Page 50 of Blackout

‘Zach’s sister Lex is driving to Mulwala tonight and I’m going with her. You remember Lex? You two were inseparable when we lived next door to the Blacks.’

Addison nodded and smiled.

And I would be okay, as soon as I saw the man with the armour tattooed over his heart. My pulse quickened at the thought of how much I missed Zach.

‘You’re not coming back, are you?’ my family asked in unison.

No. Not permanently, but I would visit. There was something about spending time in a little country town with a man named Zach. ‘I don’t think so. I have some money saved up, so I’ll be okay for a little while. But I’ll be back to visit, especially with a little niece or nephew on the way.’ But would all be well when I saw Zach again? My fingers were crossed.

‘You swore you would never go back. That it would be too painful. You said you didn’t want to walk around in reverie bumping into old family memories.’ Addison had called me out on something I said a long time ago.

But she didn’t know about the things that had happened since I’d said those words. Of course she didn’t. Her dare had changed everything. I had fallen in and out of Groundhog Day and had been diagnosed with anxiety. I’d reconnected with Zach because her dare had driven me straight past the point of pain where our car had spun out of control all those years ago. Now I was on the other side, and I was going to be okay.

‘I’ve made my peace.’ I needed tranquility, and a little country town could give it to me.

‘Because of Zach?’

My sister would always push the boundaries of my comfort zone. Something told me that I would always need her to do that for me.

‘Yes,’ I told her, because it was the easiest answer. I couldn’t deny how I felt about Zach anymore.

‘You always did have a thing for him.’ My sister and I both giggled the same way we did when we were younger.

‘Yeah. I always did have a thing for Zach.’ And I wasn’t too scared to admit it in front of everyone.

Twenty-five

As our family meeting came to an end, my mother came up to me. ‘You did good, Harley.’ My mum squeezed my hand. ‘You helped bring this family back together. You were right, we did fall into our own solitary lives. I realise now after my few short weeks how much I’ve missed not only working at the bakery, but also missed you and Addison as well.’

‘I love you, Mum.’ The words slipped out, but my mum deserved to hear them. She had been through a lot and even though she hadn’t always been there for me, I hadn’t been there for her either. There was a lot of wasted years to make up for, and it started right now by telling my mother I loved her.

‘I love you too, Harley.’ It had been a long time since I’d heard those words, and it felt good to hear them. Would our family meeting change the solitary lives this family had fallen into? I didn’t know, but with each conversation and interaction I planned to have from now on, I could only hope my family, grandparents included, would continue to grow closer together.

There was a moment’s silence between us before my mum said, ‘I’m so proud of you. Thank you for all the years you put into the bakery.’

‘You’re welcome,’ I whispered as I reached out and squeezed my mother’s hand.

My mum returned the squeeze of my hand, kissed my cheek, then said, ‘Now go get your man.’

Before my mother left, I handed over the leather folder that had once belonged to my father. She was going to need it to implement all of the dreams my father had planned.

Brad shook my hand we exchanged ‘take cares’ before he left, and I wondered if we would ever cross paths again.

Both my grandparents kissed my cheek. My grandmother reached into her bag and placed a set of keys in my hand. ‘Now you have some spare time, the bungalow next door to Zach’s is where you can sort through your memories. Maybe find someone to give the bungalow a little love. I can only image the amount of work that needs to be done after ten years.’

‘It needs some work on the outside from what I have seen, but I’m not sure about the inside. I’ll see if I can find someone to bring her back to life.’

‘Then find someone who would like to rent it.’

‘You don’t want the bungalow for when you visit?’ Would my grandparents visit me in Mulwala?

‘It’s not that we don’t want to visit you, Harley. Your grandfather and I would love to, but for the time we would spend in the bungalow, it would be better for someone to rent it out. We can always stay in a hotel.’

‘Okay,’ I said, when my grandmother hugged me.

‘I should have told you a long time ago about this family’s tradition of teaching the next generation to be bakers. I just couldn’t seem to let go of the business I had built after your father died. You have been quite capable of managing every aspect of the bakery. You are like your father in many ways, and I’m sorry, Harley. If I could, I’d guarantee that things would be different at the bakery from now on. And I would beg you to stay and help me with your sister, but I understand why you need a break.’

I reached for my grandpa and the affection he hardly ever gave. I took it and hugged the man. They too needed to find their own new normal. Their lives changed all those years ago too when they lost their only son. But they would be okay now, we all would.

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