Page 8 of Ever After

Jay is taking off his sneakers and asks, “Are you going to stay in Hawaii and finish out your vacation?”

“I want to, but I need to find another hotel and get all my stuff. I don’t want to go back there and see Aiden.”

“I’m assuming Aiden is your husband?

“Yes.” I pull my legs up to my chest, and rest my chin on my knees as I look out into the ocean.

“Does he know where you’re at, or has he tried to call?”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jay leaning back on his elbows with his legs straight out in front of him.

“He called a little bit ago while we were talking, but I didn’t pick up and I turned off my phone. I was worried he would come looking for me. I’m glad he hasn’t.”

“Good,” he says. “Let him worry.”

“I don’t even know if he is worried or not.”

“He should be. Never know who you might meet while strolling around.” He gives me a wink.

A shy smile spreads across my face. We’ve just barely met, but I’m comfortable around him. One of those comfortable feelings where it seems as if you’ve known each other forever. I feel like I can tell him anything and he understands me. Sadly, we have so much in common with our love lives. I know nothing about him aside from that, but still. His presence is comforting, and it’s making this terrible night better.

“So, where do you live?” I ask.

“Texas.”

“Is that where you were born?”

“No, I moved around a lot when I was a young. My parents settled down in Texas, and then I was placed into foster care. I hardly remember my parents. At sixteen, I emancipated myself so I could get out of the foster care system.”

“That must have been rough.”

“It was. I have a really close friend named Alex. His parents took me in until I graduated high school.”

“That was nice of them. Do you have any siblings?”

“Not that I know of. I lost contact with my parents when they put me in foster care. From my understanding the court ordered them to either find a family to take care of me or I would have to go to foster care. They ran everyone they knew out of their lives. They made their living by stealing, from what I’ve heard. I don't really know or remember,” he says and shrugs his shoulders. “What about you? Any siblings?”

“Nope. Just me and my mom. Dad walked out on us when I was young, and I never really cared to ask about him. All I know is he was in the army and had to always pick up and leave. Since they weren’t married she couldn't go with him, and I don't think she wanted to go with him anyway,” I admit.

“Where are you from?” he asks.

I always get weary of telling people where I’m from. Many people think of Utah differently than it really is. “Utah.”

“Are you Mormon?”

Of course he asked that. “Hell no.” I laugh. “And if I was?”

He laughs. “I don’t know. I thought I would ask. Isn’t that the state capital of Mormons?”

“Yes. Utah is a weird state but it’s also surrounded by beautiful mountains. The mountains and beautiful scenery make up for what we have to deal with for calling it home,” I say, trying to change the subject so I’m not reminded about the one particular person I have to deal with. “What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a contractor for commercial buildings. What about you?”

“I’m a nurse but I currently work remotely under a provider that has his private practice and specializes in telehealth.” He gives me a questionable look. “I do most everything a nurse in a conventional office does, like ordering tests, prescriptions and following up with patients on how their treatments are going. Stuff like that, but everything is all over the phone.”

We sit in comfortable silence for a bit as the wind picks back up and the waves crash against the shore. It’s nice not thinking about Aiden. Not thinking about everything that needs to be sorted out. I just sit and I let the silence continue to calm me.

Once the two of us have been in our own worlds for a bit, I decide to pick back up the conversation between us.

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