With a groan, she got up and crossed over to her office and turned on her computer. Better to look at it on the big screen than on her phone in case it was something serious.
Opening the email, her heart sank as she read the words in front of her. It was the rental agreement for this building, and it changed the renter from Anderson Miles to Rafferty Brooks. She had a clause in all her agreements that if the person who rented it changed, there would be a new agreement written up. And here it was.
Anderson was leaving, and he hadn’t told her. The fact that he was leaving was heart-wrenching enough, but him not telling her was as bad as Franky leaving her years before.
Based on the date, he would be gone in two weeks. How long had he been planning this? Was he ever going to tell her? Did he think she wouldn’t notice when Rafferty came to work instead of him?
After printing the contract, she opened a new document. The resignation letter was brief and to the point; no flowery words were needed. She printed that one too. With both papers printed, her hand shook as she signed them both. Along with her signature, Anderson was leaving her life.
When they had started dating, she had known it would end but felt they had more time. Instead, they had a matter of weeks before he would be gone. After so many years of pining after him, she only got to hold on to him for a blink of an eye.
Taking the papers, she slipped on her shoes and walked down to the office. Turning on the light, she put each paper in a folder and placed them on Anderson's desk. From there, she went to her desk and turned on the computer. As she waited, she removed anything personal that she wanted. There was nothing; she had no pictures, no knickknacks, nothing. Twelve years, and nothing was hers in the office…except the office itself.
Once the computer was on, she wiped the computer back to the basic programs and a few insurance ones that were needed. Then she changed the networking information to a basic network that joined the two computers. She did the same with Anderson’s computer.
On her way out of the office, she looked around at where she had spent so many hours. Had they been wasted in this office? It would never be the same without Anderson.
Remembering the first day he had shown up, she had wondered if she should have quit when Frank did. When Anderson had walked through the door, she knew she had to stay, to see where this would all lead to. Five years later, and now she knew it went nowhere.
Grabbing her name plaque from the desk, she shut off the light and locked the door behind her. The cold air swirled around her as she touched the door where his name was printed on it. Anderson Miles.
Back upstairs, she called her mom, who did not ask any questions. Instead, she just said she would come for her. At that point, she had twenty minutes before her mom got there.
First, she dismantled her computers from her office and put them in a box. She would take them both and three important pieces of network equipment from the wall. One cordless headset was added to the pile, and everything was placed by the door. Next, she went to her bedroom. Taking out the old suitcase that she had used only a few times, she packed it until it was full, then called it done. If she didn’t have it, she didn’t need it.
With the few remaining minutes, she emptied her fridge of things that would be rotten in the two weeks before April first, Anderson’s last day in Landstad. She emptied the garbage and put it in the hallway as well.
Before leaving, Ruth looked around her apartment one last time. It looked clean and comfortable. It looked like her home. She would be back in a month, but she couldn’t watch Anderson walk out of her life. She wasn’t strong enough for that, not again.
Quickly she took the garbage out to the dumpster in the back of the building and then started to move her boxes down the stairs. Soon, her mom showed up to help, and Chester, too. The three of them silently moved all the boxes to her mom’s Buick’s massive trunk and back seat.
Sara handed her daughter the keys to the old car and gave her a long hug. Ruth fought back the tears as she watched her mom climb into the passenger seat next to Chester. Then they drove off. They would head back to where they came from.
Ruth locked the door to her apartment for the first time in years, then climbed into the car that was still warm from her mom driving it to her. As she headed out of town, she let the tears fall. Anderson had forced her out of the town she loved, or was it really that she loved Anderson, and he was leaving town? Leaving her.