Chapter 6
Caleb
Iwas sitting acrossfrom the most beautiful woman in the world. The way her cheeks tinged pink when she got embarrassed, the shine her hair had when the sunlight shone through the window, even the small smile she gave me after I winked at her. Something was different now, though, from the last time we saw each other. Something changed in her that made her seem to hesitate trusting me. She was jumpy and didn’t seem like she could relax. I wanted her to be comfortable with me again, even if our friendship couldn’t pick up where we left off five years ago.
“So, what's your favorite thing about where you live?” I tried breaking the tension with the first question that popped into my mind.
“What?” Rae snapped out of whatever daze she was in. Something was definitely different with her, and while I didn't want to pry, I wanted to know what had changed.
“Do you have a favorite thing about where you live? Is there somewhere you like to eat? People you like?”
“Oh. Umm...” She bit her lip as she thought about her answer. “This may sound silly, but it was this little bagel shop. It was run by a family, and they had every type of bagel you could imagine. They made sandwiches, smoothies—it was a pretty popular place people would hang out after class or some weekend mornings.”
“Oh, nice. I bet you didn't have a small business coffee shop like this one, though.”
“Oh no, not at all. There were coffee shops, sure, but nothing like this one. The coffee from here will never be beat.” She was right. This shop had been around since we were in middle school, and the coffee here was the best around.
“So is your boyfriend coming to visit while you're staying here?” As soon as I asked the question, I regretted it. Rae had just taken a sip of coffee and started to choke.
“Oh my gosh, are you okay, Rae?” I pushed back my chair and knelt beside her, placing my hand on her arm.
She gave me a thumbs up and then held a finger up as if she was saying “yes, just a minute.”
“Sorry about that. Umm...Let's not talk about him, if you don’t mind.” She grabbed her coffee cup again and began to pick at the cardboard sleeve around it. I nodded and gave her an apologetic smile. “What about you? What are you doing for work now? I know you said we could meet up after your next rotation but didn't give details.” Her words tumbled out almost too fast, as if she was nervous.
I thought about what she said, “Let’s not talk about him.” Maybe they broke up and that's why she was here.
I then realized I still had not answered her question. “So, I work for the Oak River Sheriff’s Office now. Been there a couple years. Some of the work is scary or sad, but most of it is really fun—cool stuff.”
“That's really neat. I didn't realize you wanted to be an officer.”
“I didn't really know until four years ago when my parents died. My brother and I were in the back of the car, on the way back from dinner with our parents, when the accident happened. The first officer at the scene was there for us. He waited at my window and talked to us until the firemen could get my parents out. The paramedics were trying to help save my parents.”
I let out a shaky breath. Talking about my parents was easier now, but the accident...that would probably never get easier. “More officers arrived, and none of them let us see anything after we were pulled from the car. Somehow, we were unharmed. They distracted us by talking about school stuff—what we were learning, just normal stuff. Obviously, we were really worried, but they tried to keep us focused. My dad’s best friend was the captain still, and he was there as soon as he heard about the accident. I found out later that one of the officers heard the paramedic say something about my dad not having a pulse for a bit...”
My voice came out sounding like I had swallowed gravel. I took a sip of my coffee and cleared my throat, chancing a look at Rae. Her eyes were glossed over, and she was fighting off tears. I hadn’t meant to tell the whole story right now, but something about talking to her just made the words flow. I cleared my throat again before continuing.
“Then they stayed with us at the hospital as we waited to hear if my parents made it. Cap and one of the other officers stayed with us at the hospital, even well after we were told my parents had not made it. After we finished up at the hospital, they drove us home. They both stayed with us while we called Jenny's family to come be with us. At some point, Cap went out and bought food for us for the next few days in case we would be hungry. I was twenty-three, so I could be my brother’s guardian until he turned eighteen a few months later, but they still didn't want to just leave us high and dry. I was going to school full time and working part time, but I needed to find a full-time job as fast as possible to pay the bills. After my parents’ services, I talked to Cap about becoming an officer. The way he and the other officers helped my brother and I on the worst day of our lives...it meant something to me. He pulled some strings to get me started in the jail as a corrections officer, and then...” I cleared my throat again. “Then he paid for my academy tuition.”
I heard her sniffle. Gosh, I had made her cry, but Rae deserved to know. She used to spend so much time at the farm with me, and my parents had treated her like she was their daughter. She had loved them, and the feeling had been mutual. However, that day still burned badly for me so I was hoping for a change in topic.
I chanced a glance up again and she had tears threatening to fall. “Oh, Caleb, I'm so sorry about your loss. I did not know how to bring it up since...I wasn't able to text you since I, umm, lost your number. You know I loved your parents so much. If I had been able to, I would have been there for you. I am really sorry, though. And for not being able to reach out.” Hesitation shone in her eyes but she reached her hand out. I took it in mine and gave her a small smile.
“Nah, don't mention it.” My voice sounded slightly choked up still, so I cleared my throat again. Her fingers felt cold and her hand was shaking slightly. Was she nervous? I gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and she looked at our hands briefly before nervously pulling hers from mine. She looked embarrassed so in order to not keep focus on it, I continued talking. “Honestly, I wasn't in the greatest head space at that time, so I ignored a lot of calls and texts for a bit. Your parents were pretty great, too, though. Jenny's family and yours. They all helped out with taking care of the farm until I could manage it better.”
“Jenny from down the road?” I picked up a slight sense of jealousy in her voice, and it made me smile. Rae, Jenny, Luke, and I had all been best friends from day one of freshman year, but there was not a day I was not teased about the possibility of Rae wanting to be more than friends. I wanted that, but I did not think she did. While we were all really close—inseparable even—Jenny and Luke were closest to each other, and Rae and I had a special bond of our own. Before leaving for college, Rae had admitted to me that she was sad she was the only one moving. I had applied to the same school, but unlike her, I didn’t get accepted.
