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“Do tell,” Marta said. “Sounds like quite the story.”
“Come on, Megan,” I said, shaking my head at her. “Must we tell every single person we meet this story?”
She laughed. “Yes, we must. Just another day on the job for Phil,” I said. “Long story short, the landlord of this particular apartment complex was one of the two people that Phil pulled out of a burning wreck two months ago. The second person was his teenage daughter…and he was so grateful that when he became aware that Phil and I were looking for a new apartment, he offered to let us buy outright at a steal of a price.”
“Buy outright?” Marta said, in amazement.
“We still had to take out a loan from the bank,” I said. “But between our two salaries, we should be able to pay it back in five years.”
“Wow… lucky you.” Marta nodded. “Who knew saving lives could be so rewarding?”
Megan and I laughed. Marta had become a quick favorite with me. She may have been decade older than Megan and me, but she still had a youthful spirit that made her easy to talk to and fun to hang out with. Megan met her for lunch or dinner once every month outside of work, and whenever I could, I joined them.
“Have you already moved?” Marta asked.
“We just started the process,” Megan told her. “We’ve decided to take only the things that have sentimental value attached, there are some things we’ve been able to sell, and everything else is going to be donated.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Marta said. “By the way, nice invitations.”
“Megan did them herself,” I said.
“Really?” Marta asked, looking towards Megan.
“I was up all night making them.” She nodded, slightly shy as she spoke about her obvious talents. “I used to like working with my hands and doing creative projects in high school… after that though I guess I never really had time.”
“And you have time now?” Marta asked pointedly.
Megan laughed. “Things have been a little hectic lately, what with moving and studying and working.”
“How is the studying going, by the way?” Marta asked.
“She’s doing amazing,” I said proudly. “She’s a regular Einstein.”
Megan smiled. “He’s exaggerating, obviously. I’m nowhere close. But I did make a pretty big decision.”
“Which is?”
“Well, taking these courses through the company, reminded me how much I loved learning new things,” Megan explained. “And, I realized that I really do want my degree. So I’m transferring my credits, and if I work hard, I should be able to graduate in under two years.”
“Oh, Megan,” Marta said, clapping her hands together. “That’s fantastic news.”
Watching as Marta embraced Megan, I realized how much Megan missed a maternal presence in her life. Megan spoke to her mother once each month, and it was usually a short conversation that ended less than pleasantly. Her parents were still adjusting to the fact that Brent was in jail and when they had learned that Megan had testified against Brent in court, they had nearly hit the roof.
It had taken awhile before the conversations had turned civil again, but either way, her parents were not happy about the fact that we were together. Marta had taken on the role of mother in Megan’s life, and I could see how important that relationship was to her. Which was why she was the first person we were inviting to our housewarming party.
When we had finished lunch, Megan and I walked back to our new apartment together. It was barely furnished, but we had a few boxes there, and we liked to camp out on the floor with nothing but a soft duvet for a mattress. There was something cozy about it. We would lie on our duvet, in each other’s arms and imagine what the future had in store for us. Megan always came up with different scenarios, but I always saw the same thing.
I imagined a future that was much the same as our present. Megan and I wrapped in each other’s arms with the knowledge that our children and grandchildren were out there living their lives and traveling the world, having got the start in life that we ourselves had never received.
“Have you thought about inviting your parents?” I asked gently, as we walked towards our new apartment.
“I’ve thought about it.” Megan nodded. “But I’ve decided against it.”
“Are you sure?”
“They don’t accept our relationship,” she said. “Which makes it hard for me to accept them.”
“They’ll come around.”
