“Great to hear. I know Sarah is looking forward to seeing you,” he murmured.
The softness of his tone reminded me of when he would do this humming in my ear, and it would put me to sleep. I missed his touch and the way he wrapped those powerful arms around me.
But are you, Chalk? Do you want to see me?
I bit my lip, fighting my insecurities and the words sitting right on the tip of my tongue. When I saw his face, I knew it would change everything between us. “Can you put her on the phone for a quick minute? I wanna say hello to her,” I asked again.
“Sure, let me call her. Sarah! Your Mom’s on the phone. She wants to talk to you, sweetheart,” he shouted across the house.
Light puffing noises came through the line in no time. “Hi Mom! I miss you, when are you coming here? When are you coming here?” Sarah bubbled. She was so gleeful and bright. Even as a little baby she had this glow to her that was incredible.
“Sooner than you think, I’ll be there. I want to see your face on Saturday, are you free?”
“Yes!” And my little curly-haired beauty was smart, if a little on the sassier side.
“Thank you, I appreciate it. I love you and see you on Saturday. Be good for your Dad, he’s told me you’ve been acting up lately,” I told her firmly.
“No, no. That’s not me,” she said defiantly, acting a little coy about that part.
I could just imagine that she had her little arms crossed over her chest. “Sarah, come on now. You’re not telling little white lies are you now?” I asked her sweetly.
“No, Mommy, I’m not. I have to go now. I’m playing,” Sarah’s voice was sulky and frowning. She seemed to be having more behavioral problems than usual. I knew Chalk normally didn’t end the calls. He would let Sarah take over the call and she would end up clicking the end call button.
Only a few more days to go.
The address to Chalk and Sarah’s house was loaded into my GPS. I had pushed all of my nervousness into the pit of my belly. I checked my lipstick in the mirror just to kill time. Procrastination kept me anchored in my seat as I tried to quell the swirling doubts in my stomach. I cranked the car as a first step.
There you go Lucy. Now, put the car in drive. You can do it. It’s Chalk and your daughter. Your people. Go, go, go.
The wheels of my car slowly turned as I pulled out from the curb, making my way to wherever the robotic lady’s voice directed me to go. I drove slowly, taking in the scenery and letting my memory go to work. Holbeck remained just the same; there were no big, loud changes in the town. It contained the familiar sleepy mugginess as when I’d left it years ago. It felt like a comfort to me in a way, helping ease things in my mind as I drove. I turned left onto the first street just as I was directed.
Part of the way I’d forgotten, then I turned onto the second street and turned right. I slowed the car down as I got closer to Chalk’s place. A nice timber house with a few weeds around the sidewalk. I doubted Chalk had time to work on it. A normal walking path led to the door. Clearly, it was a nice cozy home, fit for everyone in it. I expelled a huge breath and peered over the wheel at it. I was too chicken shit to park right out front, so I parked further back.
As I looked on, Chalk emerged from the house with a hot blonde. She was svelte, with a mane that was enviable. I gasped out loud as I saw her linked arm in arm with Chalk. His arms were toned, with those wiry legs filling out in a nice pair of jeans. His hair looked ruffled and golden, just how I remembered it. The amount of times I used to run my fingers through that beautiful cropped gold were too many to count.
I watched on in horror, unable to look away, as he opened the door to her car for her.
Heart hurting. Head spinning. I gotta get outta here. Shit. I messed up.
I thumped the steering wheel with my palm, waiting as she drove off.
Not today.
Deflated, I watched as she drove away. I slunk down in my seat so Chalk wouldn’t see me and made a U-turn, screeching as I took off back to my new apartment. My eyes pricked with tears as I accelerated away from my greatest source of pain and joy.
My plans to get my family back were going to be harder than I thought.