Page 100 of Beautiful Place By the Sea

“Stop that right now, Zachariah,” Becky shouts over the din of two screaming children. “Leave your sister alone. I’m sorry,” she says closer to the mouthpiece of her phone. “These kids; I’m telling you. Can you repeat that?”

This time, I eliminate the uncertainty in my request. “I need to take a brief leave of absence at the start of the school year.”

“Oh.” Her voice drips with disappointment. I guess this might not be so easy after all. “Well, do you have PTO you can use?”

I’d anticipated this question. “I do; two weeks. But I’ll need at least three off. I’m prepared to take that unpaid,” I rush.

“Have you looked into family leave?” Becky sounds distracted now, like her attention has shifted back to whatever is causing the marvelous thudding sound in her yard.

I’d prefer not to tell her that I wouldn’t qualify for family leave because Maisie is, in fact, not a relative. It feels like that would cheapen my case, somehow. “I’ll have to check,” I reply vaguely.

“Well, please do. I’ll be honest, Ivy, the beginning of the school year is just about the worst time for you to be out. I don’t have time to find a temp, and you’d miss all the first-week intro sessions for the computer lab. Those are important.”

Tears fill my eyes, the hallmark of an inveterate people pleaser. I don’t even like Becky all that much; she tends to swoop in to micromanage at seemingly arbitrary moments after having ignored her staff for months on end. In that regard, she’s the worst kind of boss, really. Pretending not to care, then suddenly having a strong opinion and being flabbergasted that things haven’t been run exactly her way in all of the time she’s been paying no attention whatsoever.

Regardless, I don’t want to upset her. “I’m sorry; I can try to make other arrangements.” The words are out before I realize I have no way to make other arrangements, short of running out on Maisie and Oliver.

“No, no.” Becky sounds like she has her head in her hands. “You have the PTO; it’s your right to use it. Look into the family leave, and if you can’t get it, you’ll have to take that third week unpaid. We’ll just run the intro labs when you get back.”

“Thank you. I appreciate your flexibility.”

She barks a laugh. “I’m not sure anyone has ever referred to me in those terms before, but you’re welcome.”

“Well, I appreciate it. This is…important. I can’t get out of it.” In that moment, I’m feeling like this is the truth.

“Send me an email with the details, please. I’ll get it situated with HR.”

“Thanks, Becky. I’ll do that.” I make a mental note to commandeer Laurel’s laptop when I get home from Shoreline. I need to check the meeting details from Brianna at the Springfield library, too.

Once I hang up with Becky, I head straight to the office to talk to Maisie. She and Oliver are sitting at her desk, several piles of spreadsheets laid out before them. They look up expectantly when I enter.

“I’m sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to let you know, Maisie, that I spoke with my boss at home.” The word still rings hollow. “I’ll be able to stay here an extra three weeks to cover your leave.”

I can’t decide who seems happier to hear my announcement. Oliver’s eyes are crinkling at the edges, and he looks like he wants to jump out of his chair and hug me. Maisie speaks first, though. “This is wonderful news, Ivy. Thank you so much for doing this for me.”

“It’s nothing.” I roll off the praise. “I’m happy to do it.” Unlike Becky, Maisie is a boss I don’t have to lie to.

Maisie nods. “We’ll have to meet later this week to discuss plans for my absence. All three of us.” She looks between Oliver and I. “Although I have the utmost faith that the two of you could handle it without any guidance from me whatsoever.”

I might be blushing now. “That’s really nice of you to say.”

“Well, it’s true,” she replies matter-of-factly. “You’re a good pair, you know.”

Oliver’s cheeks look a little pink, too. “Ivy and I can put together a schedule and some high-level plans tomorrow when you’re off,” he offers, looking at me to confirm. I nod.

Maisie’s gaze darts back and forth between us, one brow raised. She buries a smirk, but she just thanks him. The bell on the shop door jingles then, so I head back to the front of the store.

Only when I’m safely ensconced in the confines of the register counter do I process the reality: I get to stay here. Not forever. Not yet. But I’ve just bought myself another three weeks to figure things out. Relief floods through me, soothing pressure points I didn’t even realize I had.

My mother used to give me strategies for managing my anxiety, including sitting on a couch and trying to focus intently on relaxing every last part of my body, one by one. It always shocked me just how tense I was before I started; how fluid and weightless I felt at the end, sinking into the cushions beneath me like there was no stress left to give me shape.

That’s what this feels like. Except instead of just solving a problem, I’ve also handed myself an opportunity this time. An opportunity that feels an awful lot like my wildest dreams.

twenty-nine

On Sunday, Oliver is taking me out on his dad’s boat. The sun is high in the sky, baking the land with warmth uncharacteristic for even this time of year. Still, I know the breeze off the coast will be brisk, so I bring a hoodie just in case. I also stop at the market down the street for sandwiches, chips, and an assortment of seltzers and sodas on my way to meet Oliver.

As I drag a cooler I found in Beach Haven’s attic down the dock, it occurs to me how dating looks much the same for me as it did for Eleanor, even six decades later. Picnics, it seems, never go out of style.