“They can’t go anywhere without trouble. Jenson got in a fight over gossip about him and his mom. Alessandra headed straight for the tequila bottle when she got here.” My head fell in my hands as I sat on the chair by the unlit fire pit.
“You’ve been through it before; this time you just care more.”
Well, he was right about that. I had cared about past girlfriends, but not this way. I would have never contemplated letting them go so they could be happier without me.
“I’m thinking of ending it, so they don’t have to deal with it anymore.” As soon as the words came out, I hated it. I didn’t want to do that.
“We both know I’m not the best at this shit. I gave Livia space and time. I took her to the airport myself. But in the end, we were all that mattered. The space was needed on her end, and when she came back it was like the time apart never happened.”
I was with him after he let her go. He fell to shit, but still managed to live as best as he could, which wasn’t much. She had her space to figure out her life and then she came back to him. Now they were getting married.
“I don’t know what to do.”
“Wish I had the answer. You’ve always been there for me. If I can help, I’ll try.”
There was silence between us, because there was no advice to be given on his end, and I didn’t have any answers. He was just being there for me, if I needed it.
“I’m gonna talk to her.”
“Good plan.”
It was the only plan I had. Alessandra and I needed to talk it out like adults.
Killian and I hung up the phone, and I went to the water and stuck my toes in the waves, thinking about what I was going to say to my sleeping beauty when she woke up.
I didn’t go to sleep that night. Instead I walked the beach. When the sun barely started to light up the sky I decided to continue walking to the little convenience store to pick up some fresh bananas for my signature banana pancakes.
Alessandra and Jenson both loved them, and I was happy to make them breakfast.
While I was looking over the bunches of bananas, a woman approached me.
“Hey, you’re Joel Kline, right?” I smiled, giving her the official Joel Kline smile.
“Yep. How are you doing?” I held my hand out, and she shook it.
“I’m doing great. I’m sorry to bother you at the store, but I don’t think I’ll get another chance to do this.” She was blonde, pretty toned, with green eyes, and most likely in her late thirties. She was wearing scrubs.
“What can I do for you?” I was polite.
“I work at All Children’s Hospital.”
She went on to tell me about this big fundraiser they were doing and trying to raise money to help families who needed a little extra assistance when paying for medical bills and lodging. The whole fundraiser was going to be a carnival, and some of the kids could go and participate, but some wouldn’t be able to leave their rooms. She wanted to know if I would be interested in dressing up and entertaining the kids that couldn’t be around crowds or go outside. I asked for her card and told her I’d call,then walked her to her car. It sounded like an exhausting day, but totally worth it.
By the time I made it back to the house, Alessandra and Jenson were up already.
