Page 94 of The End of Summer

“She’s amazing,” I admit. I sip my beer.

“So, what is it? You don’t think you can do the long distance thing?”

“No, it’s not that – although, quite honestly, Idothink that would be challenging. I just…” My voice trails off. “I just feel like she has it all figured out. She has a plan, and it’s a solid one. I, on the other hand, have basically been unemployed all summer, squatting in someone else’s apartment. I feel like she deservesmore.And so, here’s my chance tobesomething. To be, I don’t know.Worthyof her. But the only way to do itis to compromise how comfortable we are right now by making things difficult for us.”

My mom nods, processing my verbal diarrhea over her BLT. “What if –” she begins, “and, now, just hear me out – what if a challenge is exactly what you guys need?”

“How do you figure?”

“Well, it’s been easy so far, right?”

“I guess,” I say, thinking back on how we met, how we both lost our jobs, how we stumbled into the same living situation and the same line of work. “Yeah, maybe noteasy, exactly. But definitelyconvenient.”

“Right. That’s what I mean. It’s been convenient. But, Brady,lifeis not always convenient. If you guys are going to work for the long haul, you’re going to have to face challenges atsomepoint, you know?”

I take a bite of my burger, considering her point as I chew. “I just don’t want to mess up a good thing.” I leave out the fact that up until today, being with Gretchen has been theonlygood thing I’ve had in a really long time.

“Of course, honey. I understand that,” she replies. “Just remember, sometimes overcoming obstacles makes a relationship stronger.”

“Yeah, and sometimes it makes a relationship fall apart.”

“But wouldn’t you rather discover that now? As opposed to finding out that you don’t have what it takes to weather a storm togetherafteryou’re married and have a child?” I hear the undertones. I know she’s referring to the life she had with my dad.

Gretchen and I arenothinglike my parents.

“I think wedohave what it takes, Ma. I really, really like this girl.”

“So then, you should talk to her about it. See if you guys can come up with a solution together.”

I nod. “You’re right.” I sigh. I feel a little lighter.We can figure it out. As long as we have each other, we’ll be fine.

“Sometimes that happens,” she says with a smirk.

“Thank you. Really. I feel a lot better.”

“My pleasure, sweetie.”

“Now, can I ask you an important question?”

“Sure.”

“Have you ever driven in Manhattan?”

“God, no!” she exclaims.

I laugh, and we cheers our drinks to that.

The rest of the evening goes really smoothly. I miss my mother, I realize, and I wish Gretchen was here so she could meet her. They would hit it off instantly, I’m sure.

After dinner, we walk around the cute little shops in Olde Mistick Village and I stand off to the side as she tastes a variety of fancy infused honey, pores over a high-end store featuring kitchen gadgets, and peruses a purveyor of lotions and soaps. When she’s finished with her shopping, we drive back to the hotel. I check the time. It’s after 8:00. I want to call Gretchen but I know she’s working tonight, so I figure I’ll shoot her a text to say goodnight and save my phone call for the morning.

Needless to say, I am more than a little bit alarmed when my phone wakes me up at 2:30 in the morning. It’s set to vibrate, but it’s dancing all over the nightstand like nobody’s business. And it’s a 508 number, but not one that I recognize.

I pick up. “Hello?” I whisper.

“Yo, Brady, it’s Mike.”

“What’s up, man? You okay?”

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