We’re currently at the coffee shop. We’re having a pretty busy day, and although Tia has been here for an hour, I’ve only been able to talk to her now.
I give her a look. “I’m not married.”
“You might as well be. I haven’t been able to see you because you’ve been with Michael. It’s like now that you have him, you don’t need me anymore.” She pouts.
I immediately feel bad. I haven’t meant to ignore my friend. But she’s right, I’ve been immersed with Mike for the past few weeks. I’ve just been so happy—but that doesn’t excuse the fact that I didn’t give my best friend the time of the day.
“I’m sorry, Tia. I promise I’m all yours for the rest of the day. As soon as I’m done with work.”
“It’s fine.” She waves me off. “I assume he’s treating you well. You seem happy,” she notes.
“I am. I’m so perfectly happy that it’s scary. I can’t help feeling that it’s not going to last. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
Tia sighs. “You’re doing it again, Christine.”
“Doing what?”
“Trying to run. Whenever you feel like you’ve got something good going on, you start fixating extra hard on the bad because you’re scared. You would rather see the pain coming from far away than be forced to deal with it if and when it arrives.”
I blink “I’m not following.”
“I’m saying, this thing with Michael is amazing and perfect for you. Don’t ruin it because you’re so sure something will go wrong. Enjoy it, babe. Lord knows you deserve it.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I say unsurely.
“I am right,” Tia protests with a laugh. “Anyway, I’m here with some not-so-nice news.”
I sit up. “What?”
“I’m going back to work. My boss assigned me to Thailand and I leave in a week.”
I actually feel my heart break. “You’re leaving?”
“Chrissy, I was always going to leave eventually. I have a job and a life outside of Arcola.”
“Right, yes. Of course, you do,” I tell her.
It’s hard not to be sad about the prospect of not being able to see her when I want to. These past few months caused me to forget that Tia has her own job as well. I’ve grown used to having her as my own crutch, but I guess it’s time to say goodbye.
“Don’t give me that look like you’re about to cry,” she scolds. “I have no idea what happened to you. You’ve gone soft, Christine Lawson.”
“I have not,” I protest. “I’m just really going to miss you.”
“I know, babe.” Tia sighs before getting to her feet.
I do the same, and she pulls me into a hug.
“I’ll try to call you whenever I can,” she vows.
“Don’t go falling for a Thai bad boy that’s going to break your heart,” I warn.
“You know that’s exactly my type,” Tia cries, making me laugh. “I’ll be fine, Christine, I promise. Just live your best life here. Be happy, okay?”
“I will. You be safe.”
We hug one last time and manage not to start crying. It’s not our final goodbye, though. I’ll get Michael to drive us to the airport and I’m pretty sure I’m going to lose it there.
* * *