Anywhere Is
He arrives home late.
His wife and sons are already asleep. Only the cat is awake. The night air feels cool. It's still raining. He just came back from Miami. He already misses the sun and the scent of the ocean, but he sure won't miss the heat. He checks on the kids, and gives the purring cat something to eat. He can't help smiling. Once upon a time he thought he would never be husband or father material. And now, somehow, he has become a family man.
How things changed. How people changed. He leans against the bedroom door watching Stephanie sleep. It's almost like some surreal movie. She was going to quit her job. She was going to grow up, settle down, and end up like everyone else. She was going to become what her mother always wanted her to be. She was going to marry Joe Morelli. A nice cozy house. A hard-working husband. A simple happy life. 2.5 kids. She was going to have it all. She would be safe. She would be fulfilled. And life would finally stop being so complicated. He still remembers the look in her bright blue eyes when she told him the happy news. He still remembers her shining engagement ring. He tucked an escaped curl behind her ear and left. He didn't kiss her on her lips. He spent 18 hours a day working.
She ran away from her wedding.
She jumped into Lula's car, her eyes wild, her mascara a mess. "Drive!" She screamed. And her trusted friend obliged. She disappeared for 2 whole weeks. The confusion and chaos she left behind. The fury and excitement she caused. Her mother was beyond herself. Her sister and friends laughed, and laughed, and laughed. She called him in the middle of the night from a pay phone in Point Pleasant. She didn't cry. She didn't sob. She didn't say anything. He heard the waves whispering. He heard the darkness looming. He heard all her sorrow, dreams, hopes, and fears. He heard her loneliness. He drove through the night to wrap her in his arms. He made plans for changes. They got married by a judge he knew. Her mother forgave her when their first child was born. Joe Morelli moved to another city and, one years later, got killed on duty.
The cat trots in and jumps onto the bed. Stephanie stirs, wakes up, and smiles at him. She once told him she wants a little girl after having three boys. He wonders if she has changed her mind. He knows a little part of her will always feel guilty about Morelli.
C'est la vie.