She looked better than I had expected. She had showered and dressed, and there was no sign of alcohol on her face. “Maybe tomorrow. I need a day to recoup from last night.”
She smiled. “Yeah, it was crazy.”
“How did you sleep?” I grabbed an apple, and the crisp smack of my teeth breaking the skin echoed off the generic walls.
“Awesome. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.”
“Meet any cute guys?” I asked, breaking eye contact.
Her overflowing spoon crammed into her mouth, and she chewed noisily before responding. “A few, but Zoey got wasted, so she took up most of my attention.”
“Yeah, no kidding! I don’t think we would have made it home if we didn’t get that taxi.”
Marissa shrugged and drank the milk straight from the bowl. “Where’s Jaime?”
“Don’t know. Probably still at Owen’s.”
“What are you doing today?”
“I think I might go to Eyre Square. It looks like a beautiful day, and I could use the sunshine.”
“Want company?”
“Nah, I’m kind of moving slow today.” I didn’t think I’d be able to hold a conversation for the entire walk downtown, although I was curious if she would open up about her rendezvous last night.
I pulled myself out of my chair and forced myself to prepare for the day. I glanced at Jaime’s empty bed again and frowned. I wanted to call him but didn’t have his number.
The hike to Eyre Square was longer than I remembered and I picked up my pace until I marched into the mobile store. “I need a mobile phone,” I said to the clerk behind the counter.
Thirty minutes later, I walked out with a smile and a flip phone smaller than the palm of my hand. I could now call my Irish friends, call home, and call a cab.
Sitting in an internet café, I emailed my family and Marty. Greetings from Galway! I got a cell phone today, so anytime you need to talk, call me. Here’s my number. I flipped open my phone and typed in the ten-digit number. –Rory
I scanned through my email and pulled up the latest from Marty. Hey Rory! I miss you so much. I can’t wait for Thanksgiving! It’s only four weeks away. Here is my plane info. You might have to help me get to you from the airport. I’m super nervous about traveling to a foreign country, but if you could do it, I can too. I invited my sister. I scrunched my nose and exhaled. Marty’s twin sister, Mandy, was fine, but she wasn’t my favorite person. She always needed to be the center of attention. Whenever I hung out with her, my plans went to crap. She’s really excited to see you. Please send me all the important stuff I need to remember…like your address, how to get to you, and what to pack. We’ll be there from Wednesday to Saturday. Love you!
I replied to her email, outlining the steps to find me. She’d need to hop on a bus from the airport and then find a cab at Eyre Square. She’ll figure it out.
The frequency of my parents’ emails had dwindled over the past few weeks. I didn’t want them to think I only emailed when I needed money, so I sent a quick hello. Over the past decade, my relationship with my parents had thinned. They forced their ideals of a perfect life onto me, yet they lived a fake life where no one really knew what went on behind the curtain of our home. A cheating dad and a pill-popping mom, both afraid to ruin me, actually did ruin me by their inaction.
I kept the email short and sweet, then scanned through the rest of my inbox.
Nothing from Scott. Even though I broke up with him, I still expected some sort of response, but his silence illustrated just how shallow our relationship was.
Alone with my thoughts, I left the internet café and wandered out to the enormous park to people-watch. It seemed half of Galway had taken advantage of this beautiful day. The hot weather reminded me of late August, and the radiant blue sky scared all the rain clouds away. Looking around, the changing leaves reminded me of home.
Far in the distance, I saw a group of guys playing football. My stomach dropped when I recognized the red hair. Stepping closer to get a better view, I watched Jaime kick the ball high in the sky and a group of guys chase after it. Following the ball, the image disintegrated with the sun’s rays. Shielding my eyes to get a better view, a blow to my shoulder rocked me back, and I spun and fell on my knees in the hard, grassy dirt.
“Oomph!” escaped from my lips. Someone ran over and grabbed my hand. The sun shone directly above me, and the image remained in shadow.
“You grand?” he asked.
I moved my head to the side to block the sun and saw Jaime’s lovely, tender eyes.
“Never better.”
“Funny meeting you like this. Again.” He reached out his hand and pulled me up.
I brushed off my pants and waved at Owen.
