Page 6 of Wicked Truths

I watch as the three tiny dots appear on the screen before disappearing.

Busy. Can’t talk.

Joey is always busy either with jobs from Dad or practice, but his three word response causes my lips to droop into a frown. So much for a warm welcome and a family dinner.

Well, not having dinner together is my fault since the flight was delayed, but is having family waiting at the airport too much to ask for?

Especially on my birthday of all days?

I open my internet browser and type in the website for my new apartment complex. I swipe through the pictures on the website before looking at the ones of my new fully furnished apartment.

It’s smaller than what Mandy and I had, but I’m the only one living here, so I only need one bedroom.

The entire apartment building is so elegant and modern it’s hard to believe it used to be a warehouse.

The developer tore it down and put in an L-shaped apartment building complete with an amazing Olympic sized pool with a retractable roof over the entire deck for year round swimming.

I continue swiping through the pictures, marveling at how bright and welcoming the lobby is. There’s even an entire wall of mailboxes. At least checking the mail will be convenient as I have to pass by them every day.

A man nearby huffs and complains to his wife. “These delays are endless today. What else can go wrong?”

My thoughts mimic his frustration, but Momalways said to be careful what you put out in the universe, because it just may come true.

The last thing we need is for something else to fuck up, but with the way today has gone, anything is possible.

The conveyor belt turns on and starts moving, signaling the imminent arrival of our bags. Everyone steps closer in hopes of getting their luggage as soon as it comes out.

Suddenly, the conveyor jerks and freezes, like the components aren’t working smoothly. It moves for a few seconds before slowing down.

The crowd groans and complains as the conveyor stops once again. But this time, it doesn’t start moving again.

The older man beside me kicks the baggage carousel, causing me to chuckle at his tiny frustrated tantrum. “Damn it, Maggie, this is why I said we should drive. I don’t care if flying saves us half the time. We are never flying again.”

I watch the couple out of the corner of my eye.

The wife steps closer to him and wraps her hand around his before softly saying, “We will be fine, Harold. This is just a little bump in the road before vacation.”

She pats his hand before continuing. “Do you remember all the times our plans have gone astray, but we still enjoyed ourselves? What about the time we were driving to see the grandbabies, and we got a flat tire? We were fine then, and we will be fine now.”

He grunts in response.

Is that the universal guy code for you’re right? Or maybe it’s an I don’t believe you, but I know better than to say that out loud.

I chuckle to myself as I continue to browse through the apartment’s pictures. There’s a community game room as well as a small community movie theater.

This apartment complex looks like home, and I think I’m going to love it here as long as I can steer clear of Rhett until my heart can handle being near him again.

A memory of him smiling at me causes my heart to leap in my chest. When the memory plays out and turns sexual, I’m left feeling heartbroken, turned on, worried, and hopeful all at the same time.

I try to push the tiny spark of hope down. There’s no hope for Rhett and me. He might be in a new relationship or even married by now. And even if he’s not in a relationship, he’ll never forgive me for the way I left.

He’s still Joey’s friend, but Joey stopped mentioning him to me a long time ago. I’m sure when Rhett started dating someone new, Joey didn’t want to be the one to tell me that bit of news, so it was easier to stop mentioning Rhett all together.

The loud boom of thunder rattles the building as lightning crackles in the sky a second before all the lights flicker and turn off.

Great.

Now this storm has caused the airport to lose power.

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