Page 39 of What Comes After

This one was no different.

It was a photo of Theo on set for his new movie, and he wasn’t alone in the photo. He had several of his castmates posing for the shot with him.

Theo had good intentions. I knew that. He only ever wanted to remain in contact with me and keep me involved in his life the best way he seemed to know how. But that didn’t change the fact that it stung sometimes.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to know what was happening in his life. In fact, I often found it exciting to get the latest scoop on upcoming films—he knew he could trust that I wouldn’t leak anything to anyone.

But it hurt.

Missing him so much, seeing him with all of his new friends, I often felt the sting of jealousy. His costars and celebrity friends had all the pieces of him now that I didn’t.

Along with the picture he’d just sent was a single sentence.

Theo

Today is day one of filming for the next film in the series.

Just as I told him would be the case before he first left here six years ago, Theo was an incredible actor, one of the best in the business. So, it was no surprise to me when he’d had dozens of offers on the table for a variety of projects. He was in his glory, doing exceptionally well, and I couldn’t have been prouder of him. Especially when he won his first award. Then his second, third, fourth, and fifth.

It seemed that every year he made a movie, he was almost always guaranteed an award for the role he played in it.

His latest work landed him the lead role in one of the biggest movie franchises ever to hit the box office. He’d already garnered so much notoriety in his career, and it was this role in this franchise that took him to a level that even I hadn’t anticipated. Considering I always believed the sky was the limit for him, that was saying something.

I tapped on the photo, zoomed in on his face, and stroked my finger down the side of his cheek, wishing it was the real thing.

When the emotions I felt got to be too much, I clicked the phone off, tossed it onto my bed, and made my way to the shower.

I told myself I needed to go to meet up with his mom, so I couldn’t get involved in a text conversation right now. Besides, he had to work anyway, so it was better for me to wait.

As I stood beneath the spray, hot water raining down on me, I forced myself to ignore the urge that one small part of me felt to respond immediately, and I told myself what I always did.

Those pictures from Theo were a reminder of the stark contrast between our lives. They served to make just how far apart we’d grown more and more apparent.

Recognizing that, I finished in the shower, got myself ready, grabbed the cake I’d made, and was out the door in a flash.

Before I knew it, I was standing in Mary’s kitchen, in the same house she’d been in all these years, and my arms were wrapped around her. “Happy Birthday, Mary.”

Unsurprisingly, Mary squeezed me tightly. “Thank you, Devyn. You have no idea how much I’ve been looking forward to seeing you today.”

When she loosened her hold and stepped back, I insisted, “It was the same for me with you. Are you all set to go?”

She nodded. “I’ve been ready for a while now.”

With that, the two of us were out the door and on our way to lunch. On the drive there, she told me all about her day yesterday. Scott had taken the day off from work, and they’d spent the day together, just the two of them.

With all that she’d shared, it was no surprise the drive to the restaurant felt like it took only a matter of minutes.

Once we were seated and had made our lunch selections, Mary asked, “So, how’s everything going with you lately? How was your week?”

I smiled at her and offered a slight nod. “Things are great. It was a busy week, considering I had two additional clients that only opt for monthly cleanings in my schedule. But I always say I prefer to be busy over the alternative.”

“That’s for sure.”

While I never wanted to come right out and lie to Mary’s face, I certainly didn’t share just how strained things had been for me, financially speaking. The last thing I wanted was for her to feel any sort of guilt or pity for me. And I definitely didn’t want her saying a word about me or my situation to Theo.

“Guess what?”

“What?”

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