Dylan’s mom for dinner, we’ll probably be home late, don’t stay up, kay?”she pulled her hair into a ponytail while she talked.
“Okay sweetie, I’m probably going to turn in early anyways.I have an early start tomorrow, cleaning up from a big group that will be checking out.”They hugged and we walked outside to my car when Mom called my phone.
“Hey Mom, we’re just about to head out to meet you at the restaurant.”I explained without even sayinghello.
“Oh bud, I’m sorry, I’m just really not feeling well right now and I need to lay down.But you two go ahead, enjoy dinner together and I’ll be ready for some more fun tomorrow.”Mom told me quietly.She had a headache again; that happens a lot during the summer, I don’t think she drinks enough water when it’s hot out.
“Ok, Mom.No worries, lock up and I’ll come in through the garage.”I told her and then hung up.“It’s just you and me tonight.”I smiled at Carrie.
We decided not to go back into the city for the big restaurant scene and opted, instead, for The Pub in town.It’s a sweet spot in the center of the town square that has both indoor and outdoor seating.It was a little chilly out tonight, so we asked for a table inside and boy, they were crowded when we got there; I wasn’t sure if we were going to be able to get a table.The hostess goes to our school, so we talked with her as we waited for a table to open up.I asked her about the group of military guys in flight suits that I saw.They were gathered at a large table laughing and enjoying drinks.She said they had been here for almost two hours, and they kept chatting it up with her.They’ve been in the city all week for meetings and were told they had to try this place out because they were sure to like the small town vibe.I was standing next to the man at the end closest to us and thanked them for their service just as our hostess led us to our table.
Carrie and I sat in a small booth and ordered drinks.I held her hands across the table and told her how proud I was of her for getting into Duke.She told me how excited she was, and we talked and ate, me stealing glances at her the whole time.She takes my breath away and sometimes I just can’t believe I get to share my time with her.I wanted to talk to her about us and how life would be when she moves away for school, but I didn’t want to chance ruining the mood; we’ve been having an amazing day, and this night has been the cherry on top.
I asked the waitress for our check, and she told me that someone from the big group of Air Force guys covered our meal, and we were free to go.I looked over and saw that they had all already left the restaurant, except one guy, he was at the door looking at us and he tipped his hat, nodding as he walked out.
“That was so nice of them.”Carrie gushed.“Dylan?What?What did you see?”she asked me because I was staring at the door as it closed and the man that paid our bill was walking away toward the parking lot.I had chills along my arms, and I jumped up, running out the door but he was already driving away.It was him; I swear it was him.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
LEE
Present Day
Things moved incredibly fast after I walked out of the office building at Pline Records.Marc wasn’t lying when he said they were going to send the track to the radio stations that afternoon because I flipped on the radio on my way to grab some dinner that night and heard the familiar words leaking through my car speakers.
And then my phone blew up with texts from Egin and the guys from the bar last night:
“Dude, I swear you just sang that song last night.”
“Were you just on the radio?”
“Was that your song?”
“You have something to tell us?I just heard the song you wrote on the radio!”
I ignored them all; I was going to see them tomorrow at work anyways so I figured I would tell them then.I got home and ate my dinner quietly, looking around my sullen apartment with a heavy sigh.Imagining the sounds of laughter from our would-be children, picturing toys or backpacks strewn across the living room and the sight of my beautiful wife reading a book in her favorite corner chair, I couldn’t help but think about how different life could be.I was seriously considering the possibility of finding Ellie as a result of this song.
By the time I got to work on Monday morning, I had heard my song at least a dozen times on the radio and each time was more surreal than the last.It had me wondering if Ellie had heard it and if she had put the pieces together, translating the words from my letters to the lyrics of the song.
When I walked into my building, the receptionist told me that Egin had stopped by this morning to chat and mentioned I had a song out on the radio.She said congratulations and suggested that I may have found myself a new career as a songwriter.I laughed and told her thanks, but it probably won’t be a big deal.She said she listened to it and thought I was wrong, “Those words were powerful.”
I thanked her again and nodded, then badged into the secure door that led to my office.Egin and the guys were there waiting for me, all of them with goofy smiles on their faces.
Egin high fives me and says “It’s my wife’s new favorite song and now I have to listen to it over and over.She about died when I told her you wrote it!”
“So, tell us all about it!”Davis chimes in.
“Yeah, what happened after you left us at the bar?”
I explained the whole deal to the guys, and they eagerly took it all in disbelief clear on their faces.
