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“Just got here.” I look at my phone and see it’s a little past two. Could I have made the drive from New York to North Carolina in one go? Yep, but knowing the bed would not be made up when I arrived, I decided to break halfway and then drive in this morning. I also stopped at the grocery store to pick up a few essentials until I got more settled in.
She squeals. “I’m still in shock from when you announced this at Clay and Emma’s. I can’t believe you bought a home here too. I know this is something that you did for yourself, but I can’t tell you how much it means to me. I’m just so happy you’re here.”
And this right here is one of the reasons I did. Avery and Emma have always loved me for me, not for what I can do for them. The only expectation they’ve ever put on me is that they want me to be happy, and the same goes for them. That’s what it’s supposed to feel like when you love someone like they’re family.
“Well, that phrase ‘Gotta keep the band together’ feels fitting.” I’m smiling from ear to ear, and I kick my feet up to rest them on one of the boxes in front of me. The walls are this beautiful shade of sage green, and everything smells fresh and clean.
“Can I come over and help you? Ash told me you would need his truck to haul off the garbage.”
Where this house is located, you have to take all your garbage to a local dump. No one is coming up here to get it. At first, I was shocked to hear this, as I’ve never been to a place where the trash wasn’t picked up, but I can see how that makes sense.
“Avery, you’re pregnant. I don’t want you lifting anything, but yes, I will take you up on the truck offer another day. I have to return the U-haul trailer tomorrow, so after the dump run on the way into town, I’m just going to break down these boxes and set the garbage out on the front porch.”
My eyes glance out the window. The porch on this house is amazing, and I have visions of all the plants I plan to keep on it, but I can see the lake past it and through some trees. I have an idea of where her house is, so while I look at that spot, I pretend she’s closer than she is.
“I might be pregnant, but that doesn’t mean I can’t help you unpack. Also, I know I don’t need to tell you this, but just a reminder, don’t set bags of food out on the front porch. Otherwise, you’ll have nighttime visitors.”
I haven’t researched the types of animals I might come across here on the mountain, but thoughts of bears and bobcats wandering around my house and making themselves at home cause me to shiver.
“How about you give me a few days to settle in, and then you can come over?” It’s not that I need everything to be perfect for her to see it the first time. I just want it to be a little more hospitable and less like a hazard.
“I hate that you’re up there all by yourself.”
Avery is the worrier when it comes to the three of us. Emma is always happy, and as for me, I like to think I’m independent and carefree. I’ve essentially been on my own since I was thirteen and no longer needed a nanny, and I don’t let things weigh me down.
“You know I love being by myself. I’m excited to get everything settled.” I again glance at the boxes, and where some might dread what’s ahead of me, I feel nothing but excitement. This is like Christmas morning. I loved the things I bought, and now I get to unwrap them.
“Well, you don’t get a few days. I’ll be by tomorrow with some food,” she says, and I laugh.
“Okay, food sounds good. But no lifting anything when you’re here. I’ve got this.” Leaning over, I drag the closest box to me and begin pulling off the tape.
“I know you do,” she says confidently.
“I also might have some Kelly’s Kupcakes here for you too,” I tease. I was going to run them over to her, but if she’s coming tomorrow, they’ll still be delicious.
“You didn’t!” she squeals.
“I did.”
This box is from Restoration Hardware, and I pull out the large wide-brimmed linen shade to the table lamp I bought for this room. The base is a large terra-cotta olive oil jar. It’s not white or gray or green. It’s kind of a mixture of all three, textured, and I love it.
“I’ve been craving them something fierce. Ash offered to fly us to New York just to get them, but I told him he was being crazy.”
“There’s a blueberry pound cake one in the box calling your name.”
I get up to pull the rest of the wrapping away from the pot. This lamp isn’t modern, but I didn’t want this house to feel that way. I’m in the mountains. It should have a bit of a cottage feel, but at the same time, I want it to be contemporary.
She groans. “Speaking of berries, Ash said the bushes in your backyard are covered with blackberries.”
“Really?”
“Yep, ’tis the season, so I’ll be picking some of those tomorrow when I’m there.”
“They’re all yours,” I tell her, knowing that something delicious will be coming my way. Avery loves to bake. It’s her love language. Over the past couple of years, she’s stepped up on the types of food she’s making as well as the quantity. Poor Ash, while he loves everything she makes, he’s had to work out more to burn off the calories.
Emma, on the other hand, has just discovered she loves to knit. She’s obsessed with yarn. Bright colors, pastel colors, neutral colors, in varying textures—she loves them all.
As for me, I love plants, and the small travel U-haul attached to the back of my car is full of them. You’d think it was for the dozen boxes I brought, but nope, it was for the plants.
