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“How was your time away? Do you have any stories from the show?” Martin sat at the edge of his seat, wiggling his bushy gray eyebrows up and down.
“I’m not allowed to say.” Avery picked at a hangnail. It wasn’t necessarily true. The risks of revealing anything to Martin would be low since he didn’t have a TV and was ghastly with technology. Still, she didn’t want to risk it. She wouldn’t get the full amount for a little while, and even then, it would be split into two payments. One before the show aired, and one after the reunion show.
“I know that look, Avery. It’s one I had with my Patrick. Don’t let her go. Whatever the case, love isn’t worth losing. Especially if you have time to enjoy each other.” Martin’s eyes glanced towards the window where a bird feeder hung, his thoughts stopped in the past.
“I don’t want to let her go, but the show was harder than I thought, and we left on a weird note.” Avery banished the thoughts of the show.
“She would be a fool to let you go without a fight.” Martin slapped his thigh to make his point.
“It’s so complicated, and it would take nearly a full book to explain what happened,” Avery joked, standing. “I should probably unpack and all that.” She waved towards her house.
“Don’t be a stranger.” Martin let her go, settling into his chair.
Letting herself out, Avery forced her legs forward into the empty room of her apartment.
She sneezed two minutes after walking into the studio. A light layer of dust coated her counters. Heaving her suitcase onto the bed, she began to unpack. The movements were so familiar yet foreign. It took little time to get a load of laundry started. The quiet pressed on her skull. Turning on her laptop, she put on a show so she didn’t feel so alone.
Swinging her empty suitcase down, she hit the table by her bed, where something smashed to the ground. Wedging her arm under the bed, her fingers grazed her forgotten phone. After so many months without the device, it was odd to hold it again after so much time. Everything felt like it was tilted two degrees. Familiar yet oddly out of place.
Turning on her phone, she threw it on her bed and decided to tackle cleaning the kitchen. Maybe she needed a pet? Something so that she wouldn’t be greeted by silence when she'd get home. Stella’s laugh filled her mind. No, wait, it was coming from the laptop.
Jogging to the sound, Avery pulled her laptop close, drinking in Stella’s features. It was a promo for Love or Money’s new season. It was already being marketed as bigger than ever. Chores forgotten, Avery searched for all the videos about the show. It wasn’t that she wanted to see her own face; no, there was only one face she wanted to see. She drank in every second of seeing Stella in the promotional videos.
After watching every video she could find, Avery stared blankly at her laptop. The empty chapter with Stella’s name on it sat heavy on her chest. It couldn’t be their ending, right?
Unsure how long she’d been staring at her screen, she startled when a ding on her phone sounded. Then another and another. It wouldn’t stop. Avery put her phone under the pillow, but the muted chimes kept coming.
Thanks to the promo videos, social media had finally caught up to her, and she had a hundred new followers, growing with each passing moment. Ding. Ding. Ding. If social media clout bought happiness, Avery would be ecstatic. But it didn’t, and she wasn’t. All she wanted was to reach out to Stella. They really needed to talk.
One follower caught her attention. @TheQuinnandonly. Peeking at her posts, she smiled. If anyone would know what she was feeling, Quinn would. Hitting Follow Back, Avery twisted in her bed, trying to find a comfortable position. Minutes later, she posted for the first time in sixteen months:
Be prepared to fall in love with @TheQuinnandonly. #Loveormoney
She tucked the phone under her chin, wishing followers could provide a sense of community and love, but all she felt was empty. Her last thoughts before drifting to sleep were of Stella’s face.
“Is my mom doing okay?” Avery slid a coffee container and pastries toward the nurse sitting across the counter. It had been the most time between visits since she’d last seen her mom, but her routine hadn’t changed. The only thing different was she’d left her phone at home. She’d gotten out of the habit of grabbing it.
“Avery! Welcome back. Let me look at you.” Greta pushed away from her desk and hurried to her side. As Greta studied her face, Avery felt the pressure of her fingers on her shoulders. Trying not to fidget, she sighed in relief when Greta pulled her in for a hug. The physical contact felt good, just the right pressure.
It had been so long since she’d visited that Avery had forgotten what it was like to have the motherly figure that Greta provided. Embarrassed at the sting of tears threatening the corner of her eyes, Avery pulled out of the hug, feeling awkward at her overflowing emotions.
“I’ve seen all the videos for that show you were doing. It looks like you had fun. I hope they bring back that host. It looks like she was fantastic.”
Avery’s heart lurched at the reminder of Stella. She was kicking herself again for not getting her number. She kept scrolling through her new followers to see if the one person she cared about had reached out.
“…So, can you tell me any gossip? Maybe who won? I’m sure there is betting somewhere on who wins. Give me the inside scoop so I can contact my bookie to make millions.”
Avery blinked as Greta patted her cheek. “I’m pretty sure insider trading is illegal. Plus, why would I want you to make millions? I don’t want to lose my mom’s favorite nurse,” she deflected, grabbing a coffee from the container. “How is she doing, by the way?”
“Let’s go see her. She’s had good and bad days. Today, she was slightly more restless but seemed to settle down after lunch.” Greta continued to tell little tidbits as they walked down a twisting corridor. “Oh, good, she’s up. Go on in. Can you stop by before you leave?” Greta asked. Her tentative question was uncharacteristic for the usually boisterous nurse.
“Sure, I’ll flag you down.” Dread filled Avery as she wondered what Greta had in mind.
Greta squeezed her arm before turning back to the station.
Avery tried to center herself before stepping into her mom’s room. Their journey had been tumultuous, but now that her mom had the right meds and the help she needed, Avery had been able to heal a lot of her past pain. It didn’t hurt to have some space for their healing to air out.
“Hi, Mom,” Avery said when she entered the room. There was about a fifty percent chance of her mom recognizing her. Sometimes, she had to play the part of her aunt, who had died ten years prior.
