The next morning, I sat in a coffee shop with Tuesday trying to wake up from a long night talking with Paul.
"He said he wanted a divorce! As soon as I said great opportunity and Alaska, he shut down and didn't want to talk anymore. He'd said he thought that since I stopped talking about Alaska, that I had not wanted to go anymore. He did not want to go with me and if I wanted to go so bad, I should go and not come back. Seriously Tues, I have never been so shocked in my life. It sounds as if he hasn't loved me for a long time. "
"Maybe he hasn't, Bailey. What are you going to do, lay down and cry about it?" Tuesday sighed in half annoyance at the situation. "You should apply for that job in Homer and see how it goes."
"You know Tues, you are right. I think I will. It is time that Bailey Shank started her life over!"
We downed the last of our coffee and walked out. We had finals to prepare for and I also had a resume and application to send in. Suddenly, I felt optimistic about my life.
But an unsettling thought crept into my mind, "What do I tell the girls?"
"I need to find the fish, this is just not working for me." Johnathan thought as he cruised around on F/V Fishing Fever towards another spot in Cook Inlet. "As a matter of fact, nothing is working for me lately." Johnathan pulled his gillnetter up to an old favorite fishing spot finds the fish and sets his net. "Enough with this thinking, this is going to get me killed!" he thought as he whipped the boat around to trap the salmon.
A little while later as Johnathan pulls his net aboard and finishes filling his boat, he heads back to the cannery to off load and try to be the first one at the fishing camp.
"I just want a few minutes alone with my Crown and hot dog before Russell comes along talking non-stop." He muses to himself. No such luck, Russell had made it in early, but he had a beautiful blonde keeping his mouth busy for the moment. "Just as well, I wasn't in the mood to listen to what ever Russ had to say right now." John muttered to himself as he saddled up to the burn barrel to burn his hot dog. John was done eating when Russ finally came up for air.
"Hey John, what's eating you?"
"Nothing, but I see who has been eating you. Tell me you brought me a lady too."
"Nah, the way you have been turning ladies down lately, I thought I would take one myself!" Russ motioned at his date with his head. "She's a real fire cracker, that one! Too bad you turned her down last week."
"I didn't turn her down, Russ. I decided it was time to go home… alone…"
"Sure John, whatever you want to tell yourself." Russ said as he walked back to his date.
To be honest, John wasn't very interested in anyone at this point. They were all the same. They were all too girly, they all wanted to stay home and play house, and most of all they all wanted him to quit crabbing as soon as they got their manicured nails into him. He was tired of it. Tired of all the women he ever knew trying to marry him and trying to change him, and dang it, he liked who he was!
Russ came up for air again and John settled down against a log and pretended to sleep. The other guys showed up an hour later, but John still wasn't in the mood to talk. He threw the dart at the van that determined where he was going to fish the next day, hit his target again in the lower region and took off to sleep on his boat.
"Maybe tomorrow I can fish without inner demons attacking me." He sighed and settled in for a restless night.
I sat in front of her computer waiting for her Skype interview with Homer High's principle and superintendent. I thought it is strange that business was being conducted in this manner, but thought that maybe semi casual is how they do things in Alaska. No matter though, I was just delighted to be in a dress top and sweat pants during an interview. "As long as they don't ask me to stand up, I will be fine." I thought with a smile as the interview started.
As the interview ended, the superintendent and principal offered Bailey a job and gave her until the beginning of August to move to Homer. Bailey took the job and ended the interview and ran circles in her house screaming at the top of her lungs. "I am going to Alaska!"