Page 72 of Pity Play

Luke

Would you like to meet me at Pop’s for supper some night this week?

Before I can answer, my phone rings. It’s Luke. “Hi,” I say.

“Hi, yourself. Listen, I’m sorry about not saying goodbye in person, but I really would like to see you again before I go.”

“When will that be?” I ask. It feels strange to know that Luke is going to be in Elk Lake, but he won’t be staying with me.

“A few more days. My dad is recovering surprisingly fast, but I want to see him up and about before I go.”

I suddenly feel strangely distant from Luke. “That’s nice of you. Are things going well between you?”

“We worked it out this morning,” he says. “We’re going to be okay.”

Walking into the kitchen, I sit down at the empty breakfast table. “I’m glad.”

“So how about supper? How does Thursday night look? I’ll tell you all about my dad then.”

Thursday night is five nights away, so obviously Luke is in no hurry to see me. Which smarts. “I guess that would be fine,” I tell him. What I really want to do is cry that our time together has ended before I knew it was ending. Although, had Luke stayed I might have thrown myself at him and begged him to love me. That would have been pathetic, so maybe it’s best he slipped out unnoticed.

A thought suddenly hits me that if this is my last meal with Luke, I want it to be more special than another meal at Pop’s. “I have a gift card for the dining room at the Elk Lake Lodge. How about if we go there instead?” I ask.

“I’ve been wanting to eat there!” he says enthusiastically. “That sounds like a lot of fun. Just text me the time of our reservation and I’ll meet you.”

“Good, great, will do.” I trip over my words like an idiot.

“I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me, Lorelai. You’ve been so accommodating.” It’s like I’m a dog and he’s petting me on the head.Good girl.

“It was fun,” I say, immediately regretting my choice of words. He’s going to assume I’m talking about last night’s kiss, so I amend that to, “I mean, it’s been nice having another warm body at home with me.” Great, now I sound like a perv, talking about his warm body.

Luke doesn’t respond right away which makes me feel even more insecure. When he finally speaks, he says, “So let me know when our reservation is, okay?”

“Will do.” I feel as awkward as I did when I was a little girl trying to impress him with my plastic-egg-stuffed bra. “Bye,” I say quickly before hanging up. I have zero game. Nada. Ziltch.

I half expect Luke to text me back and tell me that dinner will no longer work, but he doesn’t. I’m guessing he’s nowhere near as sad as I am, which just goes to show that he doesn’t care about me the way I care about him.

That’s when I realize what a good thing it is that he’s leaving. Once Luke is out of Elk Lake, there won’t be any reason for me to lose focus. I will be onward and upward making a new life for myself. I cannot wait!

The days pass in the blink of an eye. Not only did I meet with Allie’s dad, but he’s already torn the wall down between the living room and dining room. It turns out that’s not such a big project when the wall isn’t loadbearing.

The painters came for two days and brought so many workers they’ve already painted the whole house.

Tomorrow the vinyl planking will be laid and then the following day, the new appliances will be delivered. After that, there won’t be much else to do other than wait for the movers to load up my parents’ belongings. I still can’t believe they didn’t want to be here to see the house before it changed so much.

The rest of today is spent in total upheaval as carpets are ripped up and carried out through the front door. Furniture moves from room to room as new carpets are laid, and more people come and go than were probably here all last year.

At five o’clock, the house is finally mine again and I begin the process of walking through and checking everything out. I’m ecstatic how everything looks so new. My room is a shock with all the remnants of my childhood either packed away or gotten rid of. But as I look at the blank slate, I can’t help but feel excited for whoever is going to claim ownership of my childhood domain next.

My stomach growls reminding me that it’s time to get ready for my dinner date with Luke. I’ve been so busy that I’ve hardly thought about him since our phone conversation. But now that I’m going to see him again, my nerves start to take over. What will we talk about? Will he try to kiss me again? Will I throw myself at him and beg him to make me his?

I hope I don’t do the last thing, but honestly, I’m not sure I trust my ability to remain calm, cool, and collected around him. Reason seems to go out the window when I’m in his presence.

Going into my closet, I pull out a simple black dress. I’ve only worn it on a couple of occasions, but it can be dressed up or down depending on need. Tonight, I decide to accessorize with a wide black leather belt with a rhinestone buckle and large dangling rhinestone earrings. Why not leave Luke remembering me the way I want to be remembered? Like a total smoke show.

Walking into the lodge all dressed up, instead of in my work attire, feels nice. I can definitely see coming back here again sometime. I think about the gift card I have for a suite and wonder ifAllie would like to have a little staycation with me sometime. I know she could really use it. We’ve talked a couple of times on the phone this week and she’s still devastated by her ex-husband’s actions.

Trina spots me near the dining room and waves before hurrying toward me. After she gives me a hug, she says, “Lorelai! I’m so happy to see you. How are the renovations going?”

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