Page 123 of Another Love, Another Time
I’m surprised she hasn’t brought up Melissa’s arrest. “Aren’t you going to ask me about Melissa getting arrested?”
“No. After what she did to you, she has no room in my life, and I don’t even want to speak her name. I should have done that a long time ago. Like I said, I can’t change what I chose to do in the past. I can change what I do moving forward, and that is removing her from my life. If my sister can’t get on board with that, then she will be out of my life too. You’re more important than either one of them.”
Hearing her put me first for the first time makes me start crying. It makes me miss my dad, and I feel like I have my mom back. She gets up and, without hesitating, wraps me in her arms.
I needed this. We have a lot to work on, but she’s my mom. I need her.
I wrap my arms around her, and she starts crying louder. “I’m sorry, River,” she manages. “I’m so, so sorry. I promise I’ll do whatever it takes to repair our relationship.”
We sit there, weeping in each other’s arms, until our tears dry up.
“Mom, I love you. Thank you for coming over here. It’s not going to happen overnight, but I do want you in my life. Just give me some time. Can we take it at my pace?”
“Yes, sweetie.” She wipes away the last of her tears as Auggie opens the door.
“Dinner’s ready if you’re hungry,” he announces. He looks at me as if to ask, “Should we invite her?” I give him a slight nod. He looks at my mom. “There’s plenty if you would like to say and eat.”
“I’d love to.”
Auggie opens the door to allow my mom to walk in. As I walk through, he pulls me into a hug, our foreheads pressed against each other. I squeeze him reassuringly.
Today has provided a lot of closure. I’m optimistic about the new chances I have with the people I care about, especially without Melissa’s shadow over us. We still have to get through her trial, but I can survive that with my family on my side.
Chapter 40
River
It’s been a few weeks since everything went down with Melissa. She tried to post bail, but it was denied. Thank God! I don’t want to think about what she would do if she were out.
A couple of the jailers have said they’ve had to put her in her own cell. She was causing issues with the other inmates. She’s tried to get them to get Auggie for her, but after the first time, Auggie set them straight. He told them that they were not to bother him again.
My aunt, her mother, reached out to see if I would retract my statement. She reminded me that we are family. After listening to her side, I simply told her “no,” and she hung up on me. She hasn’t called since. Not that she did before. That doesn’t bother me; we were never close.
After that, we found out Melissa had staged her attempted suicide. She had searches on her laptop for the exact number of pills to take to not kill herself. She really is crazy.
With that evidence and Urban’s testimony, they were able to add charges to the list. With JD’s testimony about prom, she will have years in prison before she is eligible for release. That took a weight off my shoulders that I didn’t know I had been carrying.
My mom has continued to reach out. I told her I wasn’t ready just yet, and she backed off. Auggie and I came home one evening and found my Aunt Jess and Aunt Connie waiting for us. Auggie told them to leave.
After I grabbed his pinkie and squeezed, he calmed. They both wanted to apologize, not just to me but to Auggie as well. I basically told them the same thing I did to my mom: that I forgave them both, but I’m not ready to forget. It will take time to repair my relationship with them. I’m hopeful that with everything out in the open, we can mend our relationship, but only time will tell.
Tonight is Auggie’s turn to prepare dinner. He didn’t have time to cook, so he’s picking up something from our favorite place. I offered to cook, but he didn’t take me up on it.
Auggie finally received an offer on his house. He met with his realtor to go over the details. He is getting rid of most of his things. We had already packed up and moved the stuff he wanted to keep, so I knew he was going to ask for a short closing. He was ready to be done with the house.
We are going to officially live together as roommates. I just need him to be patient with me.
One month later:
The Prosecutor offered Melissa a plea deal. Melissa’s lawyer must have advised her to take it, and she listened. I’m relieved. I thought she would draw it out. I’m surprised she didn’t, but I’m not going to question it. She will be out of our lives for at least ten years. Good riddance.
I’ve seen my aunt at Walmart a few times since then, and she usually goes the other way. Fine by me. I have nothing to say to her either.
In the past month, Auggie and I have grown into a routine. The easy effort we used to have as kids when talking is still there. Last week, Auggie asked if we could start dating. We’ve always been friends and occasionally more until… until we weren’t. We’ve never had a chance to be more, not after prom.
That’s what I wanted then, but do I want it now? He hurt me. He knows he hurt me, and he promises he just wants a chance to prove he cares.
What if I give him a chance only for him to hurt me again? A stronger voice is saying, “But what if he doesn’t?”
