Page 78 of The Now in Forever
“Great. Austin is super cool.”
“That’s awesome.” I don’t know what else to say. So, I just wait.
“Guy, the director, asked me if I’d be willing to write the screenplay down here so we can collaborate.” There is a pause that I fear may swallow me whole. Ed clears his throat. “I’m not coming back to the house this summer.”
He goes into more detail about the script, him and the director’splan, their process. I just listen. I don’t react. I knew this is what he was going to say. It feels an awful lot like when he said he had to go to a writing retreat in Colorado.
“But I still would love to go to the Oregon Book Awards with you.”
I nod. I’ve always wanted to go to that dinner, and of course I want to see Ed again. But it’s more than a month away. I can’t believe this is happening again. I try to smile. “I’d love that.”
“Hattie—” There’s a knock at his door. “Room service. It’s my last morning at the hotel. Got to soak it in.”
I try to smile, but my lips feel heavy.
“I’ll text you later.”
“Sounds good.” No, it doesn’t. Seeing him in person, kissing him, sounds good. Texting for the next month sounds dumb.
He makes a little kissy face, and then he’s gone. And now I have a ton of questions. When he comes back, and he’s in Portland and I’m in Portland, are we going to keep dating? Are we still dating now? Are we a couple? Are we exclusive? Am I even going to be in Portland? What if I stay here? Or move to New Haven? What then?
The sound of the front door opening pulls me out of my sandstorm of questions. “Honey! I’m home!”
It’s Anh. I run to the stairs, and she has a massive suitcase. “What are you doing here?”
Sprinting down the stairs, I wrap her in a hug before she can answer.
“I guess you missed me.” She squeezes me back, and that’s when the tears come.
Anh pulls back. “Honey. What is it?”
I close my eyes, feeling so dumb. It’s not like Ed broke up with me. I wipe away my tears. “It’s fine. Ed’s gone, again. But it’s fine. I’m just being silly.”
“Don’t do that. Don’t diminish your feelings.” She takes a big breath. “Come on. Let's get some coffee.”
We take two mugs onto the porch, and I unload. About feeling left behind—not just in the relationship, but in life. “Here I am, not evenable to publish a book, no job, not even sure what I want to be when I grow up, and Ed is meeting with A-list actors and sampling hors devours at fancy pool parties. And what am I going to do? Just live my small life, teaching kids and writing my little stories that no one ever reads.”
Anh shakes her head. “No life is small.”
I stare into my mug. Then I tell her about the bookstore. Her face is calm, but there’s a spark in her eyes.
“What’s stopping you?”
I’m unsure how to answer that—really, the only thing holding me back is the dream of Ed and me. Then I realize Anh never said why she was here. “I thought you couldn’t get more time off until the end of summer?”
Anh sits back and takes a deep inhale, the smile on her face wide and bright. “I quit.”
I nearly drop my mug. “You what?”
“Oh man. Your face.” Anh laughs. “I quit. I work all the time. I literally eat, sleep, work, and sometimes not even the first two. Then I came out here and saw the ocean and read a book and led you two in yoga on the porch. I had an epiphany. I want more of that. More living. So, I quit.”
“Wow.” I’m stunned. “What are you going to do?”
Her smile gets even wider. “I’m so glad you asked. I’m moving to Orcas Island.”
“What?”
“Remember when I did my yoga teacher training in New York? My mentor put out a post on our Facebook group looking for a guide for the resort she’s partnered with. I texted her, and that’s that. I’m going to teach yoga at a resort and spa near Cascade Lake.”
