Crashing Back Down (5 page)

Once outside, my mom hurriedly trotted after me, trying to thank me for dinner, or the lack thereof, in one of her condescending tones. Stopping dead in my tracks, I spun on my heels, my lips primed and I seethed, “Don’t worry about it. It is gladly on me, Mother.”

My mom started to riddle an apology in a shaky voice, and I just held my hand up, shaking my head. There was no saving this moment and I really didn’t want to deal with her trying. I reached the driver’s side of the truck, climbed in and let the sound of the engine lull me into a calmer state. I left the doors locked for a few seconds, while I breathed in the musty carpeting, faded leather, and slight hint of air freshener. Once I had my moment, I unlocked the passenger’s side door, and gave a swift hand wave to coax my mother into the vehicle.

On the ride home, my mom attempted to talk to me, but I simply ignored her. Yes, it was childish, but better that than start in on her again, or worse, break down again. We pulled into the driveway and before I even turned the engine off, I snarled, “I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me, but for now we are not on good terms, and you need to give me space. I love you but I need you to learn how to respect me and my grieving.”

Her eyes slowly met mine, tears still streaming down her rosy, plump cheeks, “Honey, just remember, I didn’t have the luxury to grieve when your dad left. I had a daughter to be strong for.” That was a low blow, and my temper flared. I gripped the steering wheel and started to hyperventilate, fighting for words that were not too harsh.

Before I could start screaming about how I had to take care of her for months while she skipped work and didn’t even feed her six-year-old, she was out of the truck, slamming the door. I cooked, cleaned, and got myself ready for school every day after my dad walked out. Every fiber of my body screamed and shuddered with pain, heartbreak and rage. I wished I was able to express all of my hurt from the terrible memories I had buried deep down, but I knew it would just hurt her more, and there was no point after all these years.

I slammed my open palms into the steering wheel, screaming a few more times, and then whipped out my cell. With trembling hands, I dialed Cali’s number. Her soft, sweet voice cooed into the phone, “Mags? You okay?”

Through sobs, I tried to explain, but all I could get out was, “I had a fucking awful night trying to play nice with my mom. Want to slam back some wine and toast to shitty mothers?” Cali’s mom was worse than mine, if that was even possible, and I was so glad she didn’t ask me to explain. Thankfully, she had gotten home from her trip already. I could hear her douche bag of a husband complaining that she was choosing me over him for the night, but she agreed to head over right away, yelling at him for being an insensitive jackass before hanging up the phone.

W
hen Cali pulled into the driveway, I hadn’t moved from the driver’s seat, still buckled in, my head resting on the steering wheel. Cali opened up the passenger’s side door, smiled sympathetically at my melancholy state and climbed in. Her long blonde hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and she had already washed all her makeup off. Judging by her sweatpants and glasses, I had pulled her away right as she was getting ready for bed; Cali was not the type to leave the house with her glasses on, or with makeup-less eyes and cheeks.

Shaking a bottle of pink, fruity wine at me, she giggled thoughtfully. “Are we drinking in this smelly old truck or what?”

Her amusement with her half-assed attempt to make me feel better calmed me down enough to look at her and attempt a smirk. “I guess we should go inside. We are going to need more wine than that nasty, sugary shit you drink.” I nudged her playfully and opened up the driver’s side door. With one big sigh, I jumped out of my seat and waited for Cali to join me. She wrapped me up in a huge hug, and then walked me into my house while a few frustrated tears ran down my cheeks.

Once inside, we made a beeline for the kitchen, where Cali jumped on the counter to sit while I opened her bottle of blush wine and my Malbec. As I started to pour our glasses too full to be classy, my best friend cocked her head to the side with a sly grin as she saw our oversized portions close to spilling over the edge. I rolled my eyes playfully, “What? It’s not the night for damn formalities, Cal! Trust me.”

She grasped her glass in both hands, slurped her first sip and giggled, slowly smiling from ear to ear. “Elena must have done a number on you tonight.” She jumped off the counter and hugged me again, while I let myself cry for a moment.

I grimaced, stepped back from Cali, took a huge gulp, and started ranting, pacing back and forth through the kitchen. I was screaming at the top of my lungs, forcing all of the anger out of my body. It was just too much weight to bear. “She just thinks I need to be over Randy already. I don’t get it. She’s my mom. She should be making me comfort food and stroking my hair while I cry for years to come if that’s what it takes. Not criticizing me for missing the love of my life. You know, she even tried to convince me Walker is cute! Can you freaking believe her?” I took another colossal swig of wine and choked a little from trying to swallow it too fast.
I cannot wait to numb this whole fucking night away.

“Yuck! Walker is a womanizing dick that probably has ten STDs by now.” Her nose crinkled and I could almost see her cheeks turning green while she thought about how many women Walker had actually hooked up with over the years we had known him. She was right about him sleeping around. Walker had Southern charm about him that could make anyone swoon, and no standards to speak of. Together, it was the perfect combination for a successful man whore.

I chuckled at Cali’s look of disgust and motioned for the living room, making sure to grab both bottles of wine and set them onto the coffee table. I got a couple of blankets out of the linen closet and curled up on the couch with Cali. It was fantastic that she was home, and I was so thankful she was here with me now. For every break up, every horrible fight, even bad test scores, we were always there for each other, no matter what. It was so comforting to know she was in my corner, not judging me in any way at all.

Topping off our glasses quickly, I decided changing the subject was in my best interest. The thought of Walker in that way made me a little uncomfortable, but not in the normal sense of
, ‘Gross, Walker’s like a brother and a disgusting man whore’
, but more like,
‘I shouldn’t have so many moments with Walker that give me butterflies,’
and I was definitely not ready to admit
that
to Cali. “So tell me about this business trip? Finally find a replacement for Kyle?”

