even came up. Sure, it was there, but it was never an issue.”
“From the sound of it, you guys didn’t have a handle on the issues.”
Ethan thought about it and realized that his brother was right. He and Kayla didn’t have a typical relationship - because they weren’t allowed to. It’s not like they could go out on dates, or be together in public. They spent their time cooped up in Ethan’s house - and there was only one thing happening there.
They were still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship. They hadn’t been given the chance to deal with any of the real issues; to solidify and strengthen their bond as a result of the little disagreements and arguments that usually crop up in the beginning. They had been hit with something big from the get-go; and it had left them in shambles.
“I’m going to get her back,” Ethan said.
“Get her back?” Trevor repeated. “She didn’t sound like she was in the mood to be won over.”
“She’s just upset. She’ll calm down, and when she does, we’ll be able to have a more adult, mature conversation.” Ethan nodded to himself. “I can win her back.”
Trevor shook his head doubtfully. “You dated her best friend. Girls don’t usually get over that sort of thing.”
Ethan cringed again. He knew that he was facing an uphill battle and that Trevor was the voice of reason. But love wasn’t reasonable.
“I’ll make it work,” he said, resolute.
Trevor sat there and stared at his older brother for a long minute. He raised his glass. “You’re going to need all of the luck you can get, then.”
The two clinked their glasses together in a toast, and then drank into the late hours of the night.
* * * * *
I drove.
I drove for a long time.
The sun had been up when I left Ethan’s house, but I kept driving until it was pitch black outside. I wasn’t going anywhere in particular - I just wasn’t ready to go home. Going home meant that I had to face reality. Avoiding reality was only delaying the inevitable, but I had a right to be a little delusional, given the circumstances.
The night sky was beautiful. Stars shone bright and vibrant. One of the things I had come to love about Tucson was how dark it was. Laws kept the light pollution abnormally low so telescopes could be used to view the night sky. Once, someone had told me that Tucson was considered the astronomy capital of the world. I didn’t know if that was true, but I did enjoy looking up at the stars. They took me somewhere else; a place where I could forget all of the worries in my life.
I didn’t remember driving all the way up there, but I found myself at Lookout Summit. It was nestled on the side of Mount Lemmon and gave a perfect view out over the city.
It was peaceful.
I leaned against my car and watched the city lights shimmer. The low winter moon cast its long light across the city. The lights hovered and bounced and reminded me of the way the moon’s light reflected off the gentle waters on Lake Havasu. We used to go there when I was a child. My parents would rent a boat and we’d speeding along the lake, carefree and happy. It was a magical time. But it was a time I would never get back.
Those vacations had stopped. They were a thing of the past - a past where my father could still make money working in technology. We had to go through a lot of changes when he was laid off. Mother worked as a bookkeeper for a few small businesses in Flagstaff, and that kept food on the table. But Dad could never find another job in technology. He had blamed it on a number of things; but I knew that it was because he had never been to college. He didn’t have the formal education and training, stamped on the right paperwork and the right credentials, to earn a competitive wage. It was his life’s passion and he was better at it than any fresh college graduate - but that didn’t matter. Eventually Mom got him on for one of her clients - a local general store - and he had been there
“From the sound of it, you guys didn’t have a handle on the issues.”
Ethan thought about it and realized that his brother was right. He and Kayla didn’t have a typical relationship - because they weren’t allowed to. It’s not like they could go out on dates, or be together in public. They spent their time cooped up in Ethan’s house - and there was only one thing happening there.
They were still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship. They hadn’t been given the chance to deal with any of the real issues; to solidify and strengthen their bond as a result of the little disagreements and arguments that usually crop up in the beginning. They had been hit with something big from the get-go; and it had left them in shambles.
“I’m going to get her back,” Ethan said.
“Get her back?” Trevor repeated. “She didn’t sound like she was in the mood to be won over.”
“She’s just upset. She’ll calm down, and when she does, we’ll be able to have a more adult, mature conversation.” Ethan nodded to himself. “I can win her back.”
Trevor shook his head doubtfully. “You dated her best friend. Girls don’t usually get over that sort of thing.”
Ethan cringed again. He knew that he was facing an uphill battle and that Trevor was the voice of reason. But love wasn’t reasonable.
“I’ll make it work,” he said, resolute.
Trevor sat there and stared at his older brother for a long minute. He raised his glass. “You’re going to need all of the luck you can get, then.”
The two clinked their glasses together in a toast, and then drank into the late hours of the night.
* * * * *
I drove.
I drove for a long time.
The sun had been up when I left Ethan’s house, but I kept driving until it was pitch black outside. I wasn’t going anywhere in particular - I just wasn’t ready to go home. Going home meant that I had to face reality. Avoiding reality was only delaying the inevitable, but I had a right to be a little delusional, given the circumstances.
The night sky was beautiful. Stars shone bright and vibrant. One of the things I had come to love about Tucson was how dark it was. Laws kept the light pollution abnormally low so telescopes could be used to view the night sky. Once, someone had told me that Tucson was considered the astronomy capital of the world. I didn’t know if that was true, but I did enjoy looking up at the stars. They took me somewhere else; a place where I could forget all of the worries in my life.
I didn’t remember driving all the way up there, but I found myself at Lookout Summit. It was nestled on the side of Mount Lemmon and gave a perfect view out over the city.
It was peaceful.
I leaned against my car and watched the city lights shimmer. The low winter moon cast its long light across the city. The lights hovered and bounced and reminded me of the way the moon’s light reflected off the gentle waters on Lake Havasu. We used to go there when I was a child. My parents would rent a boat and we’d speeding along the lake, carefree and happy. It was a magical time. But it was a time I would never get back.
Those vacations had stopped. They were a thing of the past - a past where my father could still make money working in technology. We had to go through a lot of changes when he was laid off. Mother worked as a bookkeeper for a few small businesses in Flagstaff, and that kept food on the table. But Dad could never find another job in technology. He had blamed it on a number of things; but I knew that it was because he had never been to college. He didn’t have the formal education and training, stamped on the right paperwork and the right credentials, to earn a competitive wage. It was his life’s passion and he was better at it than any fresh college graduate - but that didn’t matter. Eventually Mom got him on for one of her clients - a local general store - and he had been there
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