Page 60 of Curtain Call
“Yeah?”
“Are you allowed outside? I could use some fresh air,” Mac asks looking a little flushed. Jax’s phone call was probably unrelated.
“It’s not prison MacKenzie. Let me go grab my coat, and I’ll meet you out front. There are some park benches if you want to sit, and some nature trails that loop around the building that are fun. It’s short, but a nice little walk.”
“Sounds perfect, actually.”
Riley meets Mac in front of the shingled building that blends in with the Cape vibe. The shingles have been stained a deep natural brown color with white shutters on the windows. If the sign wasn’t out front informing people driving by what the place was, it could be passed off as a large estate of some sort.
Mac locks her arm with Riley’s as they set off toward the trail. It reminds Riley of the trails next to the Concord River they would ride their bikes down, only smaller and with no bodies of water nearby.
“Feeling better?”
“Yeah, I skipped breakfast, and guess I’m just feeling a bit queasy,” Mac tells him.
“Mac,” Riley says sounding concerned and serious, “do we need to sign you in as a patient?”
Mac lets out a coughed laugh. Small white air hovers around her mouth for a few seconds before disappearing.
“Too soon?” he asks.
“Too soon.”
She lays her head on his shoulder as they walk, cold air stinging their lungs. As they walk, their shoes crunch the frozen ground underneath them as they make their way down the trail, and past the first bend where a large tree is planted. The size lets them know this tree has been here for decades.
“Holy shit, Riley. This tree reminds me of our treehouse back in Rockport when we were kids,” Mac places her hand on the rough bark of the tree’s trunk.
“I remember. Colin’s parents took it down when we were in high school because Colin fell through a broken board and gashed his thigh open. Luckily, he was wearing pants when it happened and only walked away with ripped jeans and a scraped leg.”
“He’s such a baby, he limped for a month trying to get sympathy from us.”
They both laugh.
“Speaking of Colin,” Mac treads lightly.
“I knew we were eventually going to bring him up.”
Riley looks down at his scuffed Converse and kicks a nearby rock that rolls off the trail into some dried-up brush.
“It was a fight, Riley. Nothing more. Nothing less.”
“Mac, I told him to fuck off. He didn’t even try and fight for me. He just left.”
“What did you want him to do? This is real life, not a Hallmark movie. He didn’t want to add to your stress by sticking around. He thought it was best if you worked this out on your own. We all did.”
Mac is looking at him, face to face.
“He loves you, Rye. It may take time to get back to that place, but he hasn’t let you go.”
Riley’s eyes are wet.
“Come on, it’s cold out here and we are almost at the end.”
“You weren’t lying. It is a short trail.”
When they get back to the front of the building, Riley gives Mac a hug. One that is long. He doesn’t want to let her go, but he knows all too well that he has another month here and needs to sort some things out.
“Take care of yourself. You’re doing great and I will see you in a few weeks when you get home.”
