Avery
"Avery! Good morning,” my boss calls out over enthusiastically the moment I walk through the doors of Oakwood Properties.
“Uh, hi,” I say, feeling a little wary as I place my bag on my desk and unbutton my coat. It’s not normal for Mark to be so happy this early in the morning. Greeting me like this must mean he wants something from me. Something I’m probably not going to like.
“Don't bother taking off your coat,” he says, moving toward me with his veneered smile on show. “I need you on the road ASAP.”
“For?” I ask, pulling my coat closed again. In all the years I’ve worked for Mark, I’ve seen him this hyped up exactly two times. Once when he sold an old mechanic’s workshop that had been on the books for years and was home to a family of bats, and right now. If he’s sending me to another bat-infested property, he’s got another thing coming. I’m still getting over my fear of things that fly.
He sits on the corner of my desk and hands me a folder. “You're showing a potential buyer the Brookside cabin.”
“Thewhat?” I splutter, snatching the file from his fingers and flicking through it. “That place is practically falling apart.”
“Which is why I need my best girl on the job.”
You mean your best shit kicker for the job?I bite my tongue so I don’t say it out loud, even though I know it’s true. I’ve been working for Mark in Oakwood Falls’ only real estate office since I graduated high school. I worked my way up from receptionist through rentals and now to sales. It sounds like your standard career progression, but it was far from it. Mark made me fight for every promotion I got, and he still only gives me the listings he isn’t interested in. My boss is all about the glory, little about the effort. Therefore, any difficult-to-sell property becomes mine.Thanks, Mark.
“Do you at least know the buyer and what they plan to do with the cabin?" I ask, sliding the file in my bag before I sling it over my shoulder. The idea of showing this listing has anxiety bubbling up into my chest. Not only has it been sitting abandoned for years, the Brookside cabin holds many dear memories for me. I spent a lot of my childhood playing out there, and when we were teenagers, it’s where we got up to no good. If I could afford to buyandrenovate it, I would happily do it, just to preserve those precious memories. But if I can’t have it, I hope whoever's buying doesn't knock it down and erase everything that was. I’d hate for those memories to be torn down--long summer days spent splashing by the falls, late-night bonfires with friends… the moment I realized I was in love…
All those memories rest within that cabin, like a life unlived. It might be silly to hold such a dilapidated building in such high regard, but that's the power of longing, I guess.
Mark pushes off my desk and returns to his as he talks. "I don't know the buyer, and I don’t know what they're doing with the place.” He pushes his horn-rimmed glasses up his nose and turns his attention to his computer, obviously tired of this conversation. “They just called up this morning, said they were in town and insisted you show it to them.”
“Theyasked for me?” I ask, slightly taken aback.That’s never happened before.
He pauses and shifts his gaze to mine, looking at me over his glasses. “Yes. And the buyer is probably already there waiting on you, so you better hop to it.”
“Of course, Mark.”I turn around and walk back out of the office, frowning. But I keep my frustrations inside until I get into my car, and as soon as I place my butt on the driver's seat, I let out a long groan. Not only is Mark making me sell someone a piece of my childhood, but he didn’t even have the decency to find out anything about them before he sent me out there. I swear that man cares more about money than he does about people. He could be sending me to my death for all he knows. One of these days, I’m going to open up shop on my own, then no more crappy listings for me. And I’ll offer my clients profiteroles, since everyone in town knows the baker in town makes the best profiteroles in the state. Just those delectable offerings alone will make me the top real estate agent in Oakwood Falls—maybe even Cedarwood Valley too!
Before I start my car, I try to call Ali, my best friend, and co-worker, to both vent, and tell her I’ll be late for our lunch date today. There’s no way I can drive all the way out to the cabin and back into town in time to make it. No answer. Typical. Just when you need an understanding ear, it’s not available to you.With an extra heavy sigh, I tap out a text instead:Hey, M wants me 2 show b-side cabin 2 buyer. Might b late 4 lunch, sry :(
She probably won't check her phone until just before she leaves for lunch, so she’ll probably be really disappointed since Friday lunch is our special tradition. But all will be forgiven once I buy her a slice of her favorite cheesecake to make up for my absence. In fact, I’ll probably need a slice of cheesecake after showing this listing too. And a shot of vodka.…
"I can't believe that someone actually wants to buy the cabin," I mumble to myself as I look into the rearview mirror and tie my golden hair into a ponytail. When I’m finally ready, I turn the key in the ignition and reverse out of the parking lot, Mark’s words ringing in my ears as I drive along.They insisted you show it to them. Strange. Why me?
Oakwood Falls has experienced a bit of a boom in recent times, but it isn't exactly the place you'd expect a random person to come and buy property. It's a quaint little town, far from any major city. Anyone who lives here has either been here all their lives or has connections to those who do. It's the kind of town where everyone knows everyone. And that’s how we like it. Folks here are friendly and welcoming, and no one breezes in without someone hearing about it—at least, that’s how it’s been for the twenty-nine years it’s been my home. So to think that now, someone has turned up unknown and uninvited is kind of unsettling. I don’t like not knowing what to expect. After driving halfway up the mountain, I slow down before I pull into the cabin's driveway, my gaze wandering over its dilapidated facade. Despite its terrible state, the dam of memories threatens to break free at the sight of it, pushing right to the forefront of my mind. Memories of a time where I felt happier, when life was filled with so much possibility.
I park my car beneath an overgrown tree and look out the water, rushing by from the force of the falls driving it forward. Suddenly, I can’t keep the memories back anymore. Just like it was yesterday, I can see us all here camping and roasting marshmallows. I can see myself playing in the water with Ollie, my brother, with Ali and with...him.
My heart squeezes in my chest as I let out a heavy sigh. I can see the way he smiled at me, feel the way his hand felt as it pressed against the skin of my naked back. I’m catapulted to the time when I had him, when I thought he could be mine… I’m back by that fireside, cuddling with him while my brother tells scary stories… It’s warm and it’s wonderful, and then my mind takes me back to the night when I told him I loved him, and he...
No.I turn my head away from the water, shaking the feeling away as my eyes start to sting and the tears threaten to come pouring out.I'm not going to think about him anymore.He left years ago. He left me. And he didn’t even say goodbye.
Cutting the engine, I shove the memories back down as I realize that Mark was right, and the buyer is already here. Regardless of who this is, the last thing they need is a real estate agent with mascara running down her cheeks to show them around.
With one last check of my reflection in the rear-view mirror, I take a deep breath, and pull myself together. It's time to put my award-winning smile on and sell this cabin.You can do this, Avery,
Getting out of my car, I walk around to the front of the cabin, finding the buyer with his hands cupped against the grimy window as he tries to sneak a peek inside. With his back toward me, I can't see his face, but a spark of familiarity goes off deep within my belly.I think I know him.At least, my body thinks it does....Stopping a few feet away, I try to will the thudding in my chest to slow down.It can’t be.
"Good morning,” I say, my eyes glued to the back of his head, still struggling to believe what my other senses are telling me. “I hope you didn't have to wait too long."
At the sound of my voice, the buyer straightens and turns around, confirming what I hoped was not true.
“I’d wait forever knowing it was you coming to meet me, Avery,” he says, smiling in a way that has my knees shaking. He was always gorgeous. But years later, he’s even more delectable, and well...manly. I, on the other hand, have merely gotten older and wider. There was no glow up for me.
“Tyler. I…” My heart skips a beat, then plummets to the bottom of my stomach as my jaw drops. The dam bursts and everything I’ve buried comes rushing right back.No way… Oh no, no, no, no… Not him. I can’t go through this again."Holy shit."
