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Now what? Say something!
Melisa took pity on her and filled the silence. “How’re you doing this holiday season?”
“Fine, fine, yeah, thank you.”
Melinda wondered if banging her head on the wall was audible over the phone.
Melisa tried again. “Do you have any plans with fam—”
“I can’t leave the house,” Melinda blurted out. “I can’t figure it out. I’m not scared of anyone, I’m not scared of being alone...It’s nothing like that. It’s just that I feel so...naked?” She twisted her fingers through her hair. “That’s absolutely the wrong thing to say but it’s the word that comes to mind. Did you feel this way? Why do I feel this way?”
Melisa said nothing.
“It’s just...I can’t stop thinking about him,” Melinda continued. “I can hear him repeating all the things he said to me at the cabin. He’s saying them all to me here. And I say the same things back to him. And I’m so...exposed.”
Melisa waited.
“Okay that’s it. Do you have to go? I should go—”
“It’s okay,” Melisa entered the fray at last. “It’s okay. You’re okay. This is totally normal. You are normal. Maybe you don’t feel a threat to your life, but you feel a threat to your ego, and that’s essentially the same thing. You were incredibly vulnerable with Grant up there and it makes perfect sense that you’d feel the repercussions of that. Okay? Does that make sense?”
“Okay,” Melinda said. “Yes. It does.” And it did, and the tension she’d been feeling in her shoulders floated away like a gossamer scarf. “Okay. Yeah, that makes sense.”
And then unfortunately it made so much sense, that Melinda had nothing else to say.
“Um, so do you have plans with family?”
Melisa laughed. “Heavens, no. Spare me that tornado, please. Melinda, go back to whatever you were doing. I’m fine. It’s okay to call me in your moment of panic, and then it’s okay to get back to your life. Leave your house, if you want to. Or don’t. I’m here whenever you need me.”
And so Melinda thanked her new friend, hung up, and held the phone in her hand.
“Let’s keep this party going,” she said. Who’s next?
She hit a number and the phone rang, and rang, and rang again.
“You’ve reached Max Sen,” her brother’s recorded voice said. Melinda grimaced. She’d been on a roll there. What should she do? He’d see the missed call, so if she didn’t leave a voicemail it would be awkward. Which meant she needed to leave a message. And say what? Hey, sorry I alienated you, I’ve been caught up in my own drama and didn’t have time to be a decent human being, want to come for Christmas? Couldn’t hurt.
The tone beeped. She was on.
“Hey Max,” she said. “Hey, I know it’s been a really long time, and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. To you. Um...I called Mom, and she and Dad are flying in today. Crazy, right?” She laughed awkwardly. “So, uh, want to stop by? We could do a family thing? Bring back the Bengali Bling?” She unearthed a term they’d coined as kids to describe their family’s over-the-top treatment of Christmas. “Give me a call. Let me know.” Then, “Ami tomake bhalobasi.” She hung up. I love you.
Melinda laid the phone on the counter with a mixture of relief and sadness. She picked up her mallet to resume the assault on the cabbage and the phone rang.
“Max!” she answered, joy overflowing.
“Beloved Didi,” he answered, and she heard his smile. He had called her sister.
She walked to the couch. “Did you get my message? Mom and Dad are coming. Do you want to...” She couldn’t finish the sentence. How could she? Do you want to be my brother again? Forgive me? Give me advice about this guy that took me prisoner and I might kinda love him but I’m so confused I can’t leave my house?
“Would you like to join us? For Christmas?” she finished, and cringed. What was he, her office assistant?
“Didi, you suck at this.” Melinda settled on the cushions and let her eyes play on the rocks outside. “Mom called me yesterday, thinking you would’ve already contacted me. You’re behind the curve.”
“It’s you busybodies,” she shot back. “Always have to be planning something, can’t just let someone take her time.”
He snorted. “You taking your time means I haven’t seen you in two years. I’m collecting Mata ji and Pita ji from the airport today at two.” She started. She hadn’t even thought about how her mother and father would get to her house from the airport; she just knew that she wasn’t ready to drive there herself.
“Thank you,” she said.