Cali shoved me playfully, while flipping through the channels to find us a girly movie to watch, a look of playful shock spread across her lips. “You know I love him! He’s better than you think!” She turned to me, her smile fading into frustration. “And work is shitty like always. Just full of boring meetings about new lines we want to sell next year and lonely nights in the hotel.”

Cali was the chief sales agent for an importer that could never make enough money. Needless to say, her boss worked her to the bone. I had always told her she could make more money with fewer headaches at another firm, but Cali was loyal, sometimes too loyal. It was one of her best qualities.

She sighed at the TV; still channel surfing. “My shit is boring. What happened while I was away? Anything exciting?” Cali’s cheeks were already starting to turn a cute pink from her wine that probably tasted like Skittles; she had always been a lightweight.

I smiled, pinching her cheek, teasing her a little. “Nothing really exciting to report on my end. Work and moping, my usual routine, you know how I’ve been lately. Walker kept me company for the most part in your absence.”

Cali snapped her head around to look me dead in the eyes. “No wonder your mom said something, if Walker’s been around a lot lately! She does your freaking grocery shopping for crying out loud. She doesn’t do that for her health you know, she does it to stalk you!”

The thought of my mom stalking me had crossed my mind from time to time, but I hadn’t considered that she was paying too much attention, and the thought of it freaked me out. “Oh, I know, but I didn’t think she was watching closely enough to make assumptions about my love life, or lack thereof, for that matter. I mean she told me to move on because she wants grandkids eventually! It’s all just so fucked up! I told her to leave me alone for a while.” The anger from earlier settled back down in the pit of my stomach. I felt more blood boil up to make my skin flush from head to toe.
I really cannot believe the audacity of that woman!

For a few seconds, Cali just stared at me, her mouth open. “That’s a low blow. I would have socked her one if I had been there.” She meant it too. Her voice was low and vindictive. Every once in a while, Cali’s pink-girly exterior turned into a hot-headed bad-ass, a side of her I wished she used more often on her husband.

 Finally, we found
Pretty Woman
to watch and left it on in the background of our conversation as white noise.

Once we were finished with our little episode of complaining and ranting just a little bit more, I cuddled under my blanket, resting my head on Cali’s shoulder, staring at our arms side by side. “Cali, we’re both too pale. I think it’s a boat, drinks, and sun rays loving kind of Saturday coming up.” I smiled as she turned to look down on me with the biggest blue eyes filled with excitement. We used to go to the beach almost every weekend if weather would allow. It was our girl-time that we had both missed since Randy passed away.

Enthusiastically, Cali grabbed her cell off the coffee table and looked up our ten-day forecast. “Saturday is going to be perfect for tanning and fruity cocktails!” We settled back into our spots on the couch, letting ourselves get wrapped into the romance playing on the screen. Simple nights like this were what I really enjoyed, and I was lucky both of my best friends enjoyed those types of moments too.

We must have dozed off for an hour or so, judging by the fact that when I woke up, Julia Roberts was on the piano, refusing to kiss Richard Gere on the lips. I shook Cali awake gently; she rubbed her eyes, smiling, and stretching all at once. “I missed nights like this. I’m glad you are starting to come back to me!” Her sleepy voice was soft and slow as she wrapped me in a hug, making me feel all the loving warmth in her embrace.
I truly am so lucky that I have such amazing people in my life.

“You know what we need? Ice cream!” Cali jumped off the couch, excited by her epiphany. She trotted into the kitchen, her blonde bun bouncing with every step, and came back with a tub of mint chocolate chip that had been in my freezer for way too long. I couldn’t help but smile, pouring the remainder of our bottles of wine into the glasses. She grinned, taking her seat next to me. “Now we’re doing this right.”

We giggled, stuffed ice cream into our mouths and finished our wine. Scooping the last bit of green deliciousness from the bottom of the carton, the clock on the end table caught my eye. “Wow, it’s almost three in the morning, Cal. I think it’s time to call it a night. We both have to work in the morning, and I have my first therapy appointment in the afternoon. I don’t want to fall asleep on my shrink’s couch the first session. That might not make the best of impressions. You want to crash here?”

Cali leaned over, seeing the ten missed calls from her husband and sighed. “Yeah, I shouldn’t drive right now. Damn, he’s going to be pissed.”

Cali got up, going into the kitchen to call Kyle back. I could hear her yelling at him to grow up and remember her best friend was going through a rough time and, if she didn’t answer the first time to just leave it alone. She hung up in a huff of anger and climbed back onto the couch, snuggling up in her blanket. I grabbed a pillow for her from the hall closet. By the time I got back into the living room, Cali was already snoring. Even her snoring was adorable. I climbed the stairs to my room, smiling, silently thanking Cali for never giving up on me and making me feel almost normal for a change.

I crawled into bed, turned out my light, and checked my phone. I had three missed calls, one voice mail and five text messages. The voicemail I was determined to not listen to because it was from my mom and the sound of her voice may ruin my better mood. I scrolled over my mother’s three “I’m sorry” texts to get to the ones from Walker:

Hey Mags, I saw your mom leave in kind of a huff. Hope everything’s OK.

Just wanted to tell you I had a great time last night, Mags. Let’s make it a point to have more fun from now on. We both deserve it. Good night, darling.

I smiled, sighed and wiggled into a comfortable position on my side of the bed, rattling off a quick text back before falling into a dreamless sleep for the night:

Everything is fine, Cali came over and we had one of our famous wine-night-bitchfests … and yeah, last night was great, you have yourself a deal. Let’s have more fun. Good night, love.